National South Carolina Day – Fun Facts About South Carolina

The coastline is a hot spot for family vacations in South Carolina. Yet, there is so much more to see in this beautiful southern state. Sleepy old towns are waiting inland. Add in the state parks and the sea islands and you have a family adventure waiting for you. On National South Carolina Day, I could focus on all that. But I thought I would do something different and share a few fun facts about South Carolina.

National South Carolina Day – Fun Facts About South Carolina

1. Summerville, SC is where sweet tea was first brewed. You can follow the Sweet Tea Trail there or attend the Sweet Tea Festival. My favorite thing to do is check out Mason. It is the world’s largest glass of sweet tea. This glass is more than 15 feet tall. And it holds 2,524 gallons of sweet tea. That’s a lot of tea!
2. More than 3,000 Rhesus monkeys live on Morgan Island in South Carolina.
3. A must-try food in South Carolina is Frogmore stew. It is made with shrimp, sausage, potatoes, and corn on the cob. No frogs here!
4. South Carolina used to be known as the Iodine State. Now it is called the Palmetto State.
5. The first symphony orchestra in the country called Charleston, SC home.
6. In South Carolina, it is illegal to keep your horse in a bathtub.
7. It is illegal for a railroad to remove itself from a town with more than 500 people in South Carolina.
8. The biggest gingko farm in the entire world is located in Sumter.
9. Hilton Head was named after Captain William Hilton. He is the person who discovered the island in 1663. He named it after himself.
10. Drayton Hall is one of the oldest plantations in the US.
11. A few famous people from South Carolina include “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, Mary-Louise Parker, Stephen Colbert, Vanna White, and Blackbeard.
12. The official dance in South Carolina is the Shag.
13. The world’s hottest chili pepper is grown in South Carolina. Smokin’ Ed’s Carolina Reaper is available through the PuckerButt Pepper Company. People have been known to spasm and be sick after eating just one.
14. Wild hogs roam freely through this state.
15. There are no professional sports teams in South Carolina.
16. Sleeping with the Enemy, The Notebook, and Prince of Tides were all filmed in South Carolina.
17. Myrtle Beach is called the miniature golf capital of the world thanks to the more than 50 miniature golf courses in the area.
18. Poinsett Bridge was constructed in 1820 and is the oldest bridge in the state.
19. A UFO Welcome Center is open to alien visitors in Bowman, South Carolina.
20. A popular urban legend in South Carolina is the Lizard Man. It is believed the Lizard Man spends most of his time at Scape Ore Swamp. Use caution if near that area.
21. The cousin of the Loch Ness Monster, Messie, is said to live in Lake Murray in South Carolina.
22. The vents at a creamer manufacturer experienced mechanical issues in 1969. The result was the locals being covered by non-dairy creamer during a powdered rainstorm. Then it did rain and turned everything into a creamy mess.
23. Real town names in South Carolina include South of the Border, Ninety Six, Coward, Due West, and Welcome. Which one would you like to live in??

These are some of the fun facts about South Carolina everyone should know. You will learn many others when you choose to take a family vacation there for National South Carolina Day.

So, are you ready to book a family vacation in South Carolina and learn a few more fun facts?

If you said yes, I would like to invite you to schedule a planning session with me by clicking here. When you click on this link, you will be taken directly to my digital calendar to schedule a time that is convenient for you.

And if you are not ready to take a family vacation for National South Carolina Day, you can sign up for my newsletter here. This will ensure you receive all the travel information I share in the future.

Tracy Schatz

Tracy is the owner of Elite Travel Journeys, a luxury travel agency dedicated to crafting extraordinary, memory-making journeys for families, multigenerational groups, empty nesters, and solo female travelers. A proud military veteran and President of the Central PA Chapter of ASTA, Tracy brings both discipline and deep passion to everything she does. With a particular love for river cruising, especially Europe’s enchanting Christmas Markets, she has been turning travel dreams into life-changing experiences since 2014. Tracy believes that extraordinary travel doesn’t just take you somewhere new; it changes who you are.