Myrtle Beach and Georgetown SC USA

Several months previously, Ollie and Sheena, who are good friends from our time in the RAF, had said they were planning a trip to the USA to see other friends in Chicago and could they meet up with us somewhere on the east coast as a part of that holiday?  Which was the reason that we were in Charleston at the time we were.  Oli and Sheena took an apartment in Myrtle Beach for a few days and then ever so kindly drove down to Charleston to pick us up.  We’d not fully appreciated how long a drive it is between the two locations.

We took with us the last of the marlin steaks to share on our first evening with them, which went down very well with a glass or two of wine and plenty of catching up.

Myrtle Beach isn’t really the most photogenic of places but Ollie and Sheena live a fair distance from the sea so a morning walk along the beach, collecting shells and paddling in the (rather cool) surf was a must.  And then we took a trip to Georgetown, which came recommended as a place to visit.

Georgetown’s main street

Our first impressions of the place weren’t overwhelmingly positive.  But as we wandered around, the place started to grow on us.

At first glance the clocktower is fairly modern brick building.  But a nearby Historic Society plaque told us otherwise.  The ‘Greek Revival’ market and town hall was built in 1842 after a fire destroyed much of Front Street.  The open-air market was at street level, with the Town Hall above and, much to our surprise, the clock tower and belfry were added in 1845.  It was from here, in 1865, that the town council surrendered Georgetown to the US Navy.  It never fails to surprise us just how recent the US Civil War was.

Georgetown was formally founded in 1729, which makes it the third oldest city in South Carolina (after Charleston and Beaufort).  Three years later it became an official port of entry, allowing foreign exports and imports to come through Georgetown rather than Charleston.  Consequently, the city grew and thrived with traders, merchants and planters being key to wealth production.

Georgetown Town Docks

Whilst the town docks are now primarily leisure boaters’ territory, just a short distance downstream is a woodmill and paper pulping factory and the inlet which links the ocean and the ICW is an important one for commercial shipping and leisure vessels alike.  We enjoyed strolling the boardwalk along the town docks, though we were surprised to see so many baby alligators and terrapins in the shallows underneath it.

Houses of some of the wealthiest early residents

And one of the oldest surviving properties

Kaminski House – one of over 60 pre-Revolutionary War properties in Georgetown, now a museum.  It was built by Paul Trapier, a prominent local businessman who was considered to be one of the wealthiest citizens of the colony.  The house is typical of the ‘single house’ construction of the period and was built to catch the breeze coming off the river

The shrimp dock

A little blurred and out of focus – much like the end of the evening!

Down at the commercial dock the shrimp boats had just got in when we arrived.  We debated our options for dinner and decided on cooking in.  We bought a good quantity of shrimp from the fishing co-op right next to the dock and, on the way back to Myrtle Beach picked up some large steaks.  Back at the apartment, Ollie and I did the ‘man, fire, beer’ thing whilst Nicky and Sheena stayed in the warm (even late April evenings are surprisingly cool in South Carolina) and ‘fixed’ the ‘sides’ [Ed: and drank wine!].  And we had another great evening with fab friends.

Morning views along Myrtle Beach

Myrtle Beach and Georgetown, South Carolina, USA