Hilton Head To Carolina BBQ To Aiken

Aiken

May 6, 2022

Took a different route yesterday from Hilton Head to Aiken -- one I don't recall taking before.

Cats just hanging out where my villa was.

It was pretty dang hot on the beach.

Estill is a town in Hampton County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 2,040 at the 2010 census.

Geography

Estill is located 52 miles north of Savannah, Georgia, 64 miles northwest of Hilton Head Island and 93 miles west of Charleston. The major industries are timber and agriculture.

History

The town of Estill is located in the southern half of Hampton County. The town is named for Colonel John Holbrook Estill. Estill was formed in 1900 when the railroad, later Seaboard Air Line Railroad, needed a rail line between Augusta, Georgia and Savannah, Georgia. Upon construction of the rail line, the new town of Estill was incorporated in 1905.

The John Lawton House and Lawtonville Baptist Church are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Federal Correctional Institution, Estill is located near the town.

2020 Tornado

In the early morning hours of April 13, 2020, a large, violent EF4 Tornado struck areas just south of Estill. The tornado (which packed winds of 175 MPH) killed 5 and injured around 60 people. The nearby community of Nixville, South Carolina suffered a direct hit from the tornado, and sustained the brunt of the twisters impacts. The Federal Correctional Institution, Estill also sustained damage, resulting in many of the prison's inmates being temporarily transferred to the United States Penitentiary, Lewisburg in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.The tornado was the first violent tornado in South Carolina since 1995.

Education

There are four schools in the town: Estill High, Estill Middle, and Estill Elementary, all of which are a part of Hampton County's School District 2, and Patrick Henry Academy, a private school.

I enjoyed walking around Estill. There must be a hundred (more?) towns like this in South Carolina.

A separate memorial for African-Americans who served? I must misunderstand these two memorials.

I took these next two photos to capture the sun faded color of the road. You see this on many of the rural two lane roads in the Lowcountry and Midlands.

Near Jackson, South Carolina.

Nothing like the buffet at Carolina BBQ.