The Machine in the Rice Field: A Spatial Analysis of Mechanized Rice Processing Infrastructure along the Cooper River, 1780 - 1830

Author

Jacob HockenberryFollow

Date of Award

5-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Historic Preservation

Committee Chair/Advisor

Dr. Carter Hudgins

Committee Member

Dr. Richard Porcher

Committee Member

Dr. Hayden R. Smith

Committee Member

Dr. Kendy Altizer

Abstract

This thesis examines the spatial and physical characteristics of mechanized rice processing infrastructure along the Cooper River in South Carolina’s Lowcountry between 1780 and 1830. Historic rice plantation plats and modern geospatial data provided new information regarding the location of rice processing machines in relation to other plantation landscape features. This research analyzed seven rice plantations that contained these machines. Each plantation plat was georeferenced using ArcGIS Pro to support a detailed spatial analysis of these processing sites. While literature has extensively detailed the social, economic, environmental and enslaved aspects of rice culture in the Lowcountry, little research has specifically focused on processing machines on rice plantations.

The establishment of processing infrastructure was dependent on the topography and hydrology of the Lowcountry. This research concludes that mechanized processing machines were located within 1,000 feet from the Cooper River or a major tributary at an elevation between two and eight feet. These areas were characteristic of tidal marsh deposits, clayey sand and clay facies, and alluvium soil deposits formed during the late Pleistocene and Holocene geologic periods. The reliance on riverine transportation during the period of study further oriented these processing machines towards the extensive network of navigable waterways which traversed the Lowcountry. Moreover, the dependence on slave labor encouraged the establishment of enslaved settlements to be closer to sites of mechanized processing compared to the primary dwelling house.

Recommended Citation

Hockenberry, Jacob, "The Machine in the Rice Field: A Spatial Analysis of Mechanized Rice Processing Infrastructure along the Cooper River, 1780 - 1830" (2024). All Theses. 4215.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/4215