The Town of Kingstree's second Kingstree Live at the Depot this summer attracted a good crowd July 13. Each of these events seems to draw a little bigger crowd, signaling that residents are spreading the word that once a month during the summer we can hear live music while we catch up with our friends and acquaintances, and dance, or play corn hole, or just enjoy being outside among our neighbors.
The Charlie Floyd Band performing at Kingstree Live at the Depot July 13.
These events have the earmarks of becoming a "third place" for Kingstree residents. If you aren't familiar with the term, a "third place" is somewhere people congregate other than work or home. For roughly the 20 years between 1926 and 1946, many Kingstree residents definitely had a "third place." It was called the Wee Nee Beach Pavilion, situated on the banks of Black River at the Main Street Bridge.
Peggy McGill painting of Wee Nee Beach Pavilion from An Artful Life.
Owned and operated by Walter Dennis, the pavilion is first mentioned in newspapers of the mid-1920s as the Wee Nee Beach Swimming Club. Already though, it was the place where local residents held weekly dances, benefit bridge tournaments, school and Sunday school picnics, and garden club meetings, as well as swimming parties. In August 1926 it was the venue for a Water Sports Carnival which was billed as a "gala occasion" and an "unqualified success." A newspaper description noted that the day was clear, with a pleasant breeze. The new concrete bridge over the river was filled with automobiles extending across the river and for several blocks back into town. "Girls in light-colored summer dresses made a pretty picture against the picturesque background of dark green cypress trees and moss-laden birches that grow along the river banks."
Contestants for the event came from as far away as Rock Hill and Gastonia, NC, with spectators coming from Sumter, Lake City, Manning, Greeleyville, and other areas. Men and women, girls and boys, all competed for prizes in swimming races, underwater races, races upstream, and fancy diving.
Postcard showing the Black River bridge with boats and the diving board at Wee Nee Beach.
The June 10, 1928, News & Courier contained an article with this description of Wee Nee Beach: There is hardly an hour during the long days that some of the Kingstree people may not be seen enjoying the waters of Black River. Every afternoon, the bend at the Wee Nee Beach Clubhouse is filled with swimmers. The old flats have been brought out again and with various dive boards and slides there is fun aplenty for the water lovers. The sound of the motor boats can be heard from the residence sections of the town as the young people glide along the glass-like surface of the black waters. It is altogether a pleasant loafing spot for those not inclined toward water sports. The willows that overhang the smooth black water are reflected therein, and overhead now and then may be seen a waterbird that catches a glint of the ruddy sunsets on his underwings. In the shallow waters around the edge, the tiny tots love to wade and splash to their hearts' content.
On July 19, 1928, The Charleston Evening Post noted, "Every afternoon the Wee Nee Beach, situated at the Kingstree bridge, is the scene of a great deal of beautiful diving and swimming. Diving boards, a big and little flat for the amusement of swimmers and for resting after a hard pull, are part of the apparatus that makes the place attractive. Whether the weather is fair or rainy, Black River furnishes daily amusement and recreation for the young people of Kingstree, so that the town had many of the attractions of a summer resort."
A scene from the July 13 Kingstree Live at the Depot.
But it was not all smooth swimming for the club in the late 1920s. In September 1928, the waters of Black River were extremely high. On September 9, the News & Courier reported, "Not since the flood of 1916 has Black River been at such flood tide. The Wee Nee Beach Clubhouse is surrounded by water, but the water lovers still gather there for their sports in spite of the fact that that springboard had been torn loose from the high pier and washed away, and the flat in the midst of such a swift current that it is well nigh impossible to swim to it." So determined were the young people to have their regular Friday dance that they built a bridge to the clubhouse so the dancers could reach it, even though Walter Dennis had just killed a large rattlesnake with 11 rattles and a button headed for the safety of the clubhouse. The dance went on, but matters were about to get worse.
On September 17, 1928, a hurricane made its way through the area, dumping more water in the already full river. Black River reached 17 feet, seven inches, a new record, rising three feet from Tuesday to Wednesday and an additional three feet from Wednesday to Thursday. College students were still able to reach the pavilion over the makeshift bridge Wednesday night, where they held a "Farewell Dance." By Thursday morning the verandas of the pavilion were inundated with water and the flood was pouring through the windows to cover the dance floor. By Friday, the Wee Nee Beach pavilion was completely inundated.
