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Marion Burns, chair of the board of trustees and interim executive director of Penn Center, in the York W. Bailey Museum.
Photo by Milton Morris
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Intern Holland Perryman (left) and executive director Jonathan Haupt invite guests to have a seat behind the desk Pat Conroy used to write Beach Music and other best-selling novels.
Photo by Milton Morris
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Movie buffs, up-and-coming filmmakers and some of the top talent in Hollywood mix and mingle at the annual Beaufort International Film Festival, scheduled for Feb. 16–21, 2021.
Photo by Beaufort International Film Festival
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“Kazoos are a small way that we take a moment to just have some unadulterated fun,” says native Beaufortonian Stephen Murray, Kazoobie Kazoos president and CEO.
Photo by Milton Morris
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It’s easy to see why visitors to Hunting Island State Park enjoy the lighthouse tour.
Photo by Chase Toler
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Chef John Marshall (left), general manager Stacie Van Vulpen and co-owner Oscar Salas welcome diners to their restaurant in the heart of Beaufort’s historic district.
Photo by Milton Morris
As longtime freelance travel journalists, we spend much of our time visiting premier destinations far from home—seven continents and dozens of countries so far. But, as strong as our wanderlust is, we also have an equally strong affinity for the lure of home.
Since 2018, home has been in Beaufort, a place we first fell in love with when the late Pat Conroy introduced us to the joys of the South Carolina Lowcountry—the smells of the pluff mud and briny breezes, the sounds of the oysters and crabs burrowing, the sights of the lush Lowcountry landscape. We have been happily ensconced in all things Beaufort ever since, and humbly offer our list of favorite places and experiences we hope you’ll enjoy on your next visit.
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Penn Center
Historic Penn Center, (formerly Penn School) was founded in 1862 on St. Helena Island to serve as one of the nation’s first schools for former slaves.
Designated a National Historic Landmark District in 1974 and now part of the Reconstruction Era National Historic Park, the center offers cultural enrichment programs, day care, and food distribution for local children in the Gullah Geechee community, as well as conference and educational programs for children, youths and adults.
The Welcome Center and York W. Bailey Museum are packed with displays of historic documents, oral histories, handicrafts and artifacts from the Reconstruction and Civil Rights eras. Guided and self-guided walking tours allow and assist visitors to explore the site’s 21 buildings located among glorious live oak trees and along saltmarsh creeks, including Gantt Cottage, where the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. penned his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.
“Penn Center is one of the most significant historical and cultural African American Institutions in the nation” says Marion Burns, chair of the board of trustees and interim executive director. “I see Penn Center as ‘ground zero’ of the Reconstruction Era. A destination where educators will come and learn the true history of Reconstruction as it impacted the community at large, and use the information to educate students, which will change the dynamics of the nation.”
Penn Center is located at 16 Penn Center Circle West on St. Helena Island and is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For the administrative offices, call (843) 838-2432. The York W. Bailey Museum is opened 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $7 for adults, $5 for students and free for kids age 5 and under. (843) 838-7105; penncenter.com.
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Pat Conroy Literary Center
A military brat, Pat Conroy came to Beaufort when he was a junior in high school. His adopted hometown later became the setting of many acclaimed books.
Created shortly after Conroy’s death in 2016, the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center honors and continues the author’s legacy as writer and educator for future generations, says Jonathan Haupt, the Conroy Center’s executive director.
“The Center is in Beaufort because Pat told us to be here,” Haupt says. “In The Death of Santini he wrote, ‘I’ve come home to the place I was always writing about …. I’ve tried to make Beaufort, South Carolina, my own.’ The Conroy Center has become an anchor to the Beaufort experience, in the same way Pat himself was.
The interpretive center houses a treasure trove of memorabilia from Conroy’s Lowcountry life—high school yearbooks and photos of his time as a teacher on Daufuskie Island and as a cadet at The Citadel. There are handwritten manuscripts, his writing desk and photos of the film crews turning two of his best-sellers, The Great Santini and The Prince of Tides, into popular movies. At every turn, the center provides an immersion into the life of the literary legend, often told by docents who knew Conroy personally.
“While many of our visitors come as a sort of a literary pilgrimage, some guests arrive in Beaufort for other reasons,” Haupt says. “And then we get to introduce these new readers to Pat Conroy.”
The Pat Conroy Literary Center is located at 905 Port Republic Street and is open Thursday through Sunday, noon to 4 p.m., or by appointment. Admission is free, however donations are gladly accepted. (843) 379-7025; patconroyliterarycenter.org.
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Beaufort International Film Festival
For six days each February, our adopted hometown transforms into “Hollywood South” as the Beaufort International Film Festival (BIFF) brings in thousands of filmmakers, cinematographers, screenwriters and other industry professionals.
Known as the “Film Capital of the South” in the 1980s and 1990s, Beaufort was the set for dozens of films including The Big Chill, The Prince of Tides and Forrest Gump. South Carolina’s film industry waned in the early 2000s when other states and Canada began to offer big financial incentives to lure away productions. Local movie buffs Ron and Rebecca Tucker created the Beaufort Film Society and launched the festival in 2007 hoping to win some of those productions back—and let locals and tourists alike mingle with some of the biggest names in film.
