Contact Information
Jeff WittSC Department of Natural Resources
York, SC 29745
Phone: 803-684-4078
E-mail: wittj@dnr.sc.gov
Hours of Operation
- Call for Information.
Description
The Landsford Forest Legacy Tract consists of 1,049 acres in Chester County, South Carolina. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (DNR) purchased it from Crescent Resources LLC on April 2, 2002. The funding for this acquisition was obtained through a Forest Legacy Program grant in the amount of $2,950,000 with match funds derived from a $25,000 cash contribution from the Katawba Valley Land Trust (KVLT) and an in-kind bargin sale contribution of $963,000 from Crescent Resources LLC.
The property is located in the northeastern corner of Chester County, on S-12-327, just off US Highway 21 about 12 miles north of Fort Lawn, South Carolina. It surrounds the western portion of Landsford Canal State Park on three sides, with S-12-327 bordering the entire western side of the property. The tract is bounded on the south by Dunn Creek andon the east by the Catawba River and Landsford Canal State Park. The property is situated on the Catawba quadrangle of the USGS 7.5 minute topographical map.
The 1,049 acre property is comprised of three contiguous tracts separated by paved roads: the north tract (201 acres), the central tract (511 acres) and the south tract (336 acres).The property is mainly forested, having several plant communities that include bottomland hardwoods, mixed pine uplands and hardwood bluffs. In addition, five miles of streams cross the property and there is approximately 4,700 feet of shoreline on the Catawba River. Much of the property was logged in recent times and no old growth natural areas exist.
This region of the Catawba River valley is rich in history. The presence of the shoals in the river provided a convenient place for Native Americans to cross easily. The name Landsford is probably named for Thomas Land who received a nearby land grant from the British Crown in 1755. Both Patriot and British armies utilized the site during the American Revolution. The Landsford area was later the home of General William R. Davie, the founder of the University of North Carolina. Landsford Canal was constructed in 1820-1823 to allow for the transportation of cotton and other goods to the midlands and the coast of South Carolina. The quarry from which granite was excavated for the construction of the canal is located a few hundred feet from the canal, within the Landsford Forest Legacy Tract.
Landsford Canal State Park, which is nearby, was established in 1970, and provides a place of great natural beauty, which has bald eagles, Rocky Shoals Spider Lilies and the unique sights, and sounds of a large river rushing over extensive rapids. The general area also holds artifacts and ruins associated with over 10,000 years of human history.
A report entitled, Plant Communities, Significant Natural Areas and Noteworthy Species of the Landsford West Expansion was prepared by Dr. L. L. Gaddy, in September 2000, and it identifies four significant natural areas. These were as follows: (1) Dunn Creek Floodplain and Bluffs (2) The Middle Ravine (3) Northern Boundary Creek and (4) Organic Bogs. In his report he describes various rare and unusual plants that occur on these sites.
The mature riparian forest bordering the Catawba River also provides significant wildlife value such as important breeding and migratory habitat for various neo-tropical migrant songbirds, terrestrial amphibians, reptiles and mammals.
Hunting is allowed as outlined in Game Zone 4 seasons and regulations.
For further information, contact Jeff Witt through the Region 2 Field Office in York at 803-684-4078 or by email at wittj@dnr.sc.gov.