Huntington Beach – Murrells Inlet, South Carolina

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South Carolina  |  SC Picture Project  |  Georgetown County Photos  |  Huntington Beach

These photos were taken during SCIWAY’s day at Huntington Beach in March 2008. Huntington shares its history with Brookgreen Gardens, located just across US 17. The two properties make up more than 9,000 acres of property once owned by Anna and Archer Huntington. The Huntingtons came to Georgetown in 1931. They built their winter home, Atalaya, on what was then known as Magnolia Beach. The rambling fortress is separated from the ocean only by dunes and low thickets of vegetation. In the Huntington’s time, it was even nearer the sea.

Above, a lovely ocean vista beckons Huntington visitors. The State Park features three miles of undeveloped beachfront – an uncommon treat on South Carolina’s heavily developed shores.

Atalaya is Spanish for watchtower, the dominant feature of the castle-like structure that Archer Huntington designed based on memories of his travels to the Mediterranean Coast. The watchtower may not have served as a lookout, but it did have an important function. It was a water tower instead!

The above photo shows one of Atalaya’s corner rooms. Atalaya’s four wings form a square around a large interior courtyard. The outer walls of the home extend 200 feet, and there are 50 rooms in all – including studios and stables. The massive structure is often mistaken for a jail or fortress. Today, people commonly refer to Atalaya as a castle.

An alternate shot of the walls and windows of Atalaya. During the Huntington’s winter visits, they often kept large animals such as bears inside their home. Anna would use these animals as models for statues. There were also servant quarters, a library, a sun room, and various food preparation and dining rooms – including a specialized oyster-shucking room!

Geraniums and liropie grow in one of Atalaya’s beautiful flower boxes. The flower boxes line a central corridor which serves as the home’s main entry and divides the interior courtyard in two. The courtyard is planted with palmettos, South Carolina’s State Tree.

Anna Huntington, a renowned sculptor, designed Atalaya’s window grilles. Many of the window panes and casements are now missing, but here and there they remain. Wind rustles through the empty spaces as you explore, lending life and movement to the low, cool rooms.

Archer Huntington decided he liked the way the mortar looked before it was scraped off (as is traditionally done), so he asked his workers to skip this step. The effect became known as the “Huntington Squeeze.”

SCIWAY News Huntington Beach Article

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