St. Helena Sound Heritage Preserve

Saint Helena Sound is a coastal inlet in the Lowcountry region of South Carolina, located along the Atlantic Ocean between Beaufort and Colleton counties. Located within the relatively undeveloped ACE Basin, the sound consists of the mouths of the Ashepoo, Combahee, and the south branch of the Edisto rivers, of which the ACE moniker derives from. The inlet is located 15-mile (24 km)east of Beaufort, between Edisto Island and Hunting Island. At its widest point, Saint Helena Sound is 7.5-mile (12.1 km) across. The Intracoastal Waterway crosses the sound. Much of the land surrounding St. Helena Sound has been preserved through the St. Helena Sound Heritage Preserve and the larger ACE Basin project.

The Combahee Bank Lighthouse is a former lighthouse in St. Helena Sound on the border of Beaufort and Colleton Counties in South Carolina. It was built in 1868 and abandoned around 1876.The lighthouse was a cottage-style screwpile lighthouse that was built to warn of shoals. It was near the location of the current automated light, which is on a dolphin.In 1902, a daymark was put on the old structure. Due to settling, the daymark was replaced with a lighted buoy in 1913. Most of the old structure was removed in 1925 by a buoy tender's derrick.

The Ashepoo Combahee Edisto Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve (often shortened to ACE Basin NERR) is a 140,000-acre (570 km2) reserve area located in the ACE Basin, one of the largest undeveloped estuaries on the Atlantic coast of the United States. It is named for the Ashepoo, Combahee and Edisto Rivers, which flow past cypress swamps, historic plantation houses, old rice fields and tidal marshes to meet at South Carolina's biologically rich St. Helena Sound. The ACE Basin NERR is intended to protect the natural environment, wildlife and cultural heritage of the area. The reserve also preserves the habitat of a number of endangered or threatened species, such as shortnose sturgeon, wood storks, loggerhead sea turtles and bald eagles. Commercial fisherman harvest supplies of shrimp, crab, oyster, clam and finfish each year in the ACE Basin. Recreational fishermen ply the mudflats for spottail bass, flounder and shrimp, while paddlers visit the salt marsh creeks and the black waters of the rivers.Research conducted at the ACE Basin NERR enhance the protection of these commercial and recreational uses by monitoring water quality, providing information on the number and types of plant and animal species, and evaluating the overall health of the ACE Basin ecosystem.Through a number of educational programs, the reserve provides information to coastal decision makers, lawmakers, teachers, students and the general public. The reserve sponsors a summer lecture series, develops curriculum materials for teachers, offers a touch tank program for children and conducts educational cruises where students and teachers learn about estuaries and their values to marine, avian and human life.

The Coffin Point Plantation Caretaker's House, located in the Frogmore area of Beaufort County, South Carolina and in the shadows of the nearby Coffin Point Plantation, was built in 1892 as a residence for the plantation's caretaker. The Queen Anne style of architecture is considered marginally interesting, but it is noteworthy in that it is the only home known at this time that employed this style. During this era in the plantation's history, the site primary dwelling was owned by James Donald Cameron, who was the Secretary of War under Ulysses S. Grant, and later, United States Senator from 1877 to 1897. The Coffin Point Plantation Caretaker's House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on May 26, 1989.

Ashepoo River is a short blackwater river in South Carolina, United States. It rises in a confluence of swamps south of Walterboro, flows in a southeast direction and empties into Saint Helena Sound at 32.49°N 80.42389°W / 32.49; -80.42389. The entire course of the river lies within the boundaries of Colleton County.The Ashepoo basin forms part of the ACE Basin, a coastal conservation area that encompasses its bottomlands confluence with the Combahee and Edisto river basins. (The refuge's name is formed from the first letters of the names of the three rivers: A-C-E). The name comes from the Ashepoo subtribe of the Cusabo Indians. Caeser P. Chisolm received a charter to operate ferry service across the Ashepoo River.During the American Civil War the river was the site of an incursion between Union, and Confederate troops. The 34th Infantry Regiment was ordered to burn a railroad trestle near the river, they boarded the troop steamer Boston but became stranded on an oyster bed. The stranded boat was shelled by nearby Confederate batteries. The men on board were ferried off under fire by Union troops led by George W. Brush.

Coffin Point Plantation, is a historic plantation house located in the Frogmore area of Beaufort County, South Carolina, USA. A Sea Island plantation. Ebenezer Coffin, born in Boston in 1763, received 1120 acres and 63 chattel slaves from his father-in-law and had the house built on the property.It is estimated that the home was built around 1801, and like many early 19th century homes in the area, features a tabby foundation. One of the home's more striking features is the one-half mile avenue of oaks that leads to the home. In 1862, during the Civil War, 260 people were recorded as being enslaved on the plantation.James Donald Cameron, a Republican U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania and former Secretary of War bought the plantation house in the early 1890s. Henry Adams described his visits to the Camerons at the plantation in his book The Education of Henry Adams.The plantation was placed in the National Historic Register on August 28, 1975.

Donnelley Wildlife Management Area or Donnelley WMA is an undeveloped 8,048-acre (32.57 km2) natural area in Colleton County, South Carolina near the unincorporated area of Green Pond. Named after Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley who were instrumental in leading land preservation efforts in the ACE Basin, Donnelley WMA is owned and managed by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).

Harbor Island is a small residential island located 14 miles (22 km) east of Beaufort, South Carolina. It is one of the Carolina Sea Islands. The swing drawbridge has been replaced by a fixed high level bridge, Harbor River Bridge, that connects the island to Saint Helena Island towards the west. A small causeway crossing Johnson Creek connects Harbor Island with Hunting Island towards the south. The majority of the island is tidal marsh, though approximately 800 acres (3.2 km2) of upland acreage exist on the northeastern portions of the island. The residential portion of the island was listed as a census-designated place in the 2020 census with a population of 209.

Pine Island Plantation Complex is a historic hunting plantation complex and national historic district located on Pine Island near Frogmore, Beaufort County, South Carolina. The district encompasses six contributing buildings and one contributing sites, and is an early-20th century hunting plantation. The main house at Pine Island was built about 1904, and is a two-story frame structure built on an existing tabby foundation. The front façade features a full-width two-story porch. Also on the property are the contributing cottage (c. 1915), a toolshed/doghouse (c. 1904), a barn (c. 1936), a pumphouse (c. 1928), an automobile garage (c. 1928), and causeway (c. 1904).It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.

The Hunting Island Light is located in Hunting Island State Park on Hunting Island near Beaufort, South Carolina. Although no longer used as a functioning lighthouse, the tower is a fixture at the state park and is open to visitors. It was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970.

The Combahee River ( kəm-BEE) is a short blackwater river in the southern Lowcountry region of South Carolina formed at the confluence of the Salkehatchie and Little Salkehatchie rivers near the Islandton community of Colleton County, South Carolina. Part of its lower drainage basin combines with the Ashepoo River and the Edisto River to form the ACE Basin. The Combahee empties into Saint Helena Sound near Beaufort, which in turn empties into the Atlantic Ocean.

Hunting Island is a 5,000-acre (20 km2) secluded semitropical barrier island located 15 miles (24 km) east of Beaufort, South Carolina, United States in between Harbor Island and Fripp Island. Since 1935, it has been classified as a state park. It is the most-visited state park facility in South Carolina and is a part of the ACE Basin estuarine reserve area. Known for its natural environment, the island remains one of the few remaining undeveloped Sea Islands in the Lowcountry. The park is known for its 19th century lighthouse which bears its name. The park's beach has been featured in several travel publications and was listed in 2013 as a Top 25 beach in the United States by TripAdvisor.