The Lincolnville: Spring 2022

A publication of The Lincolnville Preservation and Historical Society Inc.

THE

SPRING 2022 EDITION

Meet Lincolnville’s New Mayor

Don’t Miss the Reading Corner

Meet Lincolnville’s Food Culturist, Cathy Hill

The History of Lincolnville, South Carolina

Cathy caters with a purpose, providing sustenance simmered in Sea Island history and culture.

By Christine W. Hampton and Rosalee W. Washington » page 3

» page 3

Bishop Richard H. Cain Community Garden Expands You may have noticed the land clearing at The Bishop Richard Harvey Cain Community Garden on Dunmeyer Hill Road. After a successful launch last year, the garden is expanding to include a greenhouse with hydroponic gardening system - thanks to the initiative of Perry Patrick a 10th grader at Summerville High School. Perry is committed to

addressing systematic food shortage and winning the Girl Scout Award Gold, the highest award given to by the organization.

She reached out to the Bishop Cain Community Gardeners with an idea to extend the garden by adding a greenhouse.

Needless to say, the community gardeners are excited to embrace Perry and her idea. Denise Sanders, » page 2

Meet Lincolnville’s New Mayor

Greenspace project is expected to get underway in 2022.

by Eliza Chapman Bailey On January 5, 2022, former Town Councilman, Enoch Dickerson, was sworn in as Lincolnville’s new Mayor.

Mayor Dickerson has a practical and measured vision to both improve the infrastructure of the town and preserve Lincolnville’s legacy. For over 26 years, Enoch Dickerson has been serving the Town of Lincolnville in several capacities. From 1985-2001, he served as Lincolnville’s Municipal Court Judge and as Town Councilman from 2010-2020.

In his second term as Councilman, Dickerson headed the parks and recreation department and accomplished the refurbishing of the baseball field and basketball court, built two tennis courts and a Pavilion. In 2017, Dickerson was instrumental in the town securing a grant for a Greenspace and nature trail that encompasses 2 acres and a natural stream surrounded by indigenous flora and fauna. This

Mayor Dickerson’s focus for the town is multifaceted. His sights are set on creating a Town hub by renovating the Community Center, adding additional multipurpose space, and a muchneeded library. Building upon his achievements as a Councilman, he’d like to grow the recreation department facilities to encompass a restroom to the Pavilion, a gazebo by the tennis courts and a concession stand.

Raised on a farm in Andrews, South Carolina, Mayor Dickerson learned from his father the value of a hard day’s work and from his mother the importance of education. In 1971, Dickerson purchased a parcel of land and built his family’s home in Lincolnville, SC.

Community Garden (continued from page 1) a community gardener and certified horticulturist, assisted Perry in finding resources to add a greenhouse and suggested the addition of a hydroponic gardening system. This state-ofthe art technique of producing food in a climate controlled, soilless setting is exciting for the Town of Lincolnville.

The community garden began as a national model of The Balm In Gilead, Inc. a national organization based in Richmond, Virginia.

The Balm In Gilead works to strengthen the collective power of congregations of various denominations to establish an equitable food system for their local communities across the

state of South Carolina. The Black Church Security Food Network and The Mayo Clinic are partners with the Balm In Gilead community garden project. To date, seventeen congregations in SC participate in the Balm In Gilead’s African American Church Community Garden and Food Security Project.

For more information: www. balmingilead.org.

The Lincolnville » page 2

While the land is being cleared at the garden and the expansion work is still in progress, community gardeners along with community members are preparing for spring planting. We welcome and invite all Lincolnville residents to join in the fun of planting and harvesting fresh vegetables to serve on their tables.

Local Food Culturist. Cathy Hill, Celebrates Food, Friends and Family in Lincolnville Serving Traditional Gullah Cuisine

By Eliza Chapman Bailey

pepper, bacon or lard, ham hocks or jowls, and chitlins to season its pots of rice, beans, and greens.

South Carolina Lowcountry fare is typically associated with Gullah Cuisine and its very close cousin, Soul Food. Each are rooted in the culinary traditions enslaved Africans brought to South Carolina from their West African homelands and passed down through their descendants.

Gullah Cuisine originated on the isolated plantations of coastal South Carolina, Georgia, and parts of Florida. It relies heavily on the abundance of seafood and agricultural products: rice, okra, yams, peas, and greens.

Whether leaving the State of South Carolina, or moving 20 miles inland to Lincolnville, Gullah Cuisine migrated with the descendants of enslaved Africans.

