sdiamondriley
Decoration Day
Where better to start a tradition of honoring fallen soldiers than the place where the war that prompted it began? Shortly after the...
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sdiamondriley
- Apr 28
- 3 min
Tacky Talk
The Lowcountry plays host to some of the tackiest sights you'll ever see, and I'm not talking about socks with sandals or bikini-clad...
303 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Mar 20
- 3 min
From Everyday to Extraordinary
Unknown to many who seek it, a favorite Lowcountry souvenir has a dark past. Although prized today by collectors the world over,...
531 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Feb 25
- 3 min
Our Own Prince of Tides
“Love’s action. It isn’t talk and it never has been.” ~Pat Conroy, Beach Music Despite the controversies he often spurred, one Lowcountry...
532 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Feb 1
- 4 min
The Day of the Big Gun Shoot
You think your neighborhood's got problems? Mine is the site of the largest naval battle ever fought in U.S. waters. Protecting the Sound...
342 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Jan 13
- 3 min
Blossoms of Winter
It hardly seems fair, but an explosion of red, pink, and white blooms are taking over Lowcountry gardens while our Northern neighbors are...
349 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Dec 7, 2022
- 3 min
No Snow? No Problem!
Despite--or perhaps thanks to--its mild December weather, the Lowcountry boasts its own unique twists on the usual holiday traditions....
389 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Nov 23, 2022
- 3 min
The Truth about Southern Hospitality
When I moved full-time to Hilton Head several years ago, I discovered something I had never expected. I had heard that "Southern...
549 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Nov 8, 2022
- 3 min
The Forgotten Capital
Half a century before the pilgrims set foot on Plymouth Rock, a bustling European capital called the Lowcountry home. Forts, homes,...
974 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Oct 19, 2022
- 3 min
Beware of Haints!
If you've ever awoken and still felt tired, you just may be the victim of a Lowcountry haint. Members of the Gullah community have long...
861 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Oct 5, 2022
- 3 min
Carolina's Blue Gold
There was a time when all of Europe was clamoring for what the Carolina Lowcountry had in spades. But then, just as quickly as it had...
1,220 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Sep 21, 2022
- 3 min
Birth of the Bloody Legion (Islands Divided, Part 2)
The residents of Hilton Head Island were out for blood. Their sworn enemies on neighboring Daufuskie Island had burned their homes to the...
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sdiamondriley
- Sep 7, 2022
- 3 min
The Burning of Skull Creek (Islands Divided, Part 1)
As the Daufuskie Island men rowed silently up Hilton Head's Skull Creek, they stopped and methodically burned to the ground each stately...
1,108 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Aug 24, 2022
- 2 min
A Perilous Picnic
No, they're not suicidal, they're not really "stranded," and they don't need our help. Our nutty Lowcountry dolphins just have their own...
2,295 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Aug 10, 2022
- 3 min
The Storm that Drowned the Sea Islands
Sixteen-foot storm surges. 120-mile-per-hour winds. No survivors remain of the most devastating hurricane to ever hit the South Carolina...
1,525 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Jul 27, 2022
- 3 min
Legends of the Moss
ZZ Top beards. Spiderwebs. Christmas tinsel. The Spanish moss that drapes swooping branches of Lowcountry live oaks has evoked images...
706 views1 comment
sdiamondriley
- Jul 12, 2022
- 3 min
An Island at Arms
Deep within the lushly landscaped confines of a gated Hilton Head Island residential community lie a couple of open acres of waterfront...
1,973 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Jun 29, 2022
- 3 min
A Race to the Midnight Moon
"A fiery red glow illuminated the pit of sand at the boy's feet, sand that was now churning as if alive. A black shape emerged from the...
1,765 views0 comments
sdiamondriley
- Jun 14, 2022
- 3 min
No Small Victory
Prior to the end of legalized slavery in the South in 1865, there were many brave souls who took matters into their own hands to escape...
507 views3 comments
sdiamondriley
- Jun 1, 2022
- 3 min
The Lowcountry's Dirty Little Secret
"The smell hit her as soon as she stepped outside on the museum's front porch. Delta recognized the earthy tang of Lowcountry pluff mud,...
1,907 views2 comments
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