Cooling breezes, bright sunshine and tropical palm trees created the perfect summer retreat for wealthy South Carolina planters during the early 19th century. Here along the May River in Old Town Bluffton, where the secession movement stirred South Carolina to eventually leave the Union, the city is packed with history and old-style southern charm. The Heyward House (inset), Bluffton's official welcome center, is the perfect place to begin a tour of Old Town Bluffton.
   One of Bluffton's architectural charmers, pictured here is the historic Church of the Cross. Taking four years to build, architect Edward Brickell White's touches are seen throughout the handsome cruciform Gothic building. Its arched windows, with rose colored English glass and latticed shutters, highlight the exterior; while exposed pine timbers and a pine scored plaster walls create a striking interior.
   Surviving widespread destruction when Sherman's Federal Troops marched through Bluffton in 1963 and a deadly 1898 hurricane, the Church of the Cross recently celebrated its 150th anniversary and remains a popular stop in historic Bluffton.

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