McClellanville - Small Town, Big Charm
April 19th, 2007 All Articles, Community Info, McClellanville Living Daniel Bates
McClellanville is a small fishing village located on the coast of South Carolina between Charleston and Myrtle Beach. Founded by rice planters in the 1850’s, McClellanville served as a refuge from the swampy, mosquito-filled rice fields of their plantations. From these summer homes, “the village” as it is known by its residents, grew on the quiet shores of Jeremy Creek. Today McClellanville has a population around 500 and remains a peaceful community free of many big city problems like traffic and a high crime rate.
Much of McClellanville’s beauty is drawn from its natural surroundings; the creeks and marsh, the ocean and sunsets, the live oaks draped with Spanish moss. The Francis Marion National Forest, to the west, contains over 250,000 acres of undeveloped forests and swamps, while the Cape Romain Wildlife Refuge, to the east, includes over 66,000 acres of pristine creeks and barrier islands. These protected lands serve as a natural boundary between McClellanville and the rest of the world as well as providing great outdoor activities including: fishing, hunting, boating, hiking, biking, horseback riding, canoeing, kayaking, and much more.
McClellanville’s relies on the local waters around Jeremy Creek for it’s main industry. The fresh shrimp, fish, crabs, oysters, and clams caught in the nearby creeks and ocean go to supply the local and national restaurants and marketplaces. Each May the town celebrates our seafood industry with Lowcountry Shrimp Festival and Blessing of the Fleet held by Archibald Rutledge Academy.
McClellanville’s Historic District, on the northern side of Jeremy Creek, holds the town’s the public boat landing, restaurants, quaint boutiques, historic homes and tree-lined avenues. The Silver Hill and Skipper’s Point communities, on the southern side of Jeremy Creek, present a more rural option for home owners.
The preservation of McClellanville’s historic and small-town appeal is done through ordinances and zoning and building codes as well as an adherence to the well and septic tank systems instead of public water and sewage which would negatively impact our natural environment. The Town has been recognized as a Tree City USA designee for the past 6 years and the landmark live oak, known as the “Deerhead Oak” has been bestowed South Carolina Heritage Tree for 2007.
One constant throughout all of McClellanville is the feeling of a true community. It’s a special mix of Southern hospitality and small town charm where everyone looks out for each other. There is no better example of this than when Hurricane Hugo ripped its way through the town in 1989 and the residents pulled together to rebuilt the homes and businesses which were destroyed. Residents of McClellanville enjoy it for its quiet, peaceful and relaxed atmosphere. Tourists return year after year for a relaxing get-away from city life. Despite being featured in several films and magazines, McClellanville remains the Carolina’s best kept secret.
My favorite little town on the coast! Great coverage!
I took one glance at your header and knew that had to be a South Carolina river. The Carolina Coast is so distinctive. This is my first time at your site. I love your posts. Especially the one about imported shrimp. My husband and I used to own a restaurant in Bluffton, SC and we used nothing but local shrimp and May river Oysters. If they were out of season… Oh well, No shrimp for you. Stay in touch. We get up to the Charleston area as often as we can. We’ll have to meet for cocktails one day.
Thanks Stacey,
It’s the header picture is actually looking out from McClellanville across the Intracoastal Waterway, but it is true that no where else in the world has a view like that. We all need to play our part in the war on imported shrimp, consumers need to learn to ask their servers if the shrimp (or any other seafood) is local and if it isn’t tell the manager that you won’t be returning until they support their community by buying local seafood.
I am one who loves McClellanville! And bud hill is my buddy! he does and knows ALOT about McClellanville! but i just wanted to say i love McClellanville!
I have been living in mcclellanville for 25 years and love it. I feel bad that i did not see this web site before. You guys did a great job. WAY TO GO MCCLELLANVILLE. WE LOVE YOU!
I’m glad you enjoy the site Sharonda. I wish I had a crew of people helping me sometimes, but its just little old me.
This website obviously caters to “out-of-towners”. Although this is a magnificently produced website, I find it somewhat exploitative of our small town values and culture. Being a local myself, I want nothing more than to preserve such. I was perusing the site and felt like I was reading advertisments for a posh new living establishment. Maybe McClellanville is a posh new living establishment, but regardless, I cannot refrain from voicing my opinion; McClellanville means a lot to me and I hate to witness change; however, I felt like the producer of this site was merely speaking in terms of a salesman. Perhaps its just me but, I find this site upsetting, revolting and degrading to locals.
I respect your comments, but I also can’t help but notice that you have posted your message anonymously instead of letting people know who you are and standing behind your statements. I, “the producer of this site”, have my name right at the top of every page and am responsible for 100% of the content here. I respectfully disagree that this site caters to only out-of-towners. The site has a lot news and events that locals and out of towners both find useful. The site is a work in progress and is always changing. Some things are geared more toward out-of-towners, some are specifically for the enjoyment of locals.
Your observation that I am trying to sell something is obviously correct. I don’t hide the fact that I am a real estate agent and the main purpose of the site is to attract potential buyers looking to live in the area. However I think this site does a lot to educate those people about the community and allow them to decide if McClellanville is the type of place that they want to live. I was born and raised in McClellanville and I don’t want to see change any more than you. Just because I write about the great recourses we have here, doesn’t mean that I am exploiting them. I support local businesses and encourage people to share their comments on this site and in the forum (www.TheVillageCommunity.com). I think my article, 6 Reasons Mcclellanville Won’t Change, demonstrates how I feel about the environment and development. I don’t think we are immune from change, but anyone that knows me will tell you that I am not looking to harm The Village.
PS - I don’t think I’ve ever used the words “Posh” and “McClellanville” in the same sentence and I hope I never do
As a member of the Sewee to Santee Economic Community Development Corp, a diversed group of citizens of the region dedicated to preserving the rural character of the area, I embrace the website; it’s informative and well-produced. We all enjoy living in this pristine area of the county and will like to keep it that way. But let’s not put our heads in the sand. Development is popping up all around us. Low density projects such as the “Oaks Preserve” is the kind of development that compliments the area. Change is good, but at the same time I feel that we can control the overall growth.
Thank you for your kind comments about the site. You can find a link to Sewee to Santee’s website on the right sidebar under “Useful Websites”. I agree that we can’t ignore the obvious signs of development all around us, but with proper planning and strong community leadership, I feel like we can control the type of growth that McClellanville experiences. Oaks Preserve and Landry Farms are both excellent examples of low density development that represent our McClellanville’s rural roots. While new communities like Fair Oaks, Mouzon’s Bluff, and Broadmarsh have a greater density, it’s important to note that their 1 acre lots are are great deal better than the 1/5 and 1/10 acre lots you’ll find in most cities.