“BIFF is a destination attraction.” says Ron Tucker. “For tourists, the cultural stimulation from a talented collection of artists who bring their films that inspire, enlighten, entertain, incite, infuriate, awaken and educate is a strong draw.”
The 15th annual Beaufort International Film Festival is scheduled for Feb. 16–21, 2021. Details and tickets can be purchased online at beaufortfilmfestival.com.
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Kazoobie Kazoo Factory, Museum and Gift Shop
Who would have guessed that Beaufort was home to one of the world’s largest manufacturers of kazoos, the plastic musical instrument that utilizes a player’s voice to create a musical sound?
Located in a 6,500-square-foot warehouse, Kazoobie Kazoos builds more than 1 million kazoos a year, along with other musical accessories. Daily tours are popular with tourists looking for a unique experience, and your visit includes a Kazoo Museum, two videos that highlight kazoo history and a demonstration of varied kazoos, including a wazoo, a kazoogle, a wazoogle, a kazobo and an electric kazoo (who knew?). Guests even get to make their own souvenir instrument.
“Kazoos are a small way that we take a moment to just have some unadulterated fun,” says native Beaufortonian, Stephen Murray, Kazoobie Kazoos president and CEO. “And, today, I think we need a little more silliness, we need a little more fun in the world.”
The Kazoobie Kazoo Factory is located at 12 John Galt Rd. and is open Monday–Friday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Guided tours are at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. The museum and gift shop are free. Tours are $9 for adults, $7 for children and free for children 3 and under. (843) 982-6387; thekazoofactory.com.
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Hunting Island State Park
Just 15 miles east of Beaufort’s downtown waterfront, Hunting Island State Park is 5,000 acres of postcard-perfect Lowcountry landscape—miles of unspoiled beaches, meandering waterways, salt marsh grasses and coastal wildlife.
“You’ve got the Lowcountry look—with the live oaks and the hanging Spanish moss and the palm trees—with a pristine beach that also has a wild, almost Jurassic Park sort of feel,” says Park Ranger, J.W. Weatherford. “In the forest, you almost expect a velociraptor to run across the road instead of a deer.”
Although South Carolina has many lighthouses along its coast, the Hunting Island Lighthouse is the only accessible tower. With a reservation, guests can climb 130 feet to the top and get breathtaking views of the Atlantic Ocean and maritime forest from Edisto to Daufuskie.Our newest discovery at Hunting Island State Park is heading out by ferry to pristine St. Phillips Island, the former private retreat and vacation home for media mogul, Ted Turner. Interpretive tours and unspoiled beaches await, and home rentals in Turner’s former beach house are coming soon.
For Weatherford, his favorite thing is to head to the park’s Marsh Boardwalk. “The half-mile trail is surrounded by over 3,000 acres of salt marsh,” he says. “At sunset, it almost looks like the salt marsh is on fire with the colors reflecting off the water. It’s one of the best sunsets in the county.”Hunting Island State Park is located at 2555 Sea Island Parkway on Hunting Island and is open daily dawn to dusk. Admission is $8 for adults; $5 for South Carolina seniors; $4 for children age 6–15; and free for children 5 and under. Lighthouse admission is an additional $2 per person. St. Phillips tours are $45 for adults and $25 for children. (843) 838-4868; southcarolinaparks.com/hunting-island.
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Old Bull Tavern
Dining is taken seriously in Beaufort and the options are plentiful, but for a true “insider” culinary experience, you can’t beat Old Bull Tavern.
Located on a side street in the heart of the historic district, it’s unassuming entrance leads to a sprawling exposed-brick interior with three separate dining rooms, a convivial bar, a community table and a cozy seating area at the front. The feel is friendly, like meeting up with old friends, from the minute you walk in the door. And that’s exactly the ambiance the owners and staff are going for.
“We try really hard to provide a welcoming and home-like environment,” says Stacie van Vulpen, Old Bull Tavern’s general manager. “We want everyone who comes in to feel comfortable and part of the family.”
Owned and helmed by acclaimed chef John Marshall, the food is sophisticated, yet unpretentious, ranging from duck confit, house-made ricotta gnocchi, and braised lamb shank to creative wood-fired pizzas. When Chef Marshall is asked, “What kind of food do you cook?” he replies, “Food like your grandma would make. If she’s a really good cook.” To pay homage to that standard, pictures of the staffs’s grandmothers hang throughout the restaurant.
Located at 205 West Street, Old Bull Tavern is open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday starting at 5 p.m. Reservations are highly recommended. (843) 379-2855; oldbulltavern.com.
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Get There
Learn more about Beaufort and the Lowcountry region at:
The Beaufort Visitors Center is located at 713 Craven St. in the Historic Beaufort Arsenal. Built in 1798, it’s one of the oldest buildings open to the public in Beaufort and is also home to the Beaufort History Museum. (843) 525-8500; beaufortsc.org.
South Carolina Lowcountry & Resort Islands Tourism Commission Visitors Center is found in the Frampton Plantation House at 1 Lowcountry Lane, just off Exit 33 on I-95. Open daily 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Visitors Center stocks tons of information on what to see, where to eat and where to stay in the region, along with Civil War earthworks in the backyard and a robust gift store for the perfect Lowcountry souvenir. (843) 717-3090; southcarolinalowcountry.com.