1958 Map of Summerville NW

About this map

The low-lying wetlands of Wassamassaw Swamp and Cypress Swamp define this 1958 survey of Berkeley County, South Carolina. The landscape is a network of ecological "bays" and slow-moving runs, including Coton Bay, Mosquito Bay, and Long Ridge Bay. These geological depressions and dense swamp forests dictate the settlement patterns, with development concentrated along the higher ground of the ridges. Rural life is anchored by a series of small community hubs, most notably Lebanon Ch, Wassamassaw Ch, and St James Ch. Evidence of earlier land use is visible at the Millpond on the edge of Coton Bay, while the interior is marked by a network of private roads and drainage features like Big Run and Black Creek that feed into the larger river systems of the Coastal Plain.