COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area
The Congaree, Wateree and Santee Rivers converge to form the "Green Heart" of South Carolina
Map of the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area
For millennia, the Congaree, Wateree and Santee Rivers and the land they meander through, have attracted humans and wildlife to what is now central South Carolina. The thousands of acres of wetlands contained in the core of the COWASEE Basin Focus Area provide a natural filter for public drinking water and critical habitat for wildlife. It's also the home of South Carolina's only national park, renowned for being one of the tallest hardwood forests in the temperate world.
The COWASEE Basin Focus Area is the result of an initiative to protect this vital ecosystem. In 2005, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources along with several other public and private organizations began working together with individual landowners in the focus area to provide a framework for the protection of the natural, recreational and financial values of this unique landscape. All involved understood early on that the private landowners who live and work here are the best stewards of this valuable resource. Without their help, conservation of the COWASEE Basin would not be possible.
To keep this story map simple, the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area may hereafter be referred to as simply COWASEE, COWASEE Basin or focus area.
As you scroll through the story map, feel free to explore the COWASEE virtually by expanding the maps. You can do this by clicking the small icon in the upper right corner of each map. Once the map is full size, you can hover over the other icons in the corners of the map for an explanation of what each one does. Zoom in, zoom out or search for a particular town or other geographic feature. Be sure to use the map's legend in the bottom left corner for a better understanding of what the map shows. You can even pinpoint your own location within the basin if your computer's location services are turned on. To return to the map's original geographic extent, simply click on the "home" icon.
Flat-water paddlers flock to the meandering rivers of the COWASEE each year.
The satellite images in this map provide a birds-eye view of the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area.
The breeding range of the Prothonotary Warbler includes the COWASEE.
Encompassing approximately 315,000 acres, the core of the COWASEE Basin Focus Area is filled with rich bottomland hardwood forest but also includes the high hills and bluffs that border the rivers.
Elevations within the COWASEE range from around 75 feet above mean sea level in Sparkleberry Swamp to nearly 400 feet above mean sea level in the vicinity of Cook's Mountain. Some of these elevation changes are quite dramatic, as in the case of the bluffs along the Congaree and Wateree Rivers, and provide sweeping vistas of the surrounding counties. Looking out over the swamps from these vantage points, the COWASEE truly resembles a "basin" and one can easily imagine all of the water coursing through the land below.
This shaded relief map shows the topography of the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area.
This slope map highlights the steep bluffs rising above the rivers in the focus area.
Cook's Mountain in eastern Richland County offers commanding views of the Wateree River and Sumter County.
Some of South Carolina's premier public lands are found in the COWASEE including Congaree National Park, Poinsett State Park, Manchester State Forest, Congaree Bluffs Heritage Preserve and Sparkleberry Swamp, considered by many to be the finest flat-water paddling destination in the state. In addition, nearly 30 miles of the Palmetto Trail lie within the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area, including the Wateree Passage, arguably the most impressive section of the Trail.
The Wateree Passage of the Palmetto Trail immerses hikers in the Wateree Swamp ecosystem, no boat required!
Looks like a perfect day for a two-wheeled therapy session in the COWASEE.
This map shows the publicly-accessible land such as parks and wildlife refuges within the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area.
This barred owl is apparently a fan of crayfish.
Bountiful in deer, turkey and waterfowl, the COWASEE attracts large numbers of hunters to its forests and wetlands each year. In addition to the publicly-accessible wildlife management areas in Manchester State Forest, dozens of hunt clubs own or lease land throughout the COWASEE. Fisherman also flock to the COWASEE to wet their hooks and soak in the natural beauty of the rivers and ponds.
"Good girl, Millie!"
The Wildlife Management Areas in the COWASEE are shown in this map.
With a sunset like this, who cares if the fish are biting?
The vast expanses of pine trees that thrive in the COWASEE provide a renewable resource that supports thousands of jobs and pumps billions of dollars into the local economy each year.
A sure sign of stewardship
This map shows the many forest types found in the COWASEE.
Since humans first ventured into the COWASEE, the fertile land along the rivers has provided a source of food. Today, the livelihoods of many of the families here depend upon the success of their crops. Agricultural heritage runs deep as many family farms have been passed down from generation to generation.
An old tractor seat is better than the finest office chair ever made, especially on a crisp day like this.
