Subject: Combahee River Area
Resent-Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1998 16:25:17 -0700 (PDT)
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Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1998 19:23:48 -0400
From: "Steven J. Coker" 
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Extracts From:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Charleston District
Navigability Study 1977
COMBAHEE RIVER AREA
Report No. 02 of 18
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SECTION 2 - PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

The Combahee River area ... is located in the southeastern portion of the
state of South Carolina and is bounded by the Edisto River basin on the east
and the Coosawhatchie River basin on the west. The largest river in the area
covered by this report is the Combahee River, which is formed by the
confluence of the Salkehatchie and Little Salkehatchie Rivers at approximately
river mile (R.M.) 49 and flows to St. Helena Sound. The Salkehatchie River
extends upstream another 60 miles and forms the headwaters of the basin. The
Intracoastal Waterway, Coosaw, and Ashepoo Rivers are also large waterbodies
in the report area. In addition, Fish Creek, South Wimbee Creek, Big Creek,
St. Helena Sound, Mosquito Creek, and Musselboro Creek are located within the
basin and discussed further in Section 5. There are many more important rivers
and streams located within the basin, especially near the coast, however,
emphasis has been primarily placed on large rivers that extend inland. Plates
02-2 and 02-3 are detailed maps indicating the location of significant
features in the basin. Additional information on the Edisto and Coosawhatchie
Rivers is presented in Reports 03 and 01, respectively.

The Combahee River lies almost entirely in the coastal lowlands which results
in a very gently sloped gradient with low, heavily vegetated banks and flood
plains. The flood plains are generally swampy and a considerable quantity of
water flows outside the main channel. As the Combahee River nears the ocean,
fewer trees and more grass grow along the flood plains and a substantial
increase in width occurs over a relatively short distance....

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SECTION 4 - INTERSTATE COMMERCE
Past

The boom which occurred in South Carolina's rice-growing culture
(approximately 1730) drew additional settlers to the Combahee River basin. "Up
the Combahee" and other streams, wrote Meriwether, "the tides run for thirty
miles, and these streams with their numerous tidal creeks and inlets and the
inland passage to Charleston afforded unusually easy transportation." (7) In
1778, the South Carolina General Assembly passed an act to cut and clear
connections from Ashepoo River to Pon Pon River and from Ashepoo River to
Chehaw River. Seven years later, the legislature passed an ordinance for
clearing additional rivers, among them the "Saltcatcher" (i.e., the
Salkehatchie River), the name used for the upper stretch of the Combahee
River. An ordinance of 1787 called for "Drains and Water passages in the
swamps and Savannahs formed by Wannell's, otherwise called Cuckhold's Creek, a
branch of Combahee River." (8)

The vessels employed in moving commodities on the Combahee-Salkehatchie River
consisted of pole boats, bateaux, rafts, perriaugers*, and schooners and yawls
of various sizes and capacities. The exports comprised rice and naval stores,
along with additional timber products of various sorts. A range of trade goods
-- sent either from Beaufort, Charleston, or Savannah -- were sent up the
river. By 1818, John Wilson, the Civil and Military Engineer of South
Carolina, could report that the Combahee River "is navigable from St. Helena's
Sound to Paterson's bridge, about 35 miles. From hence to the confluence of
the Big and Little Salketchier Rivers, about 18 miles, the navigation is
obstructed by sandbars and logs," its depth varying "from 4 to 8 feet." The
"Big Saltketcher" (Salkehatchie) had "from 2 to 4 feet depth of water," and
was obstructed in places by sandbars and logs. But it might be "rendered
navigable up to Broxton's Ford, nearly 40 miles from its confluence with the
Little Saltketcher." The Little Saltketcher River (Little Salkehatchie) is
"impeded by sandbars and logs, and might be opened to Buckhead Ford." (9)

By the time that Robert Mills compiled his Statistics of South Carolina in
1826, the Combahee River had "a schooner navigation to Saltcatcher bridge,"
and the main Saltcatcher was "navigable for boats 10 miles higher." Merely by
"removing the logs which now obstruct it", the river could be "made navigable
to Barnwell court house." The Chehaw River, which feeds into the
Combahee-Salkehatchie River, was "navigable for schooners." (10) Mill's rather
optimistic reports notwithstanding, in practical terms, the
Combahee-Salketchie was "not capable of navigation above tidewater." (11) To
correct this situation, South Carolina appropriated, in 1837, the sum of
$35,000 for the "Saltketcher" River. (12)

In 1880, Brevet Major General Quincy A. Gillmore, Corps of Engineers, examined
the Combahee-Salkehatchie River basin. He reported that the river "from
Hickory Hill to the sea ... was free and open for all purposes of traffic
needed." During low water, however, the river could not be navigated; and at
Hickory Hill were "two rows of piles, driven during the late Civil War [sic],
which prevent boats from ascending to the junction" of the two Salkehatchies.
The commerce consisted of timber and rice. (13) Nine years later, Captain F.
V. Abbot observed that the lower or tidal portion of the river had various
connections with other tidal streams in the region. The commerce for the
"Combahee or Salkehatchie River ... for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1888,
"comprised 200,000 bushels of rice, plus rosin, turpentine, cross-ties, and
timber, amounting to $342,045. (14)

