A local's eye view
One of the best things you can do in Charleston is walk, walk and walk. The beauty varies and you will find streets such as this one — Elliott Street, which was once one of the most important commercial thoroughfares in pre-Colonial Charleston.
The Bennett-Jones House on Smith Street was built in 1840, and is conveniently located just down the street from Brown Dog Deli 🙂
Sunrise from White Point Garden is often a spectacular event. This “columbiad” (long gun) was first used by the Confederate army in its defense of nearby Fort Sumter during the Civil War.
Early morning along Rainbow Row.
Stoll’s Alley is lush, narrow, brick-lined path that runs between Church Street and East Bay. It dates back to the early 1700’s and is named after Justinus Stoll, a blacksmith who lived there.
The view across the oleander to the houses of East Battery in the early morning sun. The house on the left was built in 1845 by William Ravenel — for whom the Cooper River Bridge is not named.
The heat and humidity in Charleston is pretty apparent in this photo. 7:45 AM and the “feels like” temperature was 93 degrees.
Did you know the original name for Colonial Lake was “Rutledge Street Pond?”
Within Charleston’s diverse ecosystem, there are a lot of cool residents. It’s always wonderful to cross paths with a banana spider, also known as a golden orb weaver.
From this bench in Waterfront Park you can see Shute’s Folly, a small, low lying island in the middle of Charleston Harbor. Originally used to house defensive fortifications for Charleston, the property was bought by Charlestonian Joseph Shute in 1746 — for which he seems to have been ridiculed.
Over time the island passed through a number of ownership hands, but retained the Folly name. It eventually became home to Castle Pinckney, which was originally built in 1797 and then demolished in 1804 by a hurricane. The masonry Castle Pinckney, whose remains can still be seen, was completed in 1808.
Unlike Seward’s Folly, which picked up the snappy new name of Alaska, this folly remains credited to poor Mr. Shute.
First (Scots) Prebyterian Church is the 5th oldest church building in Charleston, and its congregation dates back to 1731. Built in 1814 by a pair of brothers from Scotland, you can find Scottish symbols throughout the building.