Permanent Protection of Puddin Swamp Preserve

Pee Dee Land Trust works with landowners to protect 383 acres on Puddin Swamp

August 22, 2024 – Pee Dee Land Trust today announced the permanent protection of the 383-acre Puddin Swamp Preserve, near Kingstree in Williamsburg County. The property, owned by Kelly and Ernie Atkinson, is now forever protected from development.

“Preserving the forested wetland habitat of Puddin Swamp Preserve was my primary motivation to start discussions about a conservation easement with the land trust,” said Dr. Ernie Atkinson. “Until you are standing on the edge of Belin Lake, a small natural lake amid the towering old cypress trees of the swamp, you can’t appreciate the majestic beauty of this unique treasure.”

Puddin Swamp Preserve and much of the surrounding property has been in Dr. Ernie Atkinson’s family since the 1700’s. His grandfather, Henry Ernest McIntosh purchased a portion of what is now known as Puddin Swamp Preserve and farmed the land, before passing it on to his children, including Ernie’s mother, Virginia McIntosh Atkinson. After Kelly and Ernie moved back to Kingstree for Ernie to practice family medicine in 1993, the ‘farm’ became a huge part of the lives of the Atkinsons and their three sons. In 2010 they purchased an adjacent 100 acres from a family member to create the current 383-acre parcel.

"Words, and even pictures, can’t convey the vast natural beauty of Puddin Swamp Preserve,” said Seth Cook, Director of Land Conservation, Pee Dee Land Trust. "Protection of the forested wetlands in Puddin Swamp, a tributary of the Black River, provides public benefits such as water filtration, flood mitigation, habitat for wildlife and scenic beauty. We’re honored to work on such a well-stewarded property in an area of great focus for PDLT.”

Rainbow over Puddin Swamp Preserve

Dr. Atkinson quail hunting

Over the past 30 years, Ernie has transitioned former agricultural fields into pine forests that serve as a quail preserve, rich with a diversity of plants and animals. Duck boxes around the ponds and in the swamp augment natural habitat that supports resident and migratory waterfowl. The property is home to Mayhaw Hunt Club, practicing sustainable harvesting of quail, deer, duck and dove.

Restored cabin circa 1700’s

The only home on Puddin Swamp Preserve is a cabin circa 1770’s originally from the Bull Savannah area, known today as “the Corner.” In 1997 Kelly and Ernie moved the structure to their property and embarked on a full restoration of the cabin. This historic structure has been and will continue to be a special meeting place for their family and friends, including a large annual gathering for Thanksgiving.

“Over the last few hundred years much of the property has been segmented more and more with each new generation,” said Atkinson. “From the cypress swamp, the ponds, the pine woods and fields to the high land of the restored historic clubhouse, the terrain of the property makes for a great population of diverse flora and fauna. Through many years of careful planning and hard work, Kelly and I have worked really hard to piece back together a beautiful, cohesive working and recreational property. And now it will be forever protected as one tract!”

The South Carolina Conservation Bank contributed grant funding to this bargain sale conservation easement. “Puddin Swamp Preserve is a great addition to the already protected private and public properties along the Black River,” commented Raleigh West, director, SC Conservation Bank. “Projects, like this one, that bring matching federal funds to the table allow us to stretch our state dollars and conserve more land.”

Hardwood forest in Puddin Swamp

PDLT worked with the landowners to permanently protect the property through a bargain-sale conservation easement a voluntary, legal agreement that allows the Atkinsons to maintain ownership and manage the property to promote its conservation values, while limiting other uses. The Atkinsons’ conservation easement specifies no subdivisions of the property, a limited number of structures and impervious surfaces, no harvesting of bottomland hardwoods in the swamps and along the scenic roadway, and no commercial/industrial development or mining on the property. They will continue to pay property taxes. Additionally, the landowners are financially compensated for the uses they agree to limit.

“Our conversations with the Atkinsons go back to 2017,” said Lyles Cooper, Executive Director of Pee Dee Land Trust. “The Atkinsons chose to protect their land for all the right reasons; the combined grant funding and tax incentives helped make it financially viable and will enable them to continue their stewardship of the land for generations to come. It’s a win for the landowners and our watershed ,” said Cooper. “We truly appreciate the grant funding from the SC Conservation Bank and a partnership with Ducks Unlimited to secure NAWCA grant funding,” said Cooper.

Conservation easements are complex permanent legal documents that lay out the future reserved rights and restrictions for the property. Pee Dee Land Trust staff worked diligently with the Atkinsons to explain the process, assist with detailed planning for the future of the property, applied for grants on the landowner’s behalf, fostered the due diligence and organized the communications between all the parties involved. Pee Dee Land Trust has taken on the perpetual responsibility of annual monitoring to ensure all terms in the conservation easement are upheld and support future landowners.

Puddin Swamp Preserve is 1 of the 15 new conservation easement projects PDLT closed in fiscal year 2023 with private landowners. PDLT now holds 9 conservation easements in Williamsburg County totaling 5,320 permanently protected acres.