Abstract
This article explores the cultural, political, and ecological impact of the Santee-Cooper project, the largest New Deal project in South Carolina. It argues that the New Deal, in reshaping the landscape, permanently altered the Lowcountry by wiping away a large plantation district and vestige of the Old South, and replaced it with a recreational district and integral part of the Sunbelt South. The first step in the crucial transformation was the battle between New Deal politicians and an alliance of landowners, conservationists, and power companies. Each side presented very different views of the South's future and past. One looked to industrial growth as a model for progress while the other looked to the preservation of the environment and traditional racial roles as an antidote to modernization. Given the Great Depression and South Carolinians' pressing desire for jobs and change, the New Dealers won and the opposition's argument largely fell on deaf ears. The Santee-Cooper project has largely been ignored by historians, but this article places it within the context of three recent works of environmental history: Sara Gregg's analysis of local reactions to federal landscapes, Sarah Phillips's work that shifts environment to the center of New Deal policy, and Paul Sutter's study of wilderness preservation in resistance to modernization.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
