1. South Carolina’s Waterways
Chapter 2 Section 2
South Carolina’s Waterways

2. Essential Question
How do South Carolina’s Lakes and River’s Impact the state?

3. What terms do I need to know?
Navigate
Tributaries

4. Understanding the importance of Rivers and Lakes in SC
Advantages:
-- major source of transportation in early years
-- source of water & electric power & as places for recreation
-- river transportation stopped at the Fall Line because of waterfalls and rapids; this gave rise to trading posts which eventually grew into cities.

5. -- Canals were built in Columbia and other places to improve water transportation along the Fall Line.
--Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, which runs along SC’s coast, helps ships safely travel from Boston to Key West.

7. Four Major River Systems
Pee Dee System
--Begins in NC and empties into the Atlantic in Georgetown
--Includes 5 major rivers (Pee Dee, Little Pee Dee, Black, Waccamaw and Lynches) and two small rivers (Sampit, and Pocotaligo.

9. Santee River System --Largest river system in SC; begins in NC.
--Includes the Broad and Saluda which meet near Columbia and form the Congaree.
--Congaree meets the Wateree to form the Santee which flows into the Atlantic south of Georgetown.

11. Savannah River System
- drains western part of SC; begins in mountains of NC & forms boundary between SC & GA
- only system in SC which large ships can travel for any distance

13. Edisto River System
- not really a river system but rather a series of rivers that drain the southeastern portion of SC between Charleston and Beaufort
- includes Salkehatchie, Coosawatchie, Ashepoo, Combahee, Ashley, and New.

15. Lakes
SC has many lakes; most were created when dams were built across rivers to use water to generate electricity
-- 11 major man-made lakes
- 6 are part of the Santee River System: Wateree (oldest); Wylie, Murray, Greenwood, Marion, Moultrie
- 5 are part of the Savannah River System: Thurmond, Hartwell, Keowee, Jocassee, Russell