Congaree Swamp National Monument

Congaree Swamp National Monument in central South Carolina 20 miles from the state capital, Columbia, was established in 1976 to preserve the last large stand of old-growth river-bottom hardwood forest in the southeastern United States. The 22,200-acre monument was designated (1983) a Biosphere Reserve and is part of the Man in the Biosphere Program, an international effort to protect bio diversity and avert environmental damage by means of research and systematic monitoring. Within the monument's boundaries grow some 90 tree species. Nine are the largest of their kind in the nation, including one loblolly pine 169 feet tall.