More than just BBQ for Early Suburban St. Andrew’s Parish
Barbecue. Hospitality. Guest Home. Water. Fire Chief. Hunting. Skeet Competitions. Travel. Documenting and Archiving History. The Bootle family were influencers in all of these matters for St. Andrew’s Parish. From the early 1920s when P.L. Bootle began serving barbecue at the Sunshine Cabin, later renamed Bootle’s Barbecue Drive-in (the first drive-in in the Charleston area), just west of the Ashley Bridge up to 1977 when the Guest Home closed at the corner of Wesley Drive and Savannah Highway, the Bootle Family has contributed to the economy, infrastructure and fun in St. Andrew’s Parish.
It would take more than the few hundred words of West Ashley Flashback to deliver the full story. So, step back in time a bit and imagine the men who once gathered at Bootle’s Drive-in on Savannah Highway and at Bootle’s Lunch and Grocery, at the corner of Wappoo Road and Savannah Highway, for community and storytelling. Fortunately, some of this activity has been photo-documented so it is easy to set the stage.
Let’s hit the high notes:
Philip Lorraine Bootle was introduced to the barbecue business in Brunswick while working in the lumber business in Georgia. It is unknown why he was convinced to come to Charleston and open this type of business, but the timing coincides with the early economic influences of the Navy Base and Naval Shipyard. He opened in a location just as one exited the Ashley River Bridge going south on Savannah Highway, a major north-south artery prior to I-95. Maybe he recognized the importance of such a location.
Shortly after the entrance into the Food and Beverage industry, Bootle and his daughter, Lota purchased two lots across the highway in 1940 to build a guest home in the new Windermere development. At this time, Savannah Highway was a popular route for traveling salesmen moving up and down the east coast. Guest homes, cabins and later motels/hotels were very popular along Savannah Highway. Old Town Motor Court, Clementia Cabins, and Blitch’s Cabins are a few of the older hospitality locations along the highway.
The concept of “migration to the country” was creating new subdivisions in St. Andrew’s Parish. As the threat of another world war loomed, more and more people were moving to the area because of job opportunities at the Charleston Naval Shipyard and housing was critical. One hindrance to converting cabbage fields to neighborhoods was a reliable source of water. Even though Bootle never was associated with subdivision development, he would play a critical role as a commissioner of the St. Andrew’s Fire and Water District. The tenacity of just a few men during the pre-WWII period brought water to St. Andrew’s Parish. This accomplishment was celebrated by the community in the fall of 1943.
Bootle’s commitment to community rubbed off on his children. His son Gus would become an attorney and later a US District Judge for the Middle District of Georgia overseeing the desegregation cases in the South. His daughter Leila Inez (known as Ina) owned a fish camp that included a seafood restaurant in Georgia establishing herself as not only a well-known fishing guide but also an excellent cook, and son Tommie dabbled in the barbecue business when he opened a place briefly in Walterboro, next as a magician and later owned a sign business in Spartanburg. The rest of his children remained in Charleston. His son, Luther and wife, Grace, would run the Bootle’s Lunch and Grocery at the corner of Wappoo Road and Savannah Highway. Luther would also serve as the Chief of the St. Andrew’s Fire Department from 1954-1956. Lota would help out at the BBQ stand and guest home and occasionally travel to fun places like Bermuda and Havanna, Cuba. Sammie formed a partnership with his father in the BBQ business in 1937. After the location near the bridge closed, he would open the new location further down Savannah Highway in 1955. Sammie was also known for his hunting successes and skeet competition skills, becoming state champion four times. He personified the live, work and play concept that so many speak about when describing community today. The next generation of Bootles also picked up the community spirit. Documentation and archiving are their forte. Luther, Jr. was a shutterbug. If something was happening in St. Andrew’s Parish, Luther, Jr. was there to snap a picture. He was also the school photographer for St. Andrew’s Parish High School during his senior year of 1943. Later, Sammie’s daughter, Ina would take up archiving all of this history and generously share it with the community. Many of the stories and photographs have found their way into “West Ashley”, West Ashley Flashback columns, and lectures. Kudos to the generations of Bootles who not only helped build the community, but also helped us remember.
Stories about early suburban days in St. Andrew’s Parish? Contact Donna at westashleybook@gmail.com
And if you want to know more about the Bootle Family, there will be a lecture on March 7, 6pm at the Cynthia Hurd/St. Andrew’s Library located at 1735 N. Woodmere Dr.
