70 www.ReadMPM.com | www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.MountPleasantPodcast.com on the coast advertising and fundraising, while helping with cooking and general upkeep of the resort. According to historian Lee Brockington, from the 1930s through the early 1950s, Pyatt also booked famous talent such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Billie Holiday, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald and Little Richard to play at the pavilion. These performers would have been in the area entertaining white audiences at the nearby Ocean Forest Hotel in Myrtle Beach. In exchange for performing for guests at Magnolia Beach, the jazz musicians were invited to stay overnight in a room at the resort for free. Their connection with the beach provided invaluable endorsements that contributed to the destination’s success. Tragically, in October 1954, Hurricane Hazel, a catastrophic Category 4 storm, slammed directly into Magnolia Beach, ripping apart the resort and destroying it beyond repair. As a result, Pyatt and McKenzie dissolved their partnership. Brockington explained that the McKenzies then cleared the debris and transformed the acreage into a Black familyfriendly resort that they renamed McKenzie Beach. At the entrance to the property that had a 12-unit motel, guests were welcomed by a landscape of pink and purple flowers that spelled out the word “McKenzie” in giant letters. By 1963, the McKenzies faced financial hardship. To avoid bankruptcy, they sold the resort to civil rights activists Modjeska Simkins and Walter Manigault. Brockington said that Frank stayed on to manage the property. In 1964, the Civil Rights Act was passed, ending segregation and allowing Blacks to integrate with whites at other vacation destinations. Throughout the 1970s, other racial restrictions fell away and were replaced with a degree of cultural acceptance. No longer a sought-after destination, the motel at McKenzie Beach capitulated to the elements and fell into disrepair. Entangled in a web of vines, the building’s ruins can still be glimpsed today from Ocean Highway. In 1978, both Miss Liz and Frank passed away. Subsequently, Pyatt’s heirs sold her 6-acre plot of oceanfront property to the Litchfield Company. The other 22 acres were passed down to Manigault’s descendants who have owned the land for almost half a century. Although Hazel may have swept the buildings from the beachfront resort, the storm could never destroy the nostalgic memories of families who enjoyed the sun, sea and sand set against the music of a bygone but not forgotten era. Isolated road located on McKenzie Beach. Photo provided by Jake Lee Real Estate. Photo by Tanya Ackerman. Photo by Tanya Ackerman. Ruins located on McKenzie Beach. Painting of children playing at Magnolia Beach.
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