Cole Island, South Carolina

06/15/2026

Island Life on Cole Island, South Carolina 🏝️ coleislandsc

06/04/2026

Discover the trails on Cole Island, South Carolina, where nature and history intertwine along the scenic Lowcountry coast. At this time, Cole Island is privately owned and not accessible to the public. However, we hope you enjoy the pictures and reading about Cole Island's trails.



https://coleislandsc.com/f/cole-island%E2%80%99s-walking-trails-pathways-through-nature-and-history

06/03/2026

This is the historical account of the Union Navy’s bombardment of Cole Island on May 20, 1862, based the Official Record of the Union and Confederate Armies and Navy.

In March of 1862, a fleet of Union gunboats were in the Atlantic Ocean threatening the Carolina coast outside of Charleston, SC. In a controversial move, Confederate Maj. Gen. John C. Pemberton (VA), Commander of the Department of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, chose to abandon Cole's Island....

05/29/2026

Thank you, Patio Pirate from Jefferson City, Tennessee, for coming all the way to the Lowcountry and rockin’ Cole Island’s dock! 🏝️🏴‍☠️🏝️

05/28/2026

The map titled “Posts on Stono” identifies the location of the batteries constructed on Cole Island by Johnson Hagood to defend the Stono Inlet during the American Civil War. The map also identifies a causeway between Cole Island and James Island that was utilized by both Confederate and Union troops, and possibly a bridge to self emancipation for the enslaved.

Cole Island is a crescent-shaped island on the Stono Inlet where the Atlantic Ocean flows into the Stono and Folly Rivers. During the American Civil War, Cole Island served as a strategic defensive post for the Confedera...

05/27/2026

Cole Island Family 🏝️

05/13/2026

On this day in 1862, enslaved Robert Smalls made his escape on the C.S.S. Planter loaded with cargo that included artillery he helped remove from Cole Island on May 12, 1862.

While the Planter’s captain and officers were ashore, Robert Smalls, an enslaved crewman, seized the opportunity to escape. Smalls successfully piloted the Planter through Charleston Harbor and past Confederate checkpoints undetected. Smalls delivered his family, the ship's enslaved crew, and the C.S.S. Planter, along with its cargo, to the Union Navy in the early morning hours on May 13, 1862.

What was most valuable was the intel Smalls provided to the Union. He would inform the Union that the Confederates had disarmed Cole Island, and the Stono Inlet was unguarded. The Union knew this meant the back gate to Charleston had been left open. They would bombard Cole Island on May 20, 1862, occupy Cole Island and take control over the Stono Inlet.

05/09/2026

Cole Island runs on sundial time!
☀️🏝️☀️

05/06/2026

You can now learn more about Cole Island, South Carolina on Wikipedia! 🏝️

Cole Island is a barrier island with a 303-acre footprint in Charleston County, South Carolina, located southwest of Charleston on the Stono Inlet, between Folly Island and Kiawah Island. Cole Island and its surrounding wetlands are part of the Lowcountry's salt-marsh ecosystem.

02/01/2026

This Sunday morning, read about the church that was built on Cole Island in 1863 by Union soldiers. As a bonus, read the lyrics to a hymn written for the chapel’s dedication about Cole Island, the soldiers who worshiped there and their faith.

During the American Civil War, Union soldiers built a church on Cole Island, and on the Sunday before Christmas in 1863, the Union Army Regiments dedicated the chapel. The chapel was fifty by thirty feet in size, built o...