Laurel Island
| Laurel Island | ||
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| Waters | Crooked River | |
| Geographical location | 30 ° 49 ′ 9 ″ N , 81 ° 35 ′ 23 ″ W | |
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| surface | 8 km² | |
Laurel Island is an inland island on the American Atlantic coast. It belongs to the US state of Georgia and borders inland on the parishes of Kingsland and St. Mary's. It is right in the foothills of the Crooked River . The island is about eight square kilometers and has not yet been developed. The climate is subtropical with summer temperatures of up to 32 ° C and lows between 2 ° C and 11 ° C in the winter months.
Flora and fauna
Laurel Island is made up of over 2,000 acres of forest with giant magnolias and centuries-old evergreen oaks forming a canopy of leaves. Some of these trees reach heights of up to 40 meters. There are also high and sandy cliffs, extensive and spacious marshes and numerous emerald-colored canals in which u. a. Dolphins, manatees and (loggerhead) hawksbill turtles are at home. In addition, the island is a retreat for countless species of birds such as pelicans, ibises, flamingos and great egrets.
history
Laurel Isle, as Laurel Island was called during colonial times, was originally the home of the Timucua Indians. In 1767 the British King George III transferred the island and surrounding marshland Jermyn and Charles Wright, brothers of then-Governor of Georgia, Sir James Wright. The Oxley family later cultivated the marshland for growing rice, indigo, and cotton. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the region around Laurel Island was considered the rice chamber of the southeastern United States. Remnants of this time can still be found today on Laurel Island and the small neighboring island of Chipper's Island. In the 20th century, Laurel Island was somewhat forgotten and is now privately owned.