Weeks ago while tricycling about the neighbourhood at Lands End, I encountered a neighbour who also rode a tricycle. Hers is yellow; mine is black. But they are both Atlas tricycles which we both agree are well constructed. The neighbour – whose name is Carol – subsequently invited us for afternoon coffee, tea and cakes. As a result we got to know one another better. Part of that acquaintance included our hostess’ intelligence about her adoption, while on Hilton Head Island, of the sobriquet “Carolina of SC (South Carolina)”. Though the derivation of sobriquet (mid-17th century French: tap under the chin) might suggest “nose in the air”, there is nothing haughty about Carolina. In fact she practices that incomparable ease of compatibility which is the very fluid of diplomacy and familiarity.
Yesterday I received from Carolina the following email.
If you ride your trike down South Beach Lane – turn right on the last street on your right – Piping Plover – then dead end into the ocean … that’s where the Telling family built one of first homes in Sea Pines.
Have you been down that road? Nice bike, walk, and tennis from South Beach. Gull Point was just being created at that time and there were zero five-storey buildings.
If you wanted to rent a Porta crib for a baby, you had to drive to Savannah – and zero traffic on the way!
Carolina in SC
Part of my introduction to the Telling family was the advice from Carolina that her late husband had been defence counsel. While his practice did not relate to my particular niche (estate administration), it nonetheless afforded a link as well as a platform from which to conduct further investigation. It evolved that Carolina’s husband’s father was a leader in American business.
EDWARD R. TELLING, Former Sears Chairman and CEO Edward Riggs Telling, of North Palm Beach, FL, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sears, Roebuck and Co., died Wednesday, October 19, in North Palm Beach. He was 86. Mr. Telling was preceded in death by a son, Edward R. Telling III of Rockford, IL.
South Beach Lane runs parallel to the North Atlantic Ocean. It diverges off S Sea Pines Dr (the southerly point of which marks Lands End where our cottages are located) immediately north of nearby Tower Beach Club. Thereafter there are a number of short laneways which diverge directly towards the ocean. These laneways have the names Bald Eagle Rd, Cedar Wax Wing Rd, Green Wing Teal Rd, Seaside Sparrow Rd, Marsh Wren Rd, Grey Widgeon Rd and finally Piping Plover Rd before rejoining S Sea Pines Dr. These extensions from South Beach Lane are bound on the side opposite the ocean by Sprunt Pond.
I dwell upon the formation of the roads and laneways because they are illustrative of the development of the entirety of Hilton Head Island, beginning in Sea Pines plantation, the largest. In its least complimentary version, Hilton Head Island is one massive subdivision. It is a reminder foremost that the development of Hilton Head Island is fairly recent; and, more importantly, that it was by design intended to preserve the natural beauty that abounds to this day, to the point of prohibiting evening illumination which may work against the sea turtles hatching on the beach then following the moonlight to the sea.
The beginning of Hilton Head as a resort started in 1956 with Charles E. Fraser developing Sea Pines Resort. Soon, other developments followed, such as Hilton Head Plantation, Palmetto Dunes Plantation, Shipyard Plantation, and Port Royal Plantation, imitating Sea Pines’ architecture and landscaping. Sea Pines, however, continued to stand out by creating a unique locality within the plantation, called Harbour Town, anchored by a recognizable lighthouse. Fraser was a committed environmentalist who changed the whole configuration of the marina at Harbour Town to save an ancient live oak. It came to be known as the Liberty Oak, known to generations of children who watched singer and songwriter Gregg Russell perform under the tree for over 25 years. Fraser was buried next to the tree when he died in 2002.
As I rode on my tricycle today through the caverns of towering sea pines and Palmetto ferns I recalled the stunning impression upon me when I first crossed from the mainland onto the island over a decade ago. The favourable development of the island is inexpressible. I haven’t any further detail about the contribution of Tilling family to this evolution but it most certainly merits the highest accolades. That singular architectural construction constituted a solid mark from the beginning.
