Dec 2012 CIM Newsletter

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CUMBERLAND ISLAND MUSEUM

NEWSLETTERNEWSLETTERNEWSLETTERNEWSLETTERVOLUME 23, NUMBER 4 DECEMBER, 2012

Editors: C. Ruckdeschel and A. Mahoney Much beach erosion this quarter.

MUSEUM NEWS

A talk was given in October to students fromWarren Wilson College, who were keenly inter-ested in island issues. They were on a service tripand helped the Park Service remove fencing atSerendipity.

ZEBRA

The Zebra or Yellow-Barred Heliconian,Heli-conius charitonius, was unusually abundant in the

Settlement this autumn, and was observed on thebeach as well. Zebras are in the Family Nym-phalidae, which occur in most of tropical Amer-ica, the Gulf States, and occasionally to southern

South Carolina. In Georgia they have been re-corded as far north as Atlanta and Augusta inGeorgia. Their bright, eye-catching coloration isaposematic, warning would-be predators of their

poisonous body juices. At night, Zebras are saidto congregate and roost in groups.

Foliage of the Passion-flower, Passiflora sp.,is the larval food plantof Zebras, and twospecies of this planthave been recorded onthe island, P. incar-nate, the Purple Pas-sionflower, and P.

lutea, the Yellow. Interestingly, several Purple Pas-sionflower plants have recently sprung up in the Set-tlement. This autumn, the adult butterflies were at-tracted to the flowering Hairy Clustervine,Jac-quemontia tamnifolia, which was also unusuallyabundant this year. Zebras reportedly have continu-ous generations throughout the year, but have beenrecorded in the Settlement only in late summer andautumn, the period when the above plants bloom.

SEA TURTLES

The annual number of sea turtle strandings on Cum-berland Island has been dropping since 2005. Thetotal this year is the highest since then : 74 strand-ings. Loggerheads were still the most common spe-cies (49), with Green Sea Turtles second (14), and 11Kemps Ridleys. The 2012 total for Georgia was214, with a different distribution than most otheryears, since Cumberland previously had close to, ifnot half or more of the states strandings.

In 2012, sea turtle nests numbered 700, a record highfor the island. Details of the nest success are not yetavailable.

AUDUBON CHRISTMAS BIRD COUNT

The Christmas Bird Count, organized and led bySheila Willis, occurred on 15 December this year. Apreliminary count of 126 species, included three newspecies for the island count. Razorbills,Alca torda,Manx Shearwaters, Calonectris puffinus, and RedPhalarops, Phalaropus fulicarius, had not been pre-viously recorded on the Cumberland Count. Also ofparticular interest, 16 Red-breasted Nuthatches, SittaCanadensis, were observed, with many reported onSt. Catherines Island as well.

LIGHTHOUSELittle Cumberland Island

During the early 1800s following the unification ofFlorida under US control, commercial transportalong coastal Georgia waterways increased signifi-

ZEBRA ON HAIRY CLUSTERVINE


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cantly. Productssuch as rice, cot-ton, lumber, na-val stores, andhides were beingshipped out asagriculture andthe populationgrew rapidly.

Ever-shiftingsand bars in St.Andrew'sSound, the larg-est sound on theGeorgia coast,made navigationtreacherous andwarranted con-struction of alighthouse on

Little Cumber-land Island (LCI). It was built, along with a light-keeper's house in 1838. The tower, plastered whitetrimmed with black, rose 50 feet from the ground tothe deck. Its base diameter of 22 feet gradually de-

creased to 11 feet at the top. Wooden stairs spiraledagainst the inner wall to within 61/2 feet of the deck.

An iron ladderled to the lanternroom at the top.The light, firstoperated in Juneof 1838, wascontinuallymanned by a se-ries of light-

keepers through

1915. The stationwas abandoned af-ter the U.S. Bureauof Lighthouses haddeclared the struc-ture obsolete in1914, saying it hadoutlived its useful-ness.

