Guale Preserve

THE HISTORY OF PROTECTING GUALE PRESERVE FOREVER

For generations Musgrove has been accessible to the public only once per year during the Tour of Homes, when its beautiful tree-lined driveway transforms into a gateway to a world of pristine maritime forest and well-appointed cottages. Many vacationers visit St. Simons every year without even noticing this verdant and peaceful property.

Instead of slating the land for development, the previous owners of the property, the Brenn Foundation approached the St. Simons Land Trust with the hope to preserve, enhance, and showcase this magnificent local treasure. The Foundation ultimately sold 258 acres of their property to the St. Simons Land Trust. 

In May 2016, the Land Trust acquired the first of three phases, a 58-acre tract at the north boundary of the property. Read the announcement here. In February 2017, the Land Trust acquired the second phase, a 90-acre tract.  Read the announcement here. In August of 2018, the Land Trust acquired the third and final phase, a 110-acre tract at the south boundary of the property. Read the announcement here.

After the final phase of the Musgrove acquisition was completed, part of the agreement with the Brenn Foundation was that the Land Trust rename the 258 acres we own, while the foundation retains “Musgrove” for its purposes.

This lush wilderness area is now called Guale Preserve, a name with deep historic significance. For nearly 5,000 years, Native Americans lived on Georgia’s barrier islands, evidence of which has been uncovered throughout the Golden Isles. One of those tribes was the Guale (pronounced “Wallie”) Indians, a complicated society that populated land from Georgia’s Lower Satilla River to the North Edisto River in South Carolina. Here the tribe lived in well-planned settlements that included a “town center” or “plaza” surrounded by the leaders’ home.

The Guale took advantage of this region’s bounty of edible plants, game, and seafood during the 16th and 17th centuries. Oysters were a particularly important staple of the diet, resulting in shell middens that have dramatically impacted plant and animal habitats in St. Simons’ maritime forests.

FUN FACT: GUALE PRESERVE IS HOME TO 65.4 acres of wet longleaf pine – pond pine flatwoods. Pond pines have epicormic branches which grow from the trunk of the tree.