Brays Island Plantation, Set For The Millennia

By Sue Grant \ Photography courtesy of Brays Island, braysisland.com

Pete Rossin has been a client and friend to Berthon for many years, a great yachtsman who covered thousands of nautical miles in his two IRON LADYS; the first an FPB 64 designed by Steve and Linda Dashew, and then with an FPB 78, the last of the series to splash. He and wife Deb had glorious adventures culminating in a family cruise to Antarctica in company with IRON LADY’s hull sister GREY WOLF.

FPB 78#3 – IRON LADY II

Unfortunately Pete had a bout of surgery that did not work out well, so he and Deb were forced to sell IRON LADY. It seemed impossible to me that there wouldn’t be another epic adventure. When Pete told me that they were buying a house close to Beaufort, South Carolina at a place called Brays Island, I listened politely, disappointed that I wasn’t hearing about another amazing escapade. Since he and Deb bought what they affectionately call the Swamp House, I have learned more about what joining the other 324 owners of Brays Island Plantation means and why it is another great Rossin family adventure…

Pete put me in touch with Paul Burton, a fellow owner at Brays and the man behind house sales on the Plantation since 2002. Like its other owners, his knowledge and love of the place is deep – and here is a snapshot of the story of Brays Island Plantation.

Set in 5,500 acres of glorious lands, tidal rivers and lakes, only an hour from the extraordinary cities of Savannah and Charleston, it is also not much more than a hop and a skip from Beaufort, South Carolina. Brays played its part in the extraordinary story of the development of the USA and its history can be charted from times as early as 10,500 BC. All that is for another article (maybe in this publication), but for today, the story starts with an extraordinary family called the Pingrees who settled in the place after leaving an 85,000 acre cattle ranch in Cuba. Sumner Pingree, his wife Virginia and their children settled into life on the Plantation. The years passed and as his children did not want to continue farming at Brays, in 1986 Sumner developed an utterly unique concept which would see Brays change fundamentally, but in a way that would secure its future forever, and which would safeguard this special place for the generations that would come after him. This concept and its execution were not a money making venture. If anything, it was the reverse, but it did provide to current Brays owners and to those that would come after them, a blue print for the future.

Of course, there were developers aplenty who viewed Brays as a great basis for the build for many houses, but Sumner resisted their approaches. Instead, he formed the Brays Island Company, whilst enlisting the help of a talented architect, Robert Marvin. It was his concept to form a series of residential lots into one acre circles – an idea borrowed from the famous landscape architect Frank Lloyd Wright. None of these lots would overlap and having calculated that there was space enough for 325 of them, while preserving 5200 acres of common land for outdoor recreation, it was resolved that no more lots would ever be offered unless 90% of the owners of the existing lots agreed. Own a lot, and you are a shareholder of all of Brays with its extraordinary topography and wild beauty.

And so it was that the Plantation came under the ownership of the owners of the lots, with strict rules about the development of the plots and a governing body of owners to manage this as well as everything else that this special place has to offer. Nine elected owners run the board on a rolling basis.

The original Plantation House and other Plantation buildings were retained and repurposed. Their handsome white livery was also retained with the Plantation House becoming a private Inn for owners and their guests. A marvellous place in which the owners can gather, eat, drink, and make merry. The houses that are built on the plantation are subtle and screened by planting, so when exploring the landscape, a lovely and extensive garden is largely what is seen, enveloping and camouflaging the new buildings.

All very lovely, but what was it that attracted adventurers Pete and Deb to this place apart from its’ tranquillity, extraordinary wildness, wildlife, and beauty? Well of course this is but part of the story.

Brays remains a sporting estate today, with a team of 160 on the pay roll making the activities and maintenance of the place a reality. Apart from the punishing number of social events based around the Inn and elsewhere on the Plantation, there is shooting, hunting, fishing, equestrian, boating, kayaking, nature trails, a wellness centre, golf and much else. The Plantation grows its own vegetables – freshly picked and all available to its owners via the honour system. The produce not purchased by them finds its way to the Inn and Plantation Grill, for delicious meals in delightful surroundings.

And then there is the honour bar. A scotch poured at midnight at the Inn because you’d like one, involves an honour note from the owner as does much else of the bounty available at Brays. It is a private estate, not open to the public and is a tranquil yet energising place for those that live there.

It attracts a diverse cross section of owners who live together in harmony, enjoying all that is offered on its rivers, lakes and lands. It is adjacent to the Ace Basin – 350,000 acres of protected land. Those that have bought here are bound together by the love of the place and the common experiences they share pursuing their favourite past times. Paul is an avid fly fisherman and Pete enjoys both fishing and shooting sports.

And of course, an important part of the glue that binds owners and plantation together is the knowledge that, because of Sumner Pingree’s foresight and vision (he lived at Brays until his death in 2015), this extraordinary place will continue on as it is today down the millennia. There will be generations of owners at Brays, all of whom will enjoy and be enriched by its beauty. There will never be more than 325 of them and the wild places and estate areas will remain intact.

To date, 265 lots have houses, the balance await their build. As the 325th house is completed, Brays Island Plantation will breathe, secure in the knowledge that this house will be the last to be built… ever!

Read Another Article
Download The Berthon Book 2024-2025 XX (28.2MB)