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HELP Org. on SIG
Sapelo Ancestral Land Trust Program
HELP ORG INC seeks to improve the quality of life for Sapelo Island's Gullah Geechee Descendants by mobilizing its
community-driven land trust program, Sapelo Ancestral Land Trust, affectionately called SALT.
SALT's mission is to organize the community's power for self-determination!
A community land trust (CLT) is a nonprofit corporation that develops and stewards affordable housing, community gardens, civic buildings, commercial spaces and other community assets on behalf of a community. “CLTs” balance the needs of individuals to access land and maintain security of tenure with a community’s need to maintain affordability, economic diversity and local access to essential services.
community-driven land trust program, Sapelo Ancestral Land Trust, affectionately called SALT.
SALT's mission is to organize the community's power for self-determination!
A community land trust (CLT) is a nonprofit corporation that develops and stewards affordable housing, community gardens, civic buildings, commercial spaces and other community assets on behalf of a community. “CLTs” balance the needs of individuals to access land and maintain security of tenure with a community’s need to maintain affordability, economic diversity and local access to essential services.
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SIG Neighborhood Revitalization Division
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Get involved!
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Official NPO Number 107454. Click Kroger Plus Card to Register HELP!
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HELP ORG INC has been recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a not-for-profit organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions to HELP are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.
Federal Identification Number: 03-0545693.
Federal Identification Number: 03-0545693.
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for more details, please call (912) 601-3000 or email info@saltprogram.org
Gullah Geechee Culture on Sapelo Island, McIntosh County, Georgia, USA
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- Background & Point of Reference -
Sapelo Island, Georgia (SIG) is the fourth largest barrier island on the Georgia coast. In the early 1800s, starting with plantation owner Thomas Spalding, West Africans, experts in rice cultivation as well as their ability to withstand malaria and yellow fever, were enslaved, primarily from what is now known as the country of Sierra Leone. They were forced to work the plantations on Sapelo. These enslaved West Africans embraced the conditions of the land, and nurtured the growth and survival of their families by connecting their strength and resilience to the land itself. Additionally, the spirit of their relationship with nature framed their existence as indigenous. The land -- and everything that the land produced -- became an expression known as “the indigenous culture of the Gullah/Geechee people on Sapelo Island.” FACTS
SAPELO ISLAND, McINTOSH COUNTY, GEORGIA
In the early 1800s, plantation owner Thomas Spalding purchased for enslavement West Africans who were experts in rice cultivation. The enslaved were primarily from what is now known as Sierra Leone. They embraced the conditions of the land, and nurtured the growth and survival of their families. The land -- and everything that the land produced -- became an expression known as “the indigenous culture of the Gullah/Geechee people on Sapelo Island.” Prior to the Civil War, the enslaved began to establish thirteen distinct settlements. The total land acreage consisted of approximately 3,000 acres. The settlements were Shell Hummock, Behavior, Riverside, Hanging Bull, Kenan Field, Lumber Landing, Bell Marsh, Chocolate, High Point, Bourbon Field, Raccoon Bluff, Hogg Hummock, and Johnson Hummock. |
For more information about the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor
please visit http://www.nps.gov/guge/index.htm |
When the Civil War ended in 1865, land ownership rights were made available to formerly enslaved Gullah/Geechee people. In 1871, the Hillery & Co. (formed by formerly enslaved men of Sapelo Island) purchased with U.S. currency a 1,000-acre tract of land known as Raccoon Bluff. Subsequently, Gullah/Geechee people purchased land in the other settlements.
During the first half of the 1900s, three primary individuals began to systemically deprive the Gullah/Geechee people on Sapelo Island. These three individuals were Howard E. Coffin, R.J. Reynolds, Jr. and Anne Marie Reynolds. The primary strategy for deprivation of an indigenous culture is to seize control and ownership of the land. Coffin went to Sapelo Island and purchased land from Thomas Spalding’s heirs. Later, Reynolds purchased all of Coffin’s land. By the 1960s, Reynolds, through scare tactics and land grabs dis-established the Gullah/Geechee communities. All of the Gullah/Geechee people were forced to re-locate to Hogg Hummock. Reynolds’ widow, Anne Marie, sold the lands that originally belonged to the Gullah/Geechee people to the state of Georgia for four million dollars.
During the second half of the 1900s, the systemic deprivation of the Sapelo Island indigenous culture was impacted by public policy of the state of Georgia government. Such as state departments, the Sapelo Island Heritage Authority McIntosh County government and the Office of the Governor. The regeneration of the culture on Sapelo Island began in 2008 with data collection and research that revealed evidence of illegal land acquisition. Furthermore, substantial proof of fraudulently registered deeds and titles are in McIntosh County. Today, the state of Georgia and McIntosh County continue to systemically deprive the Gullah/Geechee culture on Sapelo Island, both economically and socially. Civil and Human Rights are being violated as well.
Three cornerstones have been established to initiate remedies for the deprivation of our indigenous culture and implement strategies for the regeneration of our culture under the auspices of Solutions of Sapelo (SOS). Those three cornerstones are the Raccoon Hogg Community Development Corporation, the Gullah/Geechee Culture Initiative and HELP ORG INC.
During the first half of the 1900s, three primary individuals began to systemically deprive the Gullah/Geechee people on Sapelo Island. These three individuals were Howard E. Coffin, R.J. Reynolds, Jr. and Anne Marie Reynolds. The primary strategy for deprivation of an indigenous culture is to seize control and ownership of the land. Coffin went to Sapelo Island and purchased land from Thomas Spalding’s heirs. Later, Reynolds purchased all of Coffin’s land. By the 1960s, Reynolds, through scare tactics and land grabs dis-established the Gullah/Geechee communities. All of the Gullah/Geechee people were forced to re-locate to Hogg Hummock. Reynolds’ widow, Anne Marie, sold the lands that originally belonged to the Gullah/Geechee people to the state of Georgia for four million dollars.
During the second half of the 1900s, the systemic deprivation of the Sapelo Island indigenous culture was impacted by public policy of the state of Georgia government. Such as state departments, the Sapelo Island Heritage Authority McIntosh County government and the Office of the Governor. The regeneration of the culture on Sapelo Island began in 2008 with data collection and research that revealed evidence of illegal land acquisition. Furthermore, substantial proof of fraudulently registered deeds and titles are in McIntosh County. Today, the state of Georgia and McIntosh County continue to systemically deprive the Gullah/Geechee culture on Sapelo Island, both economically and socially. Civil and Human Rights are being violated as well.
Three cornerstones have been established to initiate remedies for the deprivation of our indigenous culture and implement strategies for the regeneration of our culture under the auspices of Solutions of Sapelo (SOS). Those three cornerstones are the Raccoon Hogg Community Development Corporation, the Gullah/Geechee Culture Initiative and HELP ORG INC.
Community Development Initiative
JOBS on SIG Community Workshop
Joint Operation to Better Sapelo on Sapelo Island, Georgia
