Lands End Woodland Inc.

Lands End Woodland Inc. is a preserve on St. Helena Island. It was started in the 1920s, when 47 African slave descendants bought 328 acres of the former Baker Plantation to preserve it for the recreational use of future generations. Today, it is a nonprofit organization maintained by the descendants or heirs of the original land owners and touts itself as the oldest landowners association owned by African Americans in South Carolina.

History

The organization began as a group of families that wanted a place for recreational activities, to fish and hunt, to have access to firewood, and to provide family burial grounds, according to the group's Web site. They called themselves the Woodland Club. As the original founders died, many without wills, the property became vulnerable to title claims. In 1994, they sued themselves as part of a strategy to convert to a nonprofit corporation called Lands End Woodland Club and keep developers from using unscrupulous methods to acquire the land. With the help of the Penn Center and pro bono lawyers, a genealogical search of all of the founding families was done. The family members were notified and the work of incorporating the organization started.

In 1996, the organization was incorporated as the Lands End Woodland Inc. Timber farming takes place on some of the property. Fishing and hunting take place there, as well. In an area adjacent to the cemetery, portions of the original plantation house and slave quarters in the form of tabby ruins have been uncovered and are in the process of being stabilized so that they can be restored, according to the organization's Web site. According to archeological review, details of the structures suggest that these buildings may have been built between 1760 and 1780, leading us to believe that these structures may be some of the earliest historic buildings to survive on St. Helena Island.

Dispute with Ted Turner

Despite the group's efforts to obtain clear title to their property, a dispute arose with media mogul Ted Turner, who owned adjacent property and claimed to own 68 acres of the club's land. Although the original document that details the Lands End property boundaries still exists, it was never officially filed, and it now seems that some of the parcel overlap with property Turner subsequently purchased.

Turner, the nation's largest private landowner, filed suit in 2002 but dropped his claim later that year after reaching an agreement with Woodland. "Ted Turner has special regard for the Gullah people as the heirs and protectors of one of the oldest living cultural traditions in the nation," according to a joint statement issued by attorneys for both sides.' "He understands that this bond of community cannot be preserved unless people stay together, and they cannot stay together unless they have land where they can gather."'

Turner agreed to donate and forfeit any claim to the disputed 68 acres. In return, Lands End Woodlands Inc. acknowledged Turner has a legitimate claim to the land and declares that his donation constitutes a charitable contribution to the group. "We have amicably resolved the issue of the land dispute," said Gloria Cartwright, secretary of the Lands End group. "Basically, we are pleased that it has been resolved and we now have, as it states clearly with no further encumbrance, the property. We're neighbors, the Turner property and the Lands End property, and we intend to be good neighbors to each other."'

According to court documents in Beaufort, Turner said the wooded land was part of 298 acres he acquired for recreational use in 1979. When Turner filed the suit, he had no way of knowing that Lands End wasn't just another corporation out to develop ecologically significant land that Turner was trying to protect, said Turner spokeswoman Maura Donlan. As soon as he learned of the Gullah connection, he directed his attorneys to settle the matter quickly and fairly.