A local's eye view
Charleston has quite a few “pocket parks” scattered about the city, which provide neat little spaces of beauty and spots to sit and rest. This beautiful fountain can be found in the Chapel Street Fountain Park at the intersection of Chapel and Elizabeth Streets.
On the morning of April 12, 1861, the High Battery in Charleston was packed with people. They were there to watch the bombardment of Fort Sumter in the harbor — which was the first shots fired in the Civil War. This morning was a lot calmer.
A classic Charleston view along Broad Street. The evening sun always makes the street just glow.
Sweetgrass basket-making has a long history in Charleston, tracing its Gullah origins back hundreds of years to Africa. Originally made to help separate the rice seed from its chaff, they are now considered to be wonderful works of art and prized possessions.
Charleston is known as the “Holy City,” due to the large number of churches which were historically here and that when viewed from the harbor the city’s only structures sticking above the low rooftops were church steeples. This is the Citadel Square Baptist Church‘s — which is one of the tallest in Charleston.
This wonderfully colorful stretch of Queen Street, includes the Footlight Players‘ theater (and one of the entrances to Philadelphia Alley). The building that is now a theater dates back to about 1850, and was originally a cotton warehouse.
These glorious window boxes and pretty cool shutters (and mailbox) can be found on King Street. So Charleston.
In 1906, the Charleston Improvement Corporation built these beautiful houses on Church Street on what had been an industrial complex owned by the Charleston Hydraulic Press Company. Five houses with Queen Anne style gable ends and porches and piazzas were erected. One burned down and the remaining four being are allegedly haunted, but do look good.
Beautiful window boxes and the Dock Street Theater are just behind this horse on Church Street. Have you tied up there?
This “porthole” can be found on the front of Charleston City Hall. With some identical twins along the sides of the building, this iconic beautiful iron and stone work is a quick identifier for this significant Charleston building. Have you posed in front of one?