Our recent visit to Little Cumberland Island piqued my need to share some information and additional photos with those of you who might not be familiar with Georgia’s wonderful coastline or its many barrier islands.
There are about fifteen islands off the 100 mile coast from Savannah on the South Carolina border to St. Mary’s on the Florida line. Many islands have small parcels separated by creeks that end up with separate names and are, technically speaking, islands on their own. The four most popular are known as the “Golden Islands” — Little St. Simons, St. Simons Island, Sea Island, and Jekyll Island. The most settled and populated is St. Simons which has a long history as a community beginning with the founding of Georgia in 1733 by General James Oglethorpe. It boasts a fishing pier, a small village with boutique shops, and many fine restaurants as well as a substantial number of year-round residences.
Little St. Simons is privately owned and accessible only by boat. It is virtually untouched by development but does have a rustic retreat, the Lodge, for no more than 32 guests per night. A staff of naturalists offer tours of the island and beach. Sea Island, reachable by causeway, is an enclave of posh residences and home to the exclusive Cloister resort.
Jekyll Island is a Georgia state park with diverse recreational activities and an especially beautiful beach. It was here that the “Gilded Age” millionaires founded the famed Jekyll Island Club in 1888, one of the most exclusive and prestigious social clubs in the United States. Luminaries such as J.P. Morgan, William Vanderbilt, Joseph Pulitzer, and Marshall Field all had palatial homes there, known as “cottages.”
In addition, there are other islands, including St. Catherine’s, Ossabaw, and Wassaw, controlled by the state that are largely wild with no settlements. Sapelo Island is interesting for its Black community dating back to the Gullah Geechee days. The reality is that there are a myriad of islands according to who is counting, all with fascinating and storied histories dating back to the Spanish in the 16th century and to the plantation era when “Sea Island Cotton” was king. Still later, prominent figures such as Button Gwinnett, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and wealthy entrepreneurs the likes of the Carnegies built imposing mansions, some of which still exist such as the Reynolds House on Sapelo.
Photos from Little Cumberland Island.
