22 www.ReadMPM.com | www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.MountPleasantPodcast.com When dawn breaks on Shem Creek, there will soon be a glimmer on the water like never before. Atop the boardwalk that connects both sides of the creek will stand a bronze, life-size statue of a man who is now remembered as a Lowcountry legend. His name is Captain Wayne Magwood and soon his legacy will forever be enshrined as a testament to the role he played in preserving the area’s rich maritime history. Magwood’s life, career and family lineage have revolved around Shem Creek for the past century. In 1930, his father’s cousin, Captain William Magwood, was the first fisherman to bring ocean shrimp into Mount Pleasant and laid the foundation for the commercial industry to be built at Shem Creek. Magwood’s shrimping journey began as a child working alongside his father Captain Clarence Magwood Jr. and he proceeded to live out this lifelong passion for the next 50 years. Over the last half century, he achieved much more than any fish scale could weigh; he became the face of the shrimping industry in the Lowcountry. Magwood was a life member of the South Carolina Shrimpers Association and served with the Southern Shrimp Alliance. He was one of the founders of the Blessing of the Fleet Festival that originated in Charleston in the 1970s, a parade of boats that has been going strong for 36 years now in Mount Pleasant. In 2011, Magwood was presented the Order of the Palmetto, which is the state's highest civilian honor awarded to citizens for extraordinary lifetime service and achievements of national or statewide significance. He devoted his time and talent to preserving the shrimping tradition and its presence on Shem Creek, advocating for himself and fellow fishermen. When Magwood wasn’t shrimping, he was either spending quality time with family or filming something cool on his famed 68-foot trawler Winds of Fortune that has graced the waters since 1987. His boat was featured in a country music video with singer and songwriter Darius Rucker, TV shows such as “Dirty Jobs” and “Amazing Race” and on stations like the History Channel and The Weather Channel. Magwood had more airtime than most pilots; yet he was one of the humblest, salt of the earth skippers you ever met. “He was larger than life and his life was incredible,” said Tressy Magwood Mellichamp, one of his four daughters and author of the local history book “East Cooper: A Maritime Heritage.” A month after selling his boat and settling into retirement, Magwood was tragically killed in an autopedestrian collision while crossing Coleman Boulevard on Sept. 11, 2020. He was just 67 years old. Just weeks after Magwood’s untimely death, Mellichamp and her sisters were overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from people calling to erect a statue in his remembrance. Mellichamp has since poured her heart into the project, collaborating with the Town of Mount Pleasant. Her mission was not only to recognize the impact her father cast on the community by way of a memorial statue, but to give back to an industry that has supported her family for generations. “The biggest life lesson that my dad has passed into my heart is to always give back,” Mellichamp said. “Give back to your community and always ask what you can do instead of taking.” In February 2021, the town launched a GoFundMe fundraiser called the Wayne Magwood Fisherman’s Memorial. If you read the description, then you’ll know that the goal is much greater than an individual honor. The base of the statue will have a QR code that takes you to a website with information about every vessel in the shrimping fleet our town
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