Flickr user Hugging the Coast

The Historic Beaufort Foundation is putting on their 10th annual oyster roast on Friday, January 29th.

Come out and not only will you get to eat some great Lowcountry oysters, but you’ll get to support a great cause while learning more about the history of Beaufort.

Here’s all you need to know from the e-mailed release:

- Tickets are still available for the 10th annual oyster roast sponsored by Historic Beaufort Foundation January 29th. Open to HBF members and the general public, the event kicks off the Foundation’s annual membership campaign. Guests, who have never before been members, receive a one-year complimentary membership with the price of the ticket.

2010 marks the third year that Tombee has been opened to HBF and its guests by owners Deborah and Sydney Snelgrove who, with local craftsman Beek Webb, conducted a major restoration to the property in 2008. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the ca. 1810 plantation and its grounds will be open to ticket holders.

Tickets are $40 per person and a few reservations are still available for the 5:30 p.m. servings of oysters, chicken gumbo, corn bread, beverages and dessert. More space is available at the 7 p.m. serving. The grounds and the bonfires will be open to guests throughout the evening. The bar opens at 5 p.m.

Tickets will not be sold at the door and must be purchased by January 26th at the HBF office at 208 Street, or ordered and charged to a credit card by calling the office at 379-3331 or online at www.historicbeaufort.org. The office is open Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

The oyster roast will be catered by Reeves Outdoor Catering of Bluffton. Beek Webb and the Lowcountry Ramblers will provide music.

A map (dated 1771) of South Carolina from the Savannah Sound to St. Helena.

Come January 17, 2011, Beaufort will be 300 years old. If you have a phobia to math, know that the mark means Beaufort was charted in 1711 and is one of the nation’s oldest cities.

But the city isn’t planning to mark the occasion with a passing hurrah, for years the community has been working on the Beaufort Three-Century Project as a way to gain perspective on where the town has been and how it can make the most of its future.

The Beaufort Gazette has a short report on the status of the project; you can read it over here.

For those unfamiliar with Beaufort, know that one of the oldest parts of the town is modern-day downtown Beaufort.

If you’re not local and would like to get to know the town more, consider dropping by City Java & News as a headquarters for a day trip (it’s smack dab in the heart of the history — but you can still wire out to the modern world thanks to the free wifi), or stay in town for a couple days, book a night at our boutique hotel City Loft Hotel.