When the Little Cumberland Island Homes Associa-tion acquired the entire island in 1960, they under-

took extensive repairs to the neglected lighthouse.Renovation occurred periodically thereafter and in1996 a coat of plaster was replaced to cover theweathered bricks. Now, the lighthouse is nestled be-tween large dunes and again in dire need of repair. Ithas been closed to LCI residents for several yearsdue to its deteriorated condition. A restoration groupestimated the cost of renovation at $250,000. Thisamount would be significant when divided among

2012

2012

STAIRS GOING UP THE

INSIDE

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the limitednumber ofpeoplewho sharethe costsof main-taining theisland.Use of

publicfundswouldrequirepublicaccess tothe light-house,which atthis time,

the LCI owners' association considers threateningto their privacy.

W. G. M. DAVISOwner of Dungeness

Between 1879 and 1881, Confederate General W.G. M. Davis owned the property known as Dunge-ness. His decision to terminate ownership resultedfrom a family tragedy early in 1880, when his son,Bernard, accidently killed Davis' four year oldgrandson while cleaning a gun. Bernard himselfdied nine months after this accident. Although

Davis regretted selling the property to "a damnYankee," he relinquished 4000 acres with housesand outbuildings, as well as orange and olivegroves, to Thomas Carnegie in 1881 for $35,000.The agreement between Carnegie and Davis in-cluded the General's right to visit the graves of hisson and grandson in the Greene/Miller Cemetery.

The Greene/Miller Cemetery contains the remainsof Catherine (widow of Nathanael Greene) Miller,her daughter, Louisaand son-in-lawJames Shaw, CharlesJackson, a soldier inthe American Revo-lution who died at

Dungeness, and im-mediately outsidethe wall are gravesof white CarnegieServants. Revolu-tionary War hero,Henry (Light-Horse-Harry) Lee, who wasRobert E. Lee's fa-ther, died at Dunge-ness and had beenburied in the ceme-

tery, but his remainswere later exhumedand removed to Vir-ginia. Headstonesmark graves of allthe above, except forthe Davis family. In1996, a brick vault,lacking any identification, was discovered withinthe walls of the established cemetery, and pre-sumed to contain the remains of the Davis family.

On 12 October 2012, Tyler Potterfield, a descen-dent of W. G. M. Davis, visited the cemetery atDungeness with his wife Meredith. Mr. Potterfieldwould like to verify that the remains of his fore-bears are actually in that vault and erect a suitableheadstone. Potterfield has enlisted the support ofthe Sons of the American Revolution to urge the

A NEW COAT OF

PLASTER 1996

2012

GREENE-MILLER CEMETERY TODAY...SITE OF VAULT

A NEW COAT OF PLASTER

1996

VAULT DISCOVERED IN THE GREENE/MILLER

CEMETERY, 1996Cumberland Island Museum Newsletter Volume 23, Number 4 December 2012


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Park Service to protect the cemetery, which is nowthreatened with erosion along the side closest to themarsh.

NPS NEWS

On 15 November, the NPS erected a small houseover the well at the church in the Settlement.

At the end of November, the NPS installed a com-

pactor at Dungeness to replace the open dumpsterfor household garbage. They also have recycle binsavailable for aluminum, plastic, and glass.

National Park Service

PUBLIC MEETINGS

Previously, National Park Service meetings beganwith an oral presentation by Park Service person-nel to educate the audience on a particular plan orissue from the Park standpoint, using graphs, maps,

photos, etc. This would be followed by a questionand answer session where attendees could ask forclarification, offer comments, and share informa-tion with everyone present. Today, while theremay be a discussion of a topic on the governmentwebsite, the Park Service provides no formal pres-entation to an assembled group, but rather talkswith individuals as they walk around viewingposted graphics. Unless people are already famil-iar with an issue, they do not know what questionsto ask. This format eliminates the opportunity forpeople to hear views from a variety of perspectives

and thus it is less likely that the NPS will get inputwhich could increase understanding and lead torevision and improvement of their initial proposalthat could benefit the island.

On 20 November 2012, the NPS held a ScopingMeeting for island residents about the upcomingFire Management Plan, a NEPA requirement.Thanksgiving is a time when many landowners arevisiting the island. Up until the last several years,island meetings included one held near Thanks-giving, and others throughout the year, perhaps

quarterly, or even more often, as new situations orissue developed. These regular meetings provideda forum for the NPS to advise residents of newplans and to receive comments, a neighborly thingto do. All parties had a chance to exchange views.Recently such meetings have been held only onceannually. At the recent Scoping Meeting, a seriousebb in NPS-resident relations was evidenced by thepresence of only one island resident.