A series of River and Harbor Acts, commencing with the act of 2 August 1882,
sought to improve the river. The authorized project provided "for clearing the
channel for rafts and flatboats from a point 5 miles above Toby Bluff to
Hickory Hill, 46 miles above the river mouth, a total of 77 miles."** In 1887,
the riverine commerce amounted to $342,045, but by 1893 had slipped to
$121,510. By 1894, the river had been "quite thoroughly cleared", and was to
be "maintained in fair rafting order," but the commerce continued to decline.
(15) The entire project was completed in 1896, but "has been inactive for many
years." (16) It was recommended for abandonment in 1926, reflecting the impact
of railroad and highway transportation modes. (17)

Present

The Combahee-Salkehatchie River is not currently being used for purposes of
interstate waterborne commerce. (18)

Future Potential

Comprehensive analysis of the regional economics (income, education,
employment, community facilities, transportation systems, and similar
factors), which would indicate growth patterns and the services needed to
sustain various types of industrial and commercial activities, is beyond the
scope of this study. Thus, the potential use of the Combahee River and its
tributaries for interstate commerce in future years is difficult to predict.
It is anticipated, however, that the river has the potential to be utilized,
particularly within the tidal zone, for shipment of goods into other states
since it is connected directly to the Atlantic Ocean. Beyond the tidal limit
the river becomes quite narrow and would require extensive development to be
utilized for shipping.

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* Perriauger - A vessel used during the early development period of the United
States (1700's-1800's) for the transportation of supplies. The vessel was
sometimes oared, poled, or pulled and was occasionally fitted with mast and
sail.

** This distance does not correspond to river miling developed as a part of
this study.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cited References

1. Water Resources Data for South Carolina Water Year 1975, Water Data Report
75-1, U. S. Geological Survey, Columbia, South Carolina, 1976.

2. Summary Report, Navigability Study, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Charleston District, by Stanley Consultants, 1977.

3. Project Maps Charleston District 1975, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Office of the District Engineer, Charleston, South Carolina, 1975.

4. Incomplete List of Navigable Waters, RCS ENGCW-ON (OT), U. S. Army Corps of
Engineers, Charleston, South Carolina, 1965.

5. South Carolina Streamflow, Characteristics Low-Flow Frequency and Flow
Duration, U. S. Geological Survey, Columbia, South Carolina, 1967.

6. Extract Report of the Charleston, S. C., District, Annual Report of the
Chief of Engineers on Civil Works Activities, U. S. Department of the Army,
USGPO, Washington, D. C., 1974, pp. 7-16.

7. Meriwether, Robert L., The Expansion of South Carolina 1729-1765, Southern
Publishers, Kingsport, Tennessee, 1940, P. 73.

8. McCord, David J., The Statutes at Large of South Carolina, A. S. Johnston,
Columbia, 1840, Vol. VII, pp. 525, 538.

9. Kohn, David and Glenn, Bess, eds., Internal Improvement in South Carolina
1817-1828 USGPO, Washington, D. C., 1938, pp. A15-16.

10. Mills, Robert, Statistics of South Carolina 1826, Reprint Co.,
Spartanburg, 1972, pp. 159, 508.

11. McCord, David J., The Statutes at Large of South Carolina, A. S. Johnston,
Columbia, 1840, Vol. VII, p. 419.

12. Phillips, Ulrich B., A History of Transportation in the Eastern Cotton
Belt to 1860, Columbia U. P., New York, 1908, p. 91, table and notes.

13. Annual Report of the Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army, 1881, U. S. War
Department, Pt. II, Appendix J, pp. 1143-1144.

14. Annual Report of the Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army, 1889, U. S. War
Department, Pt. II, Appendix N, pp. 1211-1213.

15. Annual Report of the Chief of Engineers, U. S. Army, 1895, U. S. War
Department, Pt. II, Appendix L, pp. 1440-1442.

16. Water Resources Development ... in South Carolina 1973, U. S. Department
of the Army, U. S. Army Engineer Division, South Atlantic, Atlanta, 1973, p.
15.

17. Annual Report of the Chief of Engineers on Civil Works, 1974, U. S.
Department of the Army, Vol. 11, pp. 7-16.

18. Waterborne Commerce of the United States 1975, Pt. I, Waterways and
Harbors Atlantic Coast, U. S. Department of the Army, U. S. Army Engineer
Division, Lower Mississippi Valley, Vicksburg, 1975, p. 124.

19. Legal Documentation for Navigability Study, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers,
Charleston District, Charleston, South Carolina, 1977.

Other Background Information

U. S. Congress, House, Salkehatchie River, S. C., H. Doc. No. 457, 62nd
Congress, 2nd Sess., 1912.

Clarke, Thomas D., South Carolina: The Grand Tour 1780-1865, USC Press,
Columbia, 1973.

Glover, Beulah, Narratives of Colleton County: The Land Lying Between the
Edisto and Combahee Rivers, np., 1963 ed.

Smith, Alfred G., The Economic Readjustment of an Old Cotton State: South
Carolina l820-1860, USC Press, Columbia, 1958.

S. C. Water Resources Commission, A Reconnaissance Survey of Streams in the
South Carolina Coastal Plain, S. C. Water Resources Commission, Columbia,
1971.

Writers' Program, WPA, South Carolina: A Guide to the Palmetto State, Oxford
UP, 4th ed., New York, 1949.

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