A local's eye view
Early morning along the High Battery. The Captain Missroon House, on the left, was built between 1808-1810. But, before that, in the late 17th century the property was the home of the Granville Bastion — the corner fortress built to protect the walled colony of Charles Town from naval invasions of pirates, Spanish and French. It even was used in the defense against the British during the American Revolution. Cool.
The swings at Waterfront Park are extremely popular. With their great view, you can see most of Charleston Harbor, including the USS Yorktown at Patriots Point. While the Yorktown was an extremely famous aircraft carrier, it was to be named the Bon Homme Richard — in honor of Benjamin Franklin and John Paul Jones (who sailed in the first ship with that name). It was renamed The Yorktown in honor of a previous Yorktown, which sunk at the epic Battle of Midway.
Of the eight cobblestone streets in Charleston, Gillon Street is one of the rougher.
Since its creation in 1776, this pretty cut-through has been known as Kinloch’s Court (after its founder), Cows Alley(because of its bovine grazers) and Dueler’s Alley (for all the duels that were fought there). Since 1811, it has been officially known as Philadelphia Alley — to honor the citizens of Philadelphia who generously sent funds to help the area rebuild after a devastating fire.
This gorgeous three story brownstone building on Broad Street was built in 1853. It was damaged in the shelling of Charleston during the Civil War and had to be repaired before reopening in 1868.
Built in 1907, the bandstand in the center of White Point Garden has been the site for concerts, weddings, bar mitzvahs and more. If it had been around on December 10, 1718 and you were standing on it, you would have had a good view of the hanging of the famed pirate Stede Bonnet.
Happy Halloween! This c. 1771 house on Meeting Street used to be the very best dressed house on the holiday. Sadly, the witch’s hat was destroyed in one of the “floods of the century” a few years ago.
This is actually the side of the “Compromise House” — which faces the High Battery. Built in 1856, it has an interesting history — including that during World War II, John F. Kennedy had an office in this house while serving as a naval officer, before heading to the Pacific as the commander of PT109.
The Belvedere (now a B&B), built c. 1900 and then later refurbished with wood from the demolished Cooper River plantation house from which it gets its name, is on Rutledge Avenue — with a nice view of Colonial Lake.
One of the shortest streets in Charleston, complete with a 90 degree turn, Zig Zag Alley is tucked in near the High Battery. It’s a beautiful little street, with one of the most often stolen street signs.