Slavery was legal in South Carolina until 1865, during which time thousands of enslaved people of African descent bravely rejected their condition and fled to gain freedom elsewhere. This steady stream of fugitives motivated white authorities to c...
The Half-Moon Battery is a historic structure in urban Charleston that formed part of the town’s earliest fortifications. Construction of its curving brick wall commenced in the mid-1690s, and the structure was completed and armed in 1702. Its can...
Summertime brings easy living to many Lowcountry residents—a time to shed the constraints of modern life and enjoy the great outdoors at a nearby retreat. Long before the convenience of modern automobiles and recreational vehicles, the people of e...
A bronze plaque on the west side of St. Philip Street in urban Charleston informs pedestrians that the site of Memminger Elementary School once hosted “the first public lending library in the American colonies,” established in 1698. This phrase ha...
The “Star-Spangled Banner” became our national anthem in 1931, but its history in the Palmetto City goes back much farther. The words were written in Maryland in 1814, while the tune, composed in London during the 1770s, came to South Carolina dec...
Two granite memorials in urban Charleston recall the story of Elizabeth Jackson, an obscure Irish immigrant who passed the final years of her life in South Carolina. She died in or near the Palmetto City during the American Revolution, but the sit...
The temple-like structure standing at the intersection of Market and Meeting Streets in Charleston, with its yellow-wash walls and massive white columns is a familiar sight to many residents and visitors. Now 180 years old, the life story of this ...
You don’t have to be a foodie to recognize that bread has formed a significant part of Lowcountry foodways for centuries. While conversations about this delicious heritage often focus on recipes and ingredients, an interesting but obscure chapter ...
Scattered across coastal South Carolina, one finds a variety of saints’ names applied to numerous landmarks, institutions, and roads. Think, for example, of St. John’s High School on John’s Island, St. Andrew’s Boulevard west of the Ashley River, ...
Automotive congestion is a fact of life on Lowcountry roads in the twenty-first century, while transportation alternatives struggle to gain traction in our community. Mass transit solutions, while popular in larger urban centers, appear to be cont...