McClellanville Events
Village Holiday Art Walk 2009
December 4th, 2009 McClellanville Events Daniel Bates Comments
Quick Post here: Village Artists and Craftsmen Group would like to welcome you to the Village Holiday Art Walk
Friday, December 4 (Tonight) from 5 p.m. -8 pm
Saturday, December 5 from 10 a.m. – 5 pm
Enjoy holiday shopping, dining and visiting artist’s studios along Pinckney Street in the Historic District of McClellanville. Find original reasonably priced treasures including antiques, collectables, paintings, drawings, woodcut prints, jewelry, pottery, photography, books by local authors, handmade baby fashions, sculpture and much more…Participating Shops, Restaurants , Artists and other Venues
Aaron Baldwin Studio
Another Time – Vintage Kitchen Ware
Cassena Studios: John McWilliams and Nancy Marshall
Elizabeth Bronson Studio
Grillmaster Barbecue
Lee Arthur Studio
McClellanville Art Center
Pinckney Street Kitchen with Sarah Scott and Sheila McClellan
Pluff Mud
Sassafras – A Creative Department Store
The Yellow Shop – Art and Antiques
Thornhill Farm- Our Local Foods and Adaptive Gardens
T.W. Graham Seafood Restaurant
Village Museum
And many more McClellanville Artists & Craftsmen
Directions: from Mt. Pleasant on Hwy 17 North, turn right onto Hwy 45- follow the curve to the LEFT where it becomes Pinckney Street. Keep left and proceed to the Historic District.
“Deerhead Oak” copyright 2009, McWilliams & Marshall
November means Oysters in McClellanville
November 4th, 2009 McClellanville Events, McClellanville News Daniel Bates Comments
I’ll go ahead and say it. I don’t like seafood. Yes, I grew up in McClellanville, “the seafood capital of the world”, but the taste of crabs, clams, shrimp, fish, and oysters has never really been that appealing to me. I try not to open with this point, because most seafood lovers write me off as crazy, but I can’t help my taste buds.
All that aside, I’ve got to say that I love a good oyster roast. It’s such a great excuse to get bundled up, go out and see friends you haven’t seen in a while. There are also, of course, OYSTERS and if you enjoy those slimy boogers (yes, I said it) then you’ve got a lot to look forward to this weekend.
In addition to the Village Museum’s Annual Oyster Roast, which is always a blast, Thornhill Farms will also be holding “Local Music on the Farm” benefit with oysters. No need to choose, because they’re on different days. The Village Museum Oyster Roast which is held under the Town Hall is Saturday, November 7th at 6pm and also includes great home-made deserts, soups, and chilis (which I usually consume a dozen or so bowls of). It’s free to museum members or $20 donation at the door. BYOB and BYOOK – that’s Bring Your Own Oyster Knives for those that haven’t been to many roasts.
Thornhill Farms event will be Sunday, November 8th from 12-5pm and feature live music, barbercue and oysters. Proceeds go to benefit the Adaptive Gardens of the Lowcountry and the cost is $25 for adults and $10 for children. All the details are on the images and you can click them to see a bigger picture. If I can kick this nasty cold, I’ll see you there.
For those of you that weren’t “born and raised”, oyster season couldn’t be easier to remember. The rule of thumb is that oysters are only harvested (and therefore consumed fresh) in months with an “R” in them, so starting around SeptembeR and going to ApRil oysters are typically harvested. Small batches of oysters can be cooked on a baking sheet in the oven or broiler until the pop open. The preferred local method, however, is to wait until the weather gets a little colder for a good excuse to break the cabin fever. Build a rip roarin’ fire (outside) until you’ve got a nice stock pile of coals and then place a sheet of metal (a rusted sheet of tin or slab o’ steel work well) over the coals. Shovel on the oysters and cover with a dampened burlap sack or towel and cook for around 15-20 minutes or until they’ve all popped open. Around here you don’t even have to send out invitations, people just wander from out of the woods with oyster knives in hand.
It doesn’t matter if you harvest them yourself, have them delivered, buy them at a market, or pay a professional as long as you’re getting local Bull’s Bay Oysters and enjoying them with friends, it can’t go wrong.