In 2002, the Levi family placed a conservation easement on their Sumter County farm.
The rich alluvial soils found in the COWASEE can be seen in this map.
Human history abounds in the COWASEE, so much so that all three rivers are named for Native American tribes that first settled the region thousands of years before Europeans arrived. As a matter of fact, the COWASEE was the scene of the very first exploration of the interior of the southeastern United States by Europeans when Hernando De Soto and his army of 600 Spanish conquistadors passed through in the spring of 1540. The English explorer, surveyor and author John Lawson left behind some of the best documentation of the Native Americans and natural history of early South Carolina when he traveled through the COWASEE in 1701. In his classic account, A New Voyage to Carolina, Lawson wrote "The Congerees are kind and affable to the English, the Queen being very kind, giving us what Rarities her Cabin afforded..." He then goes on to describe a marble outcrop with "curious Springs of as delicious Water, as ever I drank in any Parts I ever travell'd in."
The COWASEE also played a key role for both sides during the American Revolution. The Great Road (also known as the King's Highway, the Santee Road and the River Road) on the eastern edge of the focus area was a well-traveled and strategic roadway for American and British forces in 1780-81. It originated in Charleston, crossed the Santee River at Nelson's Ferry and then continued on to Camden, SC. It was the lifeline for British operations in much of interior South Carolina. SC Highway 261 is approximately located along this route today.
Rebecca Motte presents a bow and arrows to Francis Marion for his Patriots to use to shoot flaming arrows onto the roof of her house in order to remove the British soldiers garrisoned there.
Conservation Easement: A voluntary legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust or government agency that permanently limits uses of the land in order to protect its conservation (natural) values. Landowners retain ownership and use of the land. They may sell it or pass it on to their heirs. Typical reserved rights (allowed uses) for conservation easements include agriculture, forestry, game management and recreation. Conservation easements are tailored to characteristics of a particular property as well as the owner’s financial needs and conservation goals. They may be put on entire parcels, or only portions of a parcel and can restrict as much or as little development as desired. Because properties having conservation easements remain privately owned, they offer an excellent opportunity for those with a passion for their land to leave a perpetual legacy of their conservation values while honoring traditional land uses such as agriculture, forestry and wildlife management. Conservation easements may offer significant federal and state income tax and estate tax advantages.
Considering the pressure from urbanization that the COWASEE is currently under, the foresight of the many public and private organizations that have worked so hard over the years to conserve land in the focus area seems incredibly prescient. Every acre that is protected from impervious surfaces such as parking lots, so common to urban sprawl, is an acre of farmland, forest or wetland that can feed our families, provide valuable renewable resources, filter our water and provide vital habitat for wildlife. Currently, 38% (119,478 acres) of the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area is under some sort of public or private protection. Conservation easements that landowners have voluntarily placed on their properties account for almost half of this total.
Large expanses and small pockets of developed areas are shown on all sides of the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area in this land cover map.
This map shows the protected properties, both public and private, within the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area.
- Agriculture contributes $992 billion to the American economy each year.
- Between 1992 and 2012, a total of 31 million acres of farmland were lost to development. That’s 175 acres per hour or 3 acres per minute. 31 million acres is equal to all the farmland in Iowa. Over 35% of this total was considered prime farmland with superior soil conditions located in areas with ideal weather for growing food.
- It probably comes as no surprise that the expansion of cities and suburbs are responsible for most of the loss in farmland, but 41% of the lost acres was due to development in rural areas.
- The total economic impact of South Carolina’s forest industry is $21 billion annually.
- 88% of South Carolina’s forests are privately owned and 63% of private forests are family-owned.
- The average “family forest” is 80 acres. 56% of these owners live on the land where their forests are grown.
- Forest industries own 137,400 acres, down 93% since 2001 and continuing to decline.
- In South Carolina, outdoor recreation generates $16.3 billion dollars in consumer spending annually.
- 151,000 jobs in SC are the direct result of the outdoor recreation industry.
- Outdoor recreation jobs in SC bring in $4.6 billion in wages and $1.1 billion in state and local tax revenue annually.