Lincolnville’s food culturist and owner of Simply Elegant Catering, Cathy Hill, embraces her African culinary legacy by cooking verifiably authentic Gullah cuisine and soul food using recipes her grandmother, Francis Edward, taught her when she was a child.

Gullah recipes utilize simple ingredients with seafood or meat, Soul Food grew out of Gullah Cuisine by way of the Great Migration of African Americans from the Sea Islands and other Southern States to other parts of the country between 1910-1970.

Soul Food uses more salt and

Literally standing by her grandmother’s side, Cathy learned from proximity. Watching her grandmother, she learned her techniques, how to season the cast iron skillet; finely cut onions, and the subtle timing of combining seasonings and ingredients. She also observed, when no one was

looking, her grandmother’s added secret ingredients. Cathy uses the best ingredients, butcher quality seasoning meats combined with love and attention. Her food is not just a meal, she cooks with love.

The detail she puts into the presentation of her food is equally as important; it is an extension of her cooking techniques and devotion to providing sustenance with care and dedication.

Cathy recognizes, when eating regional cuisine, people want to taste the emotions of generations.

My goal is to always create food reminiscent of Sunday Dinners that my grandmother prepared with elegant presentation”.

Regardless of what is served, Cathy caters with a purpose, providing sustenance simmered in Sea Island history and culture exquisitely placed on a shared table.

The Reading Corner:

The History of Lincolnville, South Carolina

By Christine W. Hampton and Rosalee W. Washington Available on Amazon.

About the Book: In 1867, seven men with ties to the African Methodist Episcopal Church founded a new town between Summerville and Charleston, South Carolina, which they called Lincolnville.

It quickly filled with hopeful families who just a decade before had been enslaved.

Through the years the town’s citizens have

established strong institutions that have served as the town’s foundation. The local school operated from 1899 until 1969, one of the state’s few extant African-American schools from the nineteenth century. Land for the Ebenezer A.M.E. Church was purchased just two years after the town was founded, and the first building was constructed in 1878. This history by two native daughters highlights the people who have been the strength of the town for over a century.

The Lincolnville » page 3

The Lincolnville Preservation & Historical Society Inc. aims to grasp and preserve the legacy of Black men and women who, during the era of reconstruction, brought and owned land so that Black families could be free to pursue and secure the blessings and rights of freedom for themselves and their posterity. The Town of Lincolnville was founded in 1867 and incorporated in 1889 and is rich in history and legacy. With an intentional focus, The Lincolnville Preservation & Historical Society, a 501.c3, not-for-profit organization, works to enrich and preserve the cultural heritage and intangible attributes of Lincolnville, one of the oldest African American towns in the State of South Carolina. The organization offers community development activities designed to improve the health, economic and social determinates of residents living in Lincolnville today.

The Lincolnville Preservation & Historical Society is excited to bring you this, the inaugural issue of The Lincolnville, a quarterly publication designed to bring you relevant and valuable information about The Town of Lincolnville, its history and present. Please share your stories and events with us at info@lincolnvillesc.org.

I invite you to join The Lincolnville Preservation & Historical Society. If you grew up in Lincolnville or know someone who did, please share your stories, artifacts and photos at www.lincolnvillesc.org. Please support our work with a donation.

Abiding Gratitude and Joy! Pernessa C. Seele President & Founder

ACTIVITIES MARCH 2022 FREE Youth Baseball Clinic Saturday, March 26th, 5:00pm – 6:30pm No Registration Needed Information Flyers can be picked up at the Community Center Contact Betty Hill Weldon for more information, 843-873-3261

APRIL 2022 Easter Egg Hunt Eggstravaganza Date to Be Determined Come Enjoy Outdoor Games and Meet the Easter Bunny Flyers will be available at the Community Center

ON-GOING Town Council Meeting 141 W. Broad Street; Lincolnville, SC The First Wednesday of Every Month

Church Services Ebenezer AME Church 124 E. Pinckney Street; Lincolnville, SC Worship Service: 10AM Friendship Inspirational Church of God In Christ 128 Hamilton Street; Lincolnville, SC Sunday Prayer: 9AM Sunday School: 9:30AM Worship Service: 10:30AM Wednesday Bible Study: 7PM The Lincolnville » page 4

Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church 360 Dunmeyer Hill Road; Lincolnville, SC Sunday School: 10AM Worship Service: 11AM Wesley Church 736 W. Front Street; Lincolnville, SC Worship Service: 10AM