2009 Hurricane Season Begins…and I need your help
June 1st, 2009 Headline, McClellanville Events, Ramblings Daniel Bates Comments
Hurricane season is once again upon us and this year will mark the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Hugo which devastated McClellanville on September 21st (and well into the 22nd) of 1989. Amazingly there was no loss of life within the town, but the path of destruction was the worst left by a hurricane at it’s time and McClellanville was ground zero. Anyone that lived here at the time knows that there are many reasons to not want to relive the agony and loss experienced. However, I’d like to propose that after 20 years we are due for an “I Survived Hurricane Hugo” celebration and remembrance.
I’ll be posting more about Hurricane Hugo and hurricane preparedness later, but to prepare for the coming anniversary I would like to gather pictures of the village after Hugo in order to prepare a slideshow. Fallen trees, muddy floors and streets, damaged homes and boats, volunteers, National Guard, cleanup efforts, whatever you have that will add to the story.
If you have a scanner you can scan and email your photos to me. Otherwise I will be scanning pictures. You can submit them at our office and I will scan them and get them back to you as soon as possible. Be sure to mark them with your information so nothing gets mixed and they are returned to the right place. You can submit individual pictures or packages and I will sort through them and choose the best. Through this effort, we will be preserving these images forever. If we get enough images I will even prepare a slideshow presentation for the town and make CD’s available. All credit will be given to the original photographers, so please feel free to submit your best images.
We have a whole new population in the village that didn’t live through this experience that forever reshaped the way we viewed life. Many have seen scrapbooks from one person or another, but few know the whole story. An event like this can pull us together as a stronger community as we share our past experiences. As the eyes of the nation fall on us again I propose that we present an image fitting the way that we banded together after Hugo to repair the Village.
There is no denying that it was a horrible experience. A decade later, we still used “before Hugo” and “after Hugo” as the major time indicator. I know some suffered enormous financial loss, but I dare say that McClellanville is a better place because of those tragedies because of what we learned about ourselves in the rebuilding process. We learned the generosity of the human race as volunteers poured in to help a small town they had never heard of but saw only glimpses of on the news. FEMA was probably less helpful than their dreadful performance in New Orleans after Katrina, but nobody gave up and begged for a handout. We rebuilt.
If you ask most people you’ll find that the biggest tragedy wasn’t the shrimpboat in their front yard, 6 inches of mud in their house, or even their missing roof…it was that grandma’s quilt was missing or the ruined wedding album. These are the things that we lost that we’ll never get back. I was only 9 at the time of Hugo and couldn’t grasp that at the time (it was a big adventure for me, since there was no school for weeks and weeks and tons of new things to see) but I realize this now.
So dust off your scrap books and share your stories as we remember a part of our history that helped make us the town we are today…Who’s with me?
Update: These picture provided were used to create a gallery in my McClellanville: 20 Years after Hurricane Hugo posts
Shrimpboat picture courtesy of Mike Burton.
McClellanville Mother’s Day Wrap-up
May 10th, 2009 McClellanville Events, Neighborhoods Daniel Bates Comments
My Mother’s day in McClellanville was spent watching my little one to give mom a well deserved break. We wrapped up the day by going to the Town Hall to the “Mothers Who Love Puppies Benefit Concert” to benefit Helping Hand Animal Rescue & Rehab Therapy to hear Kathy Livingston (the one from Nature Adventures Outfitters) sing. She had a great voice, singing a great mix of kids songs, folk songs, beach songs, and contemporary and all of her record sales go to charity.
Ken Burger had a great article in the Post and Courier about being “Raised by a Hundred Mothers“, a feeling I can definitely relate to having grown up in McClellanville. I’ve written about the it-takes-a-village mentality before, but Burger puts it best with this line, “Looking back, there were truly super women. They worked full time, sang in the choir, volunteered at the school, taught us to dance, held our families together and somehow found time to raise a village full of children.”
The Post and Courier also reported on one of our own this weekend, St. James Santee Episcople Churches minister, Jennie Olbrych. I adore Jennie. She is an amazing woman who is passionate about God’s word and always willing to help members of the community despite not living in McClellanville. You can spot her in the videos on my most recent Shrimp Festival article as she has been responsible for blessing the fleet the past few years…come rain or shine.
Finally, I’d be remiss to not take a moment to acknowledge the two mom’s that make my everyday life possible. My Mom, Susan Bates, lives just around the corner from me. I can literally see her house through the woods (do I get credit for not being a momma’s boy if I told you that I lived away from home for 8 years?). My mom is a strong, confident, and beautiful woman. My wife and I both have a great relationship with her (and my dad) and eat dinner with them almost every week (Thursday’s are Survivor night at the Bates house). She’s also been a Godsend the past two years watching our son while we work and even allowing the occasional date night and I’m so happy he has someone like her to take him out in the garden, tromping in the woods, and crabbing.