However, it didn't take long after the waters receded for Walter Dennis to make repairs. Eleanor Foxworth's Halloween-themed eighth birthday party was held at the pavilion on Friday, October 26.
Black River during the October 2015 flood taken near the area where the pavilion once stood.
The dances and picnics and parties continued, and on April 11, 1929, The News & Courier again described the pavilion. "Those who tire of the water find recreation within the Wee Nee Clubhouse overlooking the river. This spot is always cool and inviting. It is rustic in detail and so blends in with its natural setting. The wide verandas down the front and west sides are ideal 'cooling' spots for the more elderly of afternoons. In fact the Wee Nee Club and the river is (sic) a community center of summer afternoons."
And in August, the same paper noted, "The Wee Nee Beach Club is providing a popular place for a wide range in this section. Hardly a day passes that a party from a neighboring town does not assemble for a picnic under the shade trees along the river's bank or a swim in the black waters of the river. The wide porches around the club that overhang the water are favorite gathering places for the people of the town and those from more distant points. Every evening the young people dance in the large club room."
The 1930s ushered in more fun at the pavilion despite grim news of the Great Depression. Regular dances saw bands coming to Kingstree from Florence, Charleston, or Columbia, including Jack Delmar and his Orchestra, the Carolina Gamecock Orchestra, and Doc Banks and his Pullman Porters. The Black Cat Orchestra, a group composed of Kingstree High School students, performed regularly, particularly at the regular Wednesday-night high school dances.
July 1937 ad in the Florence Morning News.
The Kingstree-Lake City cotillion, known as the King-City Cotillion, often held its events at the pavilion. In February 1931, the Christmas-seal committee sponsored a benefit bridge tournament in which over 100 women from every part of the county participated. Kingstree merchants donated both the prizes and the refreshments. And on some Sundays, the African-American Baptist Church in town used the beach to access the river for its baptisms.
On October 25, 1932, disaster struck the Wee Nee Beach Pavilion once again. At 1:30 a.m., the Kingstree Fire Department received a call that the building was on fire. It was already fully involved by the time the KFD was alerted and little could be done. Firemen did save the Dennis' house next door from burning, although it was scorched by the flames. The Florence Morning News noted that "The Wee Nee Beach Pavilion stood near the river bridge at Kingstree and was a great asset to the community."
The Dennises began rebuilding the pavilion shortly after the fire from the same plans as the original clubhouse. It was completed in time for the traditional New Year's Eve dance to be held there. In June 1934, the News & Courier noted that Walter Dennis was making more improvements to the area. He had built a rustic bridge across the little creek that divided the river from a slightly elevated island and placed picnic tables on the island. "Nearby he is building a natural park that will be beautified with native plants as well as cultivated ones." He had planted the riverbank with grass and flowers that were bright with color, and he had placed seating on the white-sand beach.
In July 1935, it was noted that the river was completely dry, and no one was able to swim that summer, but the dances continued as if nothing was out of the ordinary. But by 1936, swimming returned with picnickers coming from far and near, including businesses from Florence who held their annual picnics at Wee Nee Beach.
Dancing at Kingstree Live, July 2013.
As the drumbeats of war grew louder in 1941, dances continued, even if they were not held as often as in the past. In November 1941, the young people of Kingstree hastily put together a dance to honor 45 soldiers from Camp Gordon in Georgia who spent the night at the Kingstree National Guard Armory while on their way to Ft. Bragg.
After Walter Dennis' death in 1945, the Town of Kingstree bought the property in December 1946, for use as a youth center and canteen for teenagers. The council turned it over to a governing board composed of one member of town council, a representative from each of the civic organizations in town and two teens.
Photos of Wee Nee Beach and the pavilion are scarce. If anyone has photos in a scrapbook or in an attic, please consider sharing them with the Williamsburgh Museum. Wendell Voiselle would be happy to make copies for the museum so that you can keep the originals, but it's a shame that an institution that gave so many people pleasure for such a long time is not better represented at the museum.
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