Awendaw was incorporated in 1992, and this building is a gathering place for its citizens, and serves as office space for town officials.

Prior to desegregation, this building served as a school for white children. Through the 1950s, African-American children were not allowed to ride the bus, nor attend the school, so they had smaller schools dispersed throughout what is currently Awendaw.

However, children of all races in Awendaw have enjoyed having the Francis Marion National Forest as their backyard. We interviewed Awendaw’s Town Clerk Sam Brown, who said that hide-and-seek, tag, riding bikes out to Cape Romain, and pick-up games of baseball and basketball were all common things for kids to do in Awendaw.

“We played hard,” the Awendaw native says. The only thing that would slow Sam and his friends down was an occasional cool-off period in the hot mid-summer afternoons.

This building is now used as a Town Hall, and is a place where Awendaw citizens debate important issues affecting their community – such as affordable public services and new development in the area.