In this two-part series, producer Sara A. Lewis visits the South Carolina Sea Islands, where the triumphs and tragedies of Reconstruction have left a unique legacy. In Part I, join Sara on Edisto Island, where formerly enslaved people owned land, built schools, and created prosperous communities all before the Emancipation Proclamation. Hear from scholars and local experts as they tell the story of Edisto’s inspiring successes, its unjust dissolution, and the marks that both have left on the island today.

This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Christian Brown, with Dr. Kidada Williams. Thank you to Dr. Caroline Grego and Chris Barr. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb. This episode featured voice acting by Dennis Caldwell and musical performance by Frankie James, Olivia Stith, Samantha Higgs, and Dominique Jones, with arrangement by Frankie James.

This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the African American History Commission.

Visit OxfordAmerican.org/PointsSouth to find more episodes, plus films, photographs, and more from the world of Points South.