![\"Longtime](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/ZSFZTPI2Q5FQZA5OCXJIP7EEFM.png\")
Longtime Mount Pleasant residents are sharing the history of two landmarks they say were among the few Lowcountry sanctuaries where African Americans could safely relax, gather and enjoy leisure time.(Live 5)<\/p>\nMOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) \u2014 Longtime Mount Pleasant residents are sharing the history of two landmarks they say were among the few Lowcountry sanctuaries where African Americans could safely relax, gather and enjoy leisure time. <\/p>\n
Some residents, though, say the sites are not getting the recognition they deserve.<\/p>\n
John Wright grew up near Riverside Beach and White\u2019s Paradise.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was just like this when I was a kid. These trees,\u201d Wright said. \u201cWe could ride down here at 100 degrees but still had a little bit of shade and then the closer you got to the water – the cooler it got.\u201d<\/p>\n
On what is now 5th Avenue, the same street as Remley\u2019s Point public boat landing, longtime Mount Pleasant residents say there used to be a beach just a few feet down.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere that white house is and where this house is, is where the pavilion was,\u201d Wright said.<\/p>\n
Johnny Robinson held his wedding reception at White\u2019s Paradise.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were able to walk over, walk on the sand, and go to the water. They had their walkway there for us,\u201d Robinson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo other beaches were available to Black residents at the time. So Riverside Beach became the beach,\u201d Wright said.<\/p>\n
Riverside Beach opened in 1930. Neighbors who grew up near the beach say the self-sustaining area could be compared to Tulsa, Oklahoma\u2019s Black Wall Street.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis community had everything economically that would drive a community and sustain a community,\u201d Wright said. \u201cNot only was Riverside Beach the first Black beach east of the Cooper in Mount Pleasant, just on the other side of those walls, but in this community they had White\u2019s Paradise, the first Black nightclub and hotel attached.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got married at Holy Trinity AME Church and we had our reception at White\u2019s Paradise,\u201d Robinson said.<\/p>\n
Johnny and Carrie Robinson have been married for 60 years. Carrie Robinson says her relatives owned White\u2019s Paradise. They opened the nightclub in 1943.<\/p>\n
\u201cTime was so much different back then than it is now,\u201d Carrie Robinson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cJames Brown appeared there, Clyde McPhatter, Lloyd Price, B.B. King; all of these people performed at White\u2019s Paradise,\u201d Johnny Robinson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cDuke Ellington, James Brown, Fats Domino,\u201d Wright said. \u201cI can remember as a kid in the 70s watching Smokey Robinson walk in that building.\u201d<\/p>\n
White\u2019s Paradise was located about a mile away from Riverside Beach.<\/p>\n
Longtime Mount Pleasant residents are sharing the history of two landmarks they say were among the few Lowcountry sanctuaries where African Americans could safely relax, gather and enjoy leisure time.(Live 5)<\/p>\n
\u201cThis was your entryway to White\u2019s Paradise,\u201d Wright said. \u201cMy mom\u2019s window was at the entryway. And everybody came running to my mom\u2019s window. We were pushing everybody aside to get a chance to see Smokey Robinson.\u201d<\/p>\n
Residents say they are grateful for the town of Mount Pleasant acknowledging the history of Riverside Beach and White\u2019s Paradise, but they say the location of the marker does not represent where the sites were actually located.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sign is in the wrong location,\u201d Wright said.<\/p>\n
Mount Pleasant leaders say the county sold the beach to developers in 1975. White\u2019s Paradise was demolished in 1993.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know if we realized what this community was and what we had growing up here,\u201d Wright said. \u201cWe also didn\u2019t have those folks in our community that would have made us realize the value of the land saying, \u2018Hey, purchase.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The two separate historical sites are now marked by one double-sided marker.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very important that we know our history,\u201d Johnny Robinson said. \u201cIt\u2019s very important to have whatever you possess, to have something for your children, to love one another and to be able to share what we have.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Town of Mount Pleasant says leaders were not aware of any concerns about the marker\u2019s location. Town leaders say they are planning to learn more about the concerns residents have raised and better understand the history and context behind the request. <\/p>\n
They say they will then determine what role the town may be able to play in helping address it.<\/p>\n
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