The Bluffton Eccentric was the first and only newspaper the town of Bluffton has had in fifty years. We felt such a kinship with them that we asked Graham Bullock, publisher of The Bluffton Eccentric, if we could resurrect articles from previous issues and republish them. Graham graciously gave his permission and loaned us volumes of old papers. It has been a treat for me to read them and it is with great honor that I get to share them with everyone again. So, kick back, relax and get ready for a blast from the past.

Alma Hudson

n 1930, a freight boat named, The Clivedon, made round trips from Savannah to Daufuskie, Hilton Head, Paris Island and Beaufort. It docked at Jenkins Island, a distribution point for the cargo, ice and passengers unloaded for Hilton Head Island. But the island also shipped out a viable commodity to the northern markets, via Savannah. The nearby steam pressured cannery produced tons of cooked shrimp, packed in glass jars, and tins filled with steamed oysters.

When Johnny and Mary Platt’s niece, Alma (from Bamburg County) came to visit, her uncle got her a summer job at the Maggioni Cannery, at a whopping depression rate of 30 cents an hour. In June, Alma met Alfred Mose Hudson, who also worked for L.P. Maggioni & Co., and she remembers, “It was a love story from that moment onward.” They were soon married and lived with his family in the Hudson’s large house until 1932, when Mose went to work for J.E. Lawrence, the superintendent for Honey Horn Plantation, a hunting reserve owned by Thorne and Loomis.

“Mose assisted with the farming operation of the plantation until he was injured in a tractor accident, but stayed on the payroll,” Alma said. “This was before the days of game wardens and Mose rode the woods on horseback to keep people from pouching the wild turkey, deer, quail and doves that flourished in abundance at Honey Horn Plantation.”

In 1941, 4000 Marines were stationed in barracks built around lighthouse at what is now Palmetto Dunes. Alma and Mose left Honey Horn to open a small tavern, which also served short order food to the isolated servicemen during the war years.

Mose moved his family to Buckingham in 1950 in time for the opening of the new Bluffton Elementary and High School, so that his children, Ann, Alfred, William, and Ethel could attend. After strict tests and licensing, he and Donald O’Quinn became the co-captains of the Pocahontas, the ferry boat that made 12 trips a day from Buckingham Landing to Jenkins Island. The boat carried passengers and supplies, up to nine vehicles and was an important means of transportation for the large tomato crop, grown on Hilton Head Plantation. Oldest son Alfred became the relief captain when he came home from Clemson University for summers and holidays.

On May 19, 1956, the toll bridge to Hilton Head opened and Mose Hudson was made the bridge supervisor. Alma explained, “It cost $1.25 per vehicle, but only a dime if you walked across. I kept the books and counted every penny collected for the next four years. When toll the restriction was lifted, Mose became an operator for the draw bridge, until he retired in 1971. Even in bad weather, he climbed the ladder to the 12x12 glassed in room at the top of the bridge over the Intercoastal Waterway. The boats and barges blew horns as signals when they needed to pass through.”

Mose Hudson died in 1978, having lived his entire life in the area ‘he loved so much.’ “There was always land to farm or hunt, and the river to fish. He was active in community affairs and was one of the directors of S.C.E. &G. for 22 years.” Alma said.

“I miss him dearly, but I go on. I’m nearly 77 and still drive into Bluffton, especially to functions at the First Baptist Church, but I don’t drive on the island anymore. The traffic is too much, (a sentiment shared by many 20 years later!) I enjoy my home and garden and visits from the grandchildren. I learned about living from Mose, who was never bored, even when he spent day after day as the bridge operator. He had a saying that summed up how it feels to live and work near the water, “Each tide brings a new sunrise or sunset, and everyday can be different and special.”