MOUNT PLEASANT — Honoring the generations-old craft, the annual Sweetgrass Festival returns to Memorial Waterfront Park on July 25.
- Honors generations-old tradition of sweetgrass basket weaving, a knowledge transfer from enslaved West Africans shaping Lowcountry Gullah Geechee culture.
- Features hands-on workshops and exhibits: basket-making with Henrietta Snype, a Gullah doll workshop, stew demonstration, and slave artifact display by George Bryant.
- Celebrates the legacy of Thomasena Stokes-Marshall and showcases live Gullah spirituals by the Plantation Singers, modern blues, West African drum and dance, storytellers, food vendors.
More than two dozen sweetgrass basket makers will showcase their traditional Gullah Geechee art during the free event that runs 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Tracy Richter, the town’s events coordinator, said the festival offers an opportunity to meet artisans, learn more about the craft and discover details that make each piece of art unique.
“It’s the one time we have this many basket makers together,” she said. “You can walk around, talk to these weavers and find out their story.”
The art of sweetgrass basket making is integral to the fabric of Mount Pleasant, said historian Michael Allen. When enslaved West Africans were brought to the country through the Port of Charleston during the transatlantic slave trade, they recognized the topography, weather and landscape of the Lowcountry was similar to their homeland, he said. The strong, flexible native sweetgrass plant was ideal for weaving.
“Sweetgrass baskets came as a technological scientific transfer of knowledge,” he said.
The traditional art is has been passed down through generations, typically from grandmothers to mothers to daughters, he said. The festival offers the chance for younger generations to learn, experience and be educated on the history, he added.
Sweetgrass baskets and roses are seen for sale during the Mount Pleasant Sweetgrass Festival on Saturday, July 26, 2025.
The Mount Pleasant festival started more than two decades ago out of native Thomasena Stokes-Marshall’s kitchen. She was known for championing Gullah Geechee art and improvements to the area’s settlement communities before her death in 2023 at age 79. Richter said the annual event now honors her legacy.
During the festival, guests can learn how to make their own sweetgrass baskets from expert Henrietta Snype inside the Cooper River Room on site. Other activities inside the building include a Gullah doll making workshop, Gullah stew cooking demonstration and a slave artifact exhibit by George Bryant.
Previously, some of these displays were held in the Sweetgrass Basket Pavilion at the park, but the open air venue is currently closed for renovations. Everything that was housed in the pavilion will still be accessible, either under tents or inside the Cooper River Room, Richter said. She expects the renovations to be completed by next year’s festival.
On stage, the Plantation Singers, an acapella group that performs Gullah spirituals, will open the festival, followed by Columbia-based modern blues guitarist The Dubber and a traditional West African drum and dance group. Throughout the day, storytellers will perform on stage.
A variety of food vendors will be set up, including Mazyck’s Grill, Briele’s Catering, barbecue, kettle corn, ice cream and shaved ice.
On-site parking is free, but limited. Guests can park for free at Mount Pleasant Town Hall, 100 Ann Edwards Lane, or the Cheryll Woods-Flowers Soccer Complex, 85 Patriots Point Road, and take a shuttle to the event. Chairs and blankets are allowed on the shuttle. Ferry Wharf, a paid parking garage at 75 Port City Landing, is walking distance to the park.
Any festival updates will be posted on the Facebook event page: facebook.com/share/17wsLG1H1K/.
