Sampit River

File:Sampit River just above Georgetown County, South Carolina (17 July 2006).jpg

The Sampit River begins in a swampy area of western Georgetown County, South Carolina, USA. It flows in an easterly direction to Winyah Bay at Georgetown.{{cite web|url=https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/02136370/#period=P1Y|title=Sampit River at Georgetown, SC|website=United States Geological Survey|access-date=23 March 2023}} Only small crafts can navigate the upper parts of the river. The lower river merges into the bay and is deepened by tidal flows, and (to Georgetown harbor) by dredging.{{cite web|title=Project Fact Sheet: Georgetown Harbor, SC|publisher=U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Charleston District|url=https://www.sac.usace.army.mil/Portals/43/docs/congressionalvisits/2018/spring/civilprojects/Georgetown%20Harbor%20-%20District%207.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324014132/https://www.sac.usace.army.mil/Portals/43/docs/congressionalvisits/2018/spring/civilprojects/Georgetown%20Harbor%20-%20District%207.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 24, 2023|date=10 April 2018|access-date=23 March 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://coastalobserver.com/engineers-outline-plan-for-dredging-ports-inner-harbor/|title=Engineers outline plan for dredging port's inner harbor|last=Sokoloski|first=Chris|date=20 June 2022|access-date=23 March 2023|website=Coastal Observer}}{{cite web|url=https://wpde.com/newsletter-daily/georgetown-dredging-coastal-carolina-waterfront-inner-harbor-silting-engineering-economic-development-1-2-22|title=CCU study suggests another option for Georgetown's inner harbor silting issue|last=James|first=Andrew|date=2 January 2023|access-date=23 March 2023|website=ABC15 News}}

During colonial and antebellum years, areas near the river were developed extensively for rice cultivation,{{cite web|url=https://nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2014.216.74|title=Aerial photograph of the Sampit River flowing through Friendfield Plantation|others=Photograph by David Soliday|year=2010|author=David Soliday|website=National Museum of African American History & Culture|publisher=Smithsonian|access-date=23 March 2023}} on large plantations{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalregister.sc.gov/georgetown/S10817722037/index.htm|title=Friendfield Plantation, Georgetown County|website=National Register Properties in South Carolina|publisher=South Carolina Department of Archives and History|access-date=23 March 2023}} dependent on labor of African slaves.{{cite web|url=https://discoversouthcarolina.com/articles/discover-georgetown-a-quiet-spot-on-the-coast|title=Discover Georgetown, A Quiet Spot on the Coast|last=Ivey|first=Page|website=Discover South Carolina|year=2023|publisher=South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism}} They created complex earthworks with dams and other elements to irrigate the rice fields using tidewaters.{{cite web |url=https://www.scpictureproject.org/georgetown-county/sampit-river.html|title=Sampit River|website=South Carolina Picture Project|access-date=23 March 2023|year=2022}}{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/rice-trunks/|title=Rice Trunks|encyclopedia=South Carolina Encyclopedia|last=Linder|first=Suzanne|date=23 August 2022|orig-date=Originally published 20 June 2016|access-date=23 March 2023|publisher=University of South Carolina, Institute for Southern Studies}} In this and other areas of the Low Country, African Americans developed the Gullah people and culture,{{cite web|url=https://www.postandcourier.com/georgetown-countys-natural-beauty-intertwined-with-its-history/article_71062516-aacd-11ec-9f18-cfd4e956a090.html|title=Georgetown County's natural beauty intertwined with its history|author1=Tommy Howard|author2=Georgetown Times|date=22 April 2022|access-date=23 March 2023|website=The Post and Courier}} a distinct creole culture with strong connections through culture, language and cuisine to West African peoples.{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/arts-culture/geechee-and-gullah-culture/|title=Geechee and Gullah Culture|encyclopedia=New Georgia Encyclopedia|last=Sumpter|first=Althea|date=16 September 2020|access-date=23 March 2023|orig-date=Originally published 31 March 2006}}

Invasive species

In July 2006, a red-bellied pacu fish (Piaractus brachypomus) was caught in the upper portion of the river.{{cite web|url=http://dnr.sc.gov/news/Yr2006/aug28/aug28_pacu.html|url-status=dead|date=28 August 2006|title=Non-native Pacu fish caught in Sampit River|website=DNR News|publisher=South Carolina Department of Natural Resources|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100719125614/http://dnr.sc.gov/news/Yr2006/aug28/aug28_pacu.html|archive-date=19 July 2010|id=#06-224}}{{cite web |url=https://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactSheet.aspx?SpeciesID=427|title=Piaractus brachypomus (Cuvier, 1818)|website=Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database|publisher=U.S. Geological Survey|location=Gainesville, Florida|last1=Nico|first1=L.G.|last2=Fuller|first2=P.L.|last3=Neilson|first3=M.E.|date=22 December 2020|orig-date=Peer reviewed 22 October 2013|access-date=23 March 2023}} Pacus are relatives of piranhas native to South America. South Carolina DNR officials say this find highlights the danger of individuals releasing non-native fish to the wild. Non-native species can sometimes outcompete local species for habitat and food, killing them off, or introduce diseases, with devastating effects on fisheries.

References

Category:Rivers of Georgetown County, South Carolina

Category:Rivers of South Carolina

Category:Tributaries of the Pee Dee River