See more of the beauty and wonder the COWASEE has to offer:
The 201 acres that make up Congaree Bluffs Heritage Preserve (1) contain several trails as well as an observation deck that overlooks Congaree National Park. Picturesque Saylor's Lake (2) located near the south bank of the Congaree River is representative of the many ponds that dot the COWASEE. The once thriving village of Lone Star (3) situated in the fertile farmland of Calhoun County is today a veritable ghost town whose fortunes rose and fell with the railroad that passes through it. The Wateree Passage of the Palmetto Trail (4), perhaps one of the Trail's most diverse passages, takes hikers from the bluffs of the Wateree River to its swamps. The black water of Elliott's Millpond (5) in Rimini is covered with brilliant green duckweed in spring and summer, making the buttresses of the bald cypress trees that dominate the pond appear all the more impressive. Paddlers in Sparkleberry Swamp (6) often share their excursions with otters, alligators, great egrets and eagles. The High Hills of the Santee (7) offer pastoral vistas and some of the finest antebellum homes in America. The Church of the Holy Cross (8) in historic Stateburg, dating to 1785, is the final resting place of more than 100 veterans of the American Revolution, Civil War and World Wars I and II, including Medal of Honor recipient, George Mabry. The wide Santee River floodplain in eastern Richland County is home to many family farms (9) passed down over the generations. The bluffs of Poinsett State Park (10) offer sweeping vistas of Richland County and even Calhoun County on clear days. Congaree National Park, South Carolina's only national park, is home to six national champion-size trees including a 170-feet tall loblolly pine, the tallest tree in SC. This state champion bald cypress (11) at the park measures nearly 27 feet in circumference. A quiet hiker with keen eyes will often be treated to the sight of river otters in the COWASEE (12). Thanks to thousands of acres of wetlands and the large number of impoundments maintained by farmers and hunters, ducks (13) are a common sight. Painted Buntings (14) that winter in Florida and the Caribbean can be seen in the COWASEE during their breeding season. American alligators (15) are not an uncommon sight, especially in the lower COWASEE Basin. Water, the lifeblood of the land, is exceedingly abundant at the confluence (16) of the Congaree, Wateree and Santee Rivers: The Green Heart of South Carolina.
Whether your love of nature stems from an early experience canoeing with your family, shivering in a duck blind with your loyal retriever, plowing a field on a farm first owned by your great grandparents, planting Longleaf pine seedlings on a winter day or just strolling quietly through the forest listening to the birds, the memories made outdoors never leave us. In fact, most of us are so appreciative of the time spent outdoors as youngsters that we can't imagine our children or grandchildren not being able to experience the breathtaking beauty and soothing solitude that the natural world provides. No matter if it's in the COWASEE Basin or another awe-inspiring region of South Carolina, the air we breathe, the water we drink, the peace we crave are all found outdoors. Let's protect it.
Do you like what you've seen in this story map? Do you agree that the beauty, heritage, recreational and economic opportunities of the COWASEE Basin are all worth protecting? Then, if you are a landowner, please consider placing a conservation easement of some or all of your property. Conservation easements help protect the natural areas that fuel our state’s natural resource-based economy and define our way of life. Since our inception in 1992, the Congaree Land Trust has conserved more than 80,000 acres in central South Carolina, representing 172 individual properties of priority conservation land. Our focus is on supporting economic vitality, promoting healthy lifestyles, safeguarding drinking water and clean air, and protecting our local quality of life.
More than acres...
Nearly 30 years later, the number of people benefiting from Dr. Taylor's generosity continues to grow.
Interested in putting a conservation easement on your land? Want more information about the Congaree Land Trust and the work we do? Wish to support the Congaree Land Trust to help ensure future generations will be able to enjoy the natural beauty and heritage of the COWASEE Basin Core Focus Area and the rest of central South Carolina? Please contact us!
Congaree Land Trust
PO Box 5232, Columbia, SC 29250
(803) 988-0000
Much of what you read here was originally printed in COWASEE BASIN - The Green Heart of South Carolina by John Cely, published in 2011 by Totally Outdoors Publishing, Inc. John is a retired biologist and the former Land Protection Director for the Congaree Land Trust. Most of the photos that grace this story map also originally appeared in COWASEE BASIN. There are too many photographers to list here whose amazing work appears in COWASEE BASIN and in this story map, but if you would like to purchase a copy of the book or order a tour guide of the COWASEE Basin, please click the green button below.
