What could have been and almost was
“The sand is too dark, and the water is too murky; it will never work”.
This exact sentence was uttered in the mid-1960s from a potential investor, a well-known, high-profile money man from New York, speaking on Hilton Head Island, and more specifically, the land that would become Palmetto Dunes: Oh, how wrong they were!
From the early 1900s up until the 1960s, what we know today as Palmetto Dunes, was used as a hunting club owned by the Hilton Head Agricultural Company; mainly for deer, hogs, racoons, and waterfowl. Many members would come on weeklong and weekend trips with folks from Gaston County North Carolina and surrounding areas and states.
It was a Tuesday morning in February of 1968, and Mr. Johnny White, V.P. of Palmetto Dunes Development Company was on a mission, a multimillion-dollar mission. It was midafternoon, and it was determined that two additional property plats were needed by the Clerk of Court and the closing attorneys to properly close the transaction. This needed to be done by the close of business that day. His mission was to drive from Hilton Head Island to Savannah Ga. to recover the two plats and get them to the Beaufort County Courthouse before 5pm. If he accomplished this trip, and all went as planned, they would be able to purchase and close on the 2,000+ acres of land in mid-island Hilton Head.
To those of you reading this, the trip from Hilton Head to Savannah is a daily commute in the morning before work and the return trip after work for many people. But remember we are talking about the 1960’s. Many of the roads of Hiton Head were no more than rutted up beach sand and dirt, the two lane 278 was nothing like the rapid and busy road we know today. This could take a while.
Mr. Johnny’s mission unfortunately did not go as planned and he knew that he was not going to be able to get from Savannah to Beaufort with the two recovered plats by 5pm, the close of business. But, that old phrase “It’s always good to know people in high places” came into play, as it has so many times to Lowcountry natives and long timers alike.
“We talked with the Clerk of Court, a friend of ours, and called in a favor. We asked him to please keep the courthouse open past 5 p.m. as I was on my way from Savannah and this business deal had to be completed by today.” said Mr. Johnny as he reminisced on this trip. “I made it alright, but it was darn near early evening by the time I reached Beaufort!”
“But there was still work to be done. Dowling, Dowling, Sanders, and Dukes, closing attorneys, met me at the courthouse on that Tuesday evening in February of 1968 and the 2,000-acre Palmetto Dunes deal went through.”
Why was it so important that the deal went through that day? Why didn’t Mr. Johnny just come back on Wednesday when the courthouse was open again? Why call in such a big favor to keep someone waiting till evening and have attorneys there?
Well, here’s the kicker.
Mr. Charles Fraser and family, responsible for the development of Sea Pines and the southern tip of Hilton Head, never thought these investors would be able to come up with the money needed to purchase such a big parcel of land on Hilton Head. Mr. Fraser was ready to purchase the property if it didn’t go through that day. He even went so far as to write the check for the property and give it to the closing attorneys, as he had such little faith that the investors would come up with the money.
What may have been? What if Palmetto Dunes was purchased by Charles Fraser, and not the Palmetto Dunes Development Company, would the old Leamington Lighthouse be painted in a red and white candy stripe like the iconic Harbour Town Lighthouse? We may never know.
My friend, Ms. Susan White Treadaway, a Bluffton local now, remembers when her father (Mr. Johhny White) moved them from Greenwood SC down to Hilton Head when she was around 4 years old. Although she remembers very little about her time in Greenwood, she fondly remembers early Hilton Head Island, where she would grow up and never really leave.
“I can vaguely remember our first house which was located in the South Forest Beach area and my mother bathing my little sister in the kitchen sink as we did not have a tub. I remember going to Montessori School which was located on South Forest Beach when I was quite young. I remember the slide on the playground area that would slide us right into the dunes on the beach! I met my best friend, Tina Bates, at that time, and I am still best friends with her to this day! Tina’s father, Mr Charles Bates, actually designed the Hyatt in Palmetto Dunes.”
“When we moved to Palmetto Dunes, none of the roads were paved yet. My friend “E” Robinson, son of EG and Peg Robinson, and I were always outside finding things to do with some of the other neighborhood kids. Sometimes we would climb underneath some of the bridges and make “mudpies” and make our younger siblings eat them!”
“As we got older, my mother, Alison Marshall White, would go on to open the islands first furniture consignment shop called Nearly New. Mrs. Peg Robinson worked there along with Mrs. Marianne Barker, Maynard Barker’s wife (Barker Field). Later, Peg and Marianne opened up their own consignment shop, Classic Consignments, which is still in existence to this day.”
Ms. Susan left to go to college where she attended Lander University but came back to Hilton Head shortly after for a family tragedy. Today Ms. Susan can be found in her quaint cottage near the end of All Joy and Brighton Beach in Bluffton or working at Coastal Exchange in the plaza that once held Scotts Meat. (A fabulous store by the way, and owner Ms. Julie Hampton is a doll!)
When asked what kept Susan White Treadway here so long after her father had a hand in the development of Palmetto Dunes, she replied in such wonderful Lowcountry fashion:
“I can’t imagine living anywhere else! Sometimes I think it may be nice to live where no one knows me. But then when I walk into the Piggly Wiggly in Coligny and run into (owner) David Martin and end up talking to him for thirty minutes in the “butt wipe” aisle, I think to myself: There is no better place on earth!”
Paul Tollefson is the Director of Tennis at the Hampton Hall Club in Bluffton. He found his love for the Lowcountry in early 2002 after graduating high school and unsure of what career path he was destined towards. After moving from Hilton Head to Bluffton he became enthralled with the history of the town and the people and cultures that called it home for many generations. He has found a passion in writing and enjoys being able to share the stories and pictures of long-time locals. He is the co-creator of the Facebook page “Bluffton Then and Now.”