My wife, Josie is my rock! We were friends before dating and as a result know each other very well and compliment each others weaknesses. She is an amazing mother with the perfect amount of discipline and love for our son. She keeps me grounded but always supports me a rare thing to find. She works hard and always has a smile on her beautiful face. I definitely couldn’t do all the things I do without the help from these two great women and I often call upon them to review my articles, so my website wouldn’t be the same without them either.
PS – Charleston Painter, Katherine Muschick, wrote a great article about the McClellanville Arts Council’s Youth Art Show, so please check that out and leave a comment on her site. Congratulations to the great local artists as well!
Strawberry Picking at Patriots Farms
May 7th, 2009 McClellanville Events Daniel Bates Comments
Patriots Farms
10970 A N. Hwy 17
843-887-4010
Pre-picked Bucket: $10
U-pick Bucket: $7.50
A few miles north of McClellanville on Highway 17 you’ll find Patriots Farms, or as it is more commonly known, “the strawberry farm”. The strawberries have just ripened and will only be in season for another month or so, so be sure to go get some soon. You may want to give them a call and listen to the answering machine message for their times as it may change depending on the availability of the crop. If you’re picking your own ($7.50 per bucket), I’d recommend the morning while it’s still cool. You can easily fill a bucket in twenty or thirty minutes worth of picking…even with a 2-year-old robbing a few. Or you can pick up a bucket of freshly picked strawberries for just $10. They also have strawberry jams and honey.
Not only is strawberry picking a great summer activity, but they’re of course a tasty treat that can be prepared many ways. They’re great as a snack all by themselves or on cereal or shortbread with whipped cream or baked into a cobbler. I personally love to cut the tops off and lay them on a baking sheet and freeze them. From there you transfer them to zip lock bags and keep them year round. Use them like ice cubes, a cold treat, or blend them up in daiquiris!
33rd Lowcountry Shrimp Festival
May 6th, 2009 McClellanville Events Daniel Bates Comments
This will be the third year I’ve covered the Lowcountry Shrimp Festival on my blog, so it’s starting to become old hat. This year my wife’s parents came down to enjoy the festivities though, so I’ve included a small portion of the picture that my mother-in-law took while enjoying the festival and the blessing of the fleet.
This was the 33rd year of the annual event, which includes vendors, games, silent auction, live music, dancing, and of course seafood. Overall, it was a great day for kids of all ages, except for a brief shower right in the middle of the blessing of the fleet. The Lowcountry Shrimp Festival is organized by and profits Archibald Rutledge Academy. Both these new websites are courtesy of MCVL.net – Lowcountry Blogging Network – contact me today to get your own website).
Just before the blessing I escaped across to the other side of Jeremy Creek to film the blessing of the fleet from a different perspective. I’m going to try to incorporate more videos into my posts in the future, but it’s all a learning process.
2008 Village Holiday Art Walk
December 3rd, 2008 McClellanville Events Comments
This Friday (12/5/08) from 5pm to 8pm and Saturday (12/6/08) from 10am to 5pm the downtown area of McClellanville will be transformed into a holiday art walk. It will be a great time to get a head start (or finish up) your Christmas shopping while saving money at the same time. There will be plenty of locally-prepared baked goods, seafood and barbecue in addition to gifts of all kinds from local artists and business owners. I encourage everyone to come out and support the local economy. Here are the participating businesses so far:
Pinckney Street Kitchen, The Yellow Shop, Pluff Mud, Elizabeth Bronson Studio, Cassena Studios: John McWilliams and Nancy Marshall, Lee Arthur Studios, Sassafras, Another Time, Ma-King Concrete Works, McClellanville Arts Center, T.W. Graham Seafood Restaurant, and The Village Museum. For more information or to participate call Sarah Nell Scott at 887-4001. The wreaths featured here are some of my wife’s and will also be for sale as well.
The Village Museum’s Annual Oyster Roast
November 3rd, 2008 McClellanville Events Comments
Come One, Come All to the McClellanville Oyster Roast under the Town Hall Saturday, November 8th, 2008 at 6p.m. This yearly event is sponsored by the Village Museum and thrown in appreciation of all of it’s members. Members, of course, get in free, but non-members can also enjoy the great food for just a $15 donation. Chilis, chowders, and desserts will all be served in addition to the tons of Bull’s Bay Oysters. Bring your own oyster knives, gloves, beverages, and friends!
Last year, Village Museum Director, Bud Hill was bestowed the Order of the Silver Crescent. What will happen this year?
McClellanville Creek Cleanup and Fishing Tournament
September 14th, 2008 McClellanville Events Comments
There are two great events coming up in McClellanville.
This Saturday, Sept 20th, is Beach Sweep / River Sweep Day. Volunteers will be cleaning up Jeremy Creek from 10:00am to 1:00pm in participation with International Coastal Cleanup . Cheves Leland and Sherry Browne are once again heading this event up and Nature Adventure Outfitters will be graciously providing kayaks and canoes free of charge to those who do not have one. My wife and I participated in last year’s Creek Sweep and had a great time paddling around in our big old canoe scooping up trash. Here’s a picture of the 40+ bags of trash collected last year, lets see if we can top it this year!
There will also be raffles for prizes as well so be sure to check in at the boat landing before you start.
Also coming up on October 4th is the Josh Thomas Memorial Creekslam. This is McClellanville’s 17th Annual Inshore Fishing Tournament, which has been renamed in loving memory of former Archibald Rutledge Academy senior who was an avid fisherman. For much more information on this event please visit www.CreekSlam.com . If you register before September 19th , you will get a free T-shirt. 
The Deerhead Oak: SC Heritage Tree 2007
May 11th, 2008 McClellanville Events Comments
You cant drive through McClellanville without noticing the landmark Deerhead Oak on a cleared lot at the corner of Pinckney Street and Oak Street. The tree is easily the most photographed attraction in town and everyone growing up in McClellanville has climbed up into its cradling arms at least once. The town is blessed with hundreds of ancient live oaks, their limbs draped with Spanish moss, but the Deerhead Oak holds a special place in everyones hearts.
The Deerhead Oak is both larger in circumference, 30.6 feet, and height, 67 feet, than the famed Angel Oak on Johns Island, SC estimated by some to be more than 1500 years old and thought to be the oldest living thing east of the Mississippi River. Of course, it is hard to estimate the age of these ancient trees, which predate the discovery of America by the Europeans, because boring samples are not reliable due to a tendency for the live oaks heart wood to rot.
It takes some creativity to see the deer head, with its knobby eyes and nose and long antler branches, but no matter if you cant. The value in the tree comes not from its likeness to an animal, but from its beauty and history.
One thing is for sure, the Deerhead Oak was well established when it first saw the founding fathers of what would become the village. McClellanvilles very first store was built in the shade of the tree by William P. Beckman. But even before the European settlers, the Deerhead Oak was probably climbed by the local Seewee Indians for hundreds of years.
The oak tree has long been known as a symbol of strength and triumph, so what better image to use to represent the community of McClellanville. The village has a tight-knit community which pulls together in good times and in bad. Like the mighty oak, McClellanvilles family tree has large long limbs that intertwine with each other. Our roots grow deep in the rich coastal soil and our history reaches back to the founding of this country.
On May 10th, 2008 the Deerhead Oak was dedicated as South Carolinas 2007 Heritage Tree of the Year. The McClellanville Tree Committee sponsored the event held in the shady branches of the towns landmark live oak at the corner of Oak Street and Pinckney Street. A plaque commemorating Deerhead Oak as the Heritage Tree for 2007 was unveiled as well as a second plaque honoring the Beckman family (the owners of the land on which Deerhead Oak rests) for their gracious contribution to McClellanvilles greenspace and the towns history.
Ed Farnworth, of the Tree Committee, made introductions and then Bud Hill, director of the Village Museum, spoke about the history of the tree. Danny Burbage, the Vice President of the SC Urban and Community Forestry Council, officially bestowed the honor to the Deerhead Oak. Mrs. Anne Beckman Rumer spoke about her familys history and said that the land surrounding the Deerhead Oak would remain a public greenspace for the enjoyment of the town that she loves so dearly. Jimmy McClellan read the following excerpt from his poem The Voice of the Deer Head Tree:
A giant oak stands in the town,
Its known as the Deer Head Tree.
Surely the oldest living thing
Within our community.
For centuries rooted in place,
Watching the seasons pass.
No telling just how old it is,
Or how long yet it may last.
I sometimes wonder if this old tree
Had senses and wit ad tongue,
What stories it might tell us,
Of events since it was young.
~By James O. McClellan
Related Article: Deerhead Oak Rooted Deeply in Community