FIRE MANAGEMENT PLAN

On 20 November at the Black Barracks at Dunge-ness, a scoping meeting on the proposed Fire Man-agement Plan for CI, in an open-house type format,was held. Available to answer questions were:Samuel Larry, Chief of Fire Management for theSoutheast Region of the NPS, Bob Line, an NPSretired Regional fire management person from outwest, and A. Anderson, NPS Fire ManagementOfficer for Cumberland Island. All were knowl-edgeable and well-versed on the latest NPS firemanagement policies and practices.

WELL COVER

COVER FOR WELL

COMPACTOR FOR HOUSAEHOLD GARBAGE

AT DUNGENESS

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After decades of fire suppression, the plan proposesto reestablish a natural fire regime on the island,which is what the ecosystem needs. However, dur-ing the decades of suppression, fuel (woody debris)has naturally accumulated and will assure a future

burn. Managers dislike fuel-buildup because natu-ral wildfire burns on its own terms rather than on aschedule. Reflecting this managerial viewpoint, theplan proposes manipulation of fire, such as deliber-ate ignition and burning of some areas to reduceavailable fuel, both in and out of the Wilderness.Wide fire lines are to be maintained followingmany trails, destroying their Wilderness characterfor hikers. In the past, Wilderness areas on Cumber-land Island have received no kinder treatment thanthose outside the protective boundary, and this plancontinues that approach, proposing deliberate igni-

tion (manipulation) in what appears to be slightlyless than half of the designated Wilderness. Thereis no reason to do this in Wilderness, which sup-ports naturally functioning systems, includingnatural fires, which can and will heal themselvesif allowed. More government manipulation isunnecessarily aggressive and not warranted. Theuncontroversial part of the plan calls for reducingfuel around structures to create a defensible space

Send comments to: Superintendent, CINS, 101Wheeler St., St. Marys, GA 31558Email: [email protected].

CUIS FOUNDATION DOCUMENT

By 2016, the National Park Service plans to com-plete a Foundation Document statement for everypark. The one for Cumberland Island is sched-uled to be written this year. This document "will

reestablish the underlying guidance for futuremanagement and planning decisions on Cumber-land island." The General Management Plan forthe island was completed in 1984, so is consid-ered out of date. The original 1984 plan ad-dressed such things as visitation numbers, camp-grounds and amenities, transportation, resourcemanagement, fire management, the developmentconcept for the island, interpretive programs, pub-lic use of historic structures, and much more.

The new Foundation Document proposes to re-

think, redefine, or reconsider the core mission ofCumberland Island National Seashore, its mostimportant resources and values, and the interpre-tive themes of the island. The mission statementin the 1984 plan quotes the enabling legislation"to provide for public outdoor recreation useand enjoyment of certain significant shorelinelands and waters of the United States, and to pre-serve related scenic, scientific, and historical val-ues." Subsequent legislation conflicts with theoriginal mandate and forces increased develop-ment of the Seashore. This Foundation Document

could help clarify the direction of planning for thefuture.

Send comments to: [email protected].

CEDAR TREES

Just before Christmas, many live Red Cedar trees,Juniperus virginiana, on the north end, especiallyaround Burbank Point, were cut on with a chain-saw. Most of the cutting was of limbs, but at least

NPS PROPOSAL FOR FIRE MANAGEMENT PLAN.

AREAS IN RED WOULD BE MANIPULATED BY

BEING ARTIFICIALLY IGNITED.

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one large burl was sliced off a living tree. Burlsare saleable and frequently made into attractiveboxes. This type of activity has been noted beforealong the high bluff at Terrapin Point.

Cumberland Island MuseumP. O. Box 7080

St. Marys, GA 31558

CONTACT US : [email protected] Check the website www.cimuseum.com

Whitney Lake was very colorful this autumn, ringed with yellow. SMOOTH BEGGARTICKS,Bidens laevis

Copying by Camden Printing

LIVE RED CEDAR

LIVE RED CEDAR

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Dec 2012 CIM Newsletter