Made In Carolina Podcast

Beneath the still waters of Lake Marion lies the ghost of a forest — and a town named Ferguson. Before the Santee River was dammed, the Santee River Cypress Lumber Company had already stripped much of the swamp bare, cutting and milling its centuries-old cypress. By the time the flood came, the forest that once sheltered the town was already gone.

This episode traces how the Santee Basin itself was transformed — not only socially bu...

Across the Santee Basin, communities built lives rooted in land, labor, and belief. In the years after emancipation, Black, Indigenous, and European families shaped intertwined identities through farming, faith, and community — stories that still echo in the cemeteries, churches, and waters that remain. The Ground Remembers explores how race, land, and belief shaped who belonged — and what endures beneath the water.

Featured Voices:...

Before Lake Marion or Lake Moultrie existed, South Carolina imagined connecting the Santee and Cooper Rivers to the port of Charleston. From the 18th-century Santee Canal to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal vision, this episode follows the long road from dream to dam — a story of ambition, technology, and belief in progress.

Historians Dr. Thomas Robert Hart explains how the New Deal reshaped the Lowcountry, while Dr. Kelsey Moore e...

Episode Description

As Lake Murray filled, entire communities vanished beneath the rising waters—homes, churches, and hundreds of graves now rest below the surface. In this episode, archivist and storyteller Lolita Rowe explores the remnants of those submerged memories. Featuring reflections from J.R. Fennell of the Lexington County Museum, along with archival voices from Ralph and Herman Wessinger, this story highlights the deep ro...

Episode 2 – Building the Lake Season 1: Submerged Towns

Beneath Lake Murray lies a story of labor, endurance, and transformation. Episode 2 uncovers how thousands of workers—Black, white, immigrant, and Indigenous—built one of the South’s largest man-made lakes. Through archival footage, oral histories, and expert insight, we reveal the human cost, progress, and memory tied to the creation of the Saluda Dam.

Featuring J.R. Fennell of...

Before Lake Murray ever existed, this land was home to thriving communities that would soon face upheaval as the dam project began. In this first episode of our Submerged Towns mini-series, Lolita Rowe is joined by J.R. Fennel to explore the lives, work, and faith that shaped the communities which disappeared beneath the waters of Lake Murray.

✨ Episode Credits

• Host & Producer: Lolita Rowe
• Guest: J.R. Fennel, Director of the L...