Wicked Edisto: The Dark Side of Eden

by Alexia Helsley

For many, Edisto is a little slice of heaven--live oaks festooned with Spanish moss, winding waterways and crashing surf. Yet the waterways were pathways for privateers, smugglers and gunboats. Marauders terrorized residents. Privateers made life uncertain during the War of 1812. John Wilson and Andrew Gillon dueled to the death on the sands of Edingsville. The Civil War brought repeated skirmishes between Union and Confederate scouting parties. Join historian Alexia Jones Helsley as she recounts lost lives, early widows, dashed dreams, unseen secrets--the dark side of Eden.

Genres: History

144 pages, Paperback

First published April 6, 2014

Reviews

[Heather Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was expecting something a little more popular history and entertainingly written. It’s a perfectly nice history with a focus on the darker side of the island’s past events but it’s a bit dry and academic in style. That makes perfect sense after reading the about the author paragraph. I enjoyed the read.

[Pamela Sweezy · Rating 3 out of 5]

More than I ever needed to know about cute lil Edisto.

[JR Snow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this little local history book up at the equally tiny Edisto Island Library. It narrates some of the darker stories of Edisto-battles, murders, duels, etc. Surprisingly, Helsley includes some of the more recent stories surrounding Edisto Island, such as several smuggling operations in the 70's. Lots of interesting gems of information here, though for an introduction to the history of Edisto I would recommend "Tales of Edisto" by Nell S. Greydon, and for a comprehensive history of the Island, Charles Spencer's 2 volume "Edisto Island".