Chesser Island facts for kids
Chesser Island is a special island located inside the huge Okefenokee Swamp. This swamp is a protected area called the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, which means it's kept safe for nature and wildlife.
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History of Chesser Island
Who Lived on Chesser Island?
Around the late 1850s, a man named W.T. Chesser and his family moved to a small island on the eastern side of the Okefenokee Swamp. They were a strong family who worked hard to live in this wild place. They ate food they could hunt, trap, fish, or grow in the sandy soil.
For money, they grew crops like sugar cane, tobacco, and also collected turpentine from pine trees. They lived a simple life, working hard and having fun when they could.
The Chesser Family's New Home
W.T. Chesser came from areas in Georgia called Tattnall and Liberty counties. He chose to settle on the island now known as Chesser Island. This island is about 592-acre (2.40 km2) in size. It has many forests filled with different types of pine trees like longleaf pine, slash pine, and pond pine. You can also find occasional oak hammocks, which are small groups of oak trees.
Building the Homestead
The first Chesser family home was located south of where the current buildings stand. W.T. Chesser had six sons. Two of his sons, Robert Allen Chesser and Sam Chesser, married sisters, Lizzie and Sara Altman. Robert and Lizzie had 13 children, and Sam and Sara had nine children.
Tom Chesser, who was the youngest son of Sam and Sara, built the main house that you can see today. He built it in 1927 with his wife, Iva.
The house was made from yellow pine wood and was said to cost only $200 back then. It first had four rooms and an indoor kitchen. The bathroom was outside, but there was a bathtub on the back porch. As their family grew to seven children, two more bedrooms were added.
Around the house, there were other important buildings. These included a smokehouse for preserving meat, a syrup shed for making syrup, a chicken coop, a corncrib for storing corn, and a hog pen. The yard around the house was kept clear of plants. This was a common practice at the time to help prevent fires and to make it easier to spot snakes.
Daily Life and Fun
To earn the little money they needed, the Chesser family grew corn, tobacco, or sugar cane. They also tapped pine trees to collect sap for turpentine. Work and fun often happened at the same time! For example, when they butchered hogs or made syrup, families would gather together. They would visit, work, and play together.
Like many families of that time, they enjoyed telling stories. They also went to church all day on Sundays. For toys, they often made their own at home. The Chesser family especially loved a unique kind of music called four-note or sacred harp singing. Even today, some of the Chesser family members still sing these old, a cappella (without instruments) songs.
Chesser Island Today
Most of the Okefenokee Swamp became the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in 1937. Over time, the Chesser family moved to other places. Tom and Iva Chesser were the last family members to leave the island, in 1958.
Many members of the Chesser family still live nearby in towns like Folkston, Georgia, Waycross, Georgia, and Hollister, Florida. They are still involved in taking care of the Chesser Island Homestead and helping people learn about its history. Some even work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages the refuge.
Images for kids
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Chesser Island Homestead, 2015
