Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It lies just south of the middle of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean. The city had a population of 150,227 at the 2020 census, and the Charleston metropolitan area has about 870,000 residents.

Charleston was founded by the English in 1670 as Charles Town, named after King Charles II. The settlement moved to its present location in 1680 and grew quickly. During its early years, Charleston played a big role in the Atlantic slave trade; many enslaved Africans arrived there.

Today, Charleston's economy is supported by tourism, a busy port, aerospace, and technology. The city is famous for its well-preserved buildings, historic sites, and rich Gullah culture. Popular spots include the historic City Market, Fort Sumter National Monument, and beautiful streets like the Battery and Rainbow Row.

History

Main article: History of Charleston, South Carolina

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Charleston, South Carolina.

Native American settlement

The unified Cusabo people (including sub tribes such as Kiawah) and the Ittiwan people inhabited the area prior to colonial settlement. They were known as "Settlement Indians" by colonists.

Colonial era (1670–1776)

King Charles II granted the chartered Province of Carolina to eight of his loyal friends, known as the Lords Proprietors, on March 24, 1663. Later that year, prominent planters from Barbados attempted their first settlement in the Carolinas on the Cape Fear River, building what would become Charles Towne, North Carolina. This settlement was short lived and most returned back to Barbados a few years into the enterprise. In 1670, Governor William Sayle arranged for several shiploads of settlers from Bermuda and Barbados. These settlers established what was then called Charles Town at Albemarle Point, on the west bank of the Ashley River, a few miles northwest of the present-day city center. Charles Town became the first comprehensively planned town in the Thirteen Colonies. Its governance, settlement, and development were to follow a visionary plan known as the Grand Model prepared for the Lord's Proprietors by John Locke. Because the Carolina's Fundamental Constitutions were never ratified, however, Charles Town was never incorporated during the colonial period. Instead, local ordinances were passed by the provincial government, with day-to-day administration handled by the wardens and vestries of St Philip's and St Michael's Anglican parishes.

At the time of European colonization, the area was inhabited by the indigenous Cusabo, on whom the settlers declared