Hurricanes have visited the South Carolina coastline
repeatedly both during recorded and prerecorded history. Some of
these unwelcome visitors have ruined entire harvests, flooded plantations
and cities, destroyed houses and businesses in coastal communities, and
killed thousands of people. During several of these hurricanes, storm
wave action has cut through barrier islands to create new tidal inlets,
washed beach sand over into marsh lands, and significantly altered the
shape of the coastline. The North Inlet Study Site highlights the
physical changes that Hurricane Hugo produced in the Winyah Bay area of
South Carolina as seen from a comparison of two aerial photographs, one
taken before the hurricane and one taken just after the storm. It
also provides an opportunity to recount tales of prior hurricanes in this
part of the state and to analyze human reactions to this type of natural
disaster.
Background Information Description of Landforms,
Drainage Patterns, and Geologic Processes Characteristic Landforms
of Estuaries and Tidal Flats
Geographic Features of Special
Interest
Types of Estuaries
Processes Shaping South
Carolina's Coast
Movement of Sand
Influence of Topography
on Historical Events and Cultural Trends Rice Plantation Era
Rice Became a Culture as
Well as a Crop
Decline of Rice Exports
After the Civil War
Natural Resources, Land
Use, and Environmental Concerns Soils of Beaches and Salt
Marshes
Ecological Significance
of Estuaries and Salt Marshes
Non-Point Source Pollution
in Coastal Waterways
Study Site 10B--North Inlet (Hurricanes) Brief Site Description Shoreline Changes Due to
Major Storms
Famous South Carolina Hurricanes
Activity 10B-1: Hurricane
Hugo
