Attractions

Charles Towne Landing

The English settled up the Ashley River in Charles Towne. Ten years later, deciding that the point of the peninsula would be easier to defend and better for trade, they moved to the edge of the marsh. Eventually a wall was built around the town. Today, much of the area South of Broad is “made land” (landfill).

White Point

When the English sailed by this peninsula in 1670, the tip was marshy and covered in blanched white oyster shells, which is why it’s called white point.

Barbados

When the Carolina and her passengers set sail from England to colonize Carolina, they stopped in Barbados, where they encouraged plantation owners and others to follow them to the new land. That is why we have many of the same plants and vegetation as Barbados.

Charleston Single House

Houses are only one room wide. Ceilings are painted blue to deter nesting insects. Joggling Boards are seen on porches. Good for courting couples and for rheumatism. Piazzas face South or West for breezes. Piazza floors are sloped down for rain to run off. After the earthquake of 1886, homes were retrofitted with long metal rods running the length of the building and capped with rod covers.

Charleston Green

After the Civil War, there was little money for sprucing things up. It’s said that the North donated black paint but locals were hesitant to use the Yankee Paint. They found that mixing 2 parts “Yankee” black and 1 part “Rebel” yellow produced a dark green that has become Charleston’s signature color, especially for shutters.

Rainbow Row

Before landfill was added, these merchant stores were on the wharf. Back then it was a seedy, dangerous place. In the 1920’s, people began restoring the rundown buildings, painting the exteriors in pastel colors. This project led to the restoration of the rest of Charleston and the birth of the Charleston Preservation Society, which was the first in the nation.

Pineapple

A symbol of hospitality. Legend has it that sea captains sailing the Caribbean came home with exotic fruits. A captain would spear a pineapple on his fence post to let friends know he was home safely and to please visit. He would then serve food and drink, and regale visitors with tales of the high seas.

Holy City

Charleston calls itself the “holy city” because of its many places of worship and skyline full of church steeples. It was one of the few cities in the original thirteen colonies to provide religious tolerance, albeit restricted to non-Catholics. Many Huguenots found their way to Charleston. Charleston was also one of the first colonial cities after to welcome Judaism.

St. Philip’s and St. Michael’s Episcopal Church

St. Philip’s was “the” church for the first settlers. Those not of Anglican faith were “dissenters”. St. Michael’s split from St. Philip’s after the parish became too large, and St. Philip’s was rebuilt in its present spot. Many famous people were buried here and across the street in the “strangers churchyard”. Even in death, John C. Calhoun kept falling in and out of favor and was moved back and forth across the street.

Meeting Street

Meeting Street is where all the original non-Anglican Churches were founded as “meeting houses.” Charleston is the Holy City because of it’s historic tolerance for all faiths, but the regulations at the time forced them to only have one official “church” in town.

Four Corners of Law

At the intersection of Meeting and Broad Streets is the Courthouse (state law), City Hall (civil law), U.S. Post Office (federal law) and St. Michael’s Church (God’s Law).

Gullah

Language, made official in 1939, is a creole-based language with English as its main base. African Americans in the Lowcountry created this language and culture, and the word may have come from the Gola or Gora Tribes of Angola.

Sweetgrass Baskets

African Americans brought basket-making skills to the plantations from West Africa. Sadly, sweetgrass is becoming scarce and the young aren’t eager to learn the tradition.

Civil War

The first battle of the Civil War took place at Fort Sumter in the Charleston Harbor. The war is known to Charlestonians as the “War Between the States”, “War of Northern Aggression”, “War for Southern Independence”, “Recent Unpleasantness”, and “The War of Great Difficulty”.

The Exchange and Provost Building

The Exchange and Provost was built in 1767. The building features a dungeon which held various signers of the Declaration of Independence and hosted events for George Washington in 1791 and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1788.

Angel Oak

The Angel Oak is considered to be the largest Live Oak Tree east of the Mississippi estimating to be 300 to 400 years old. It receives approximately 400,000 visitors each year. The tree is 65 feet high with a circumference of 25.5 feet, shading an area of 17,000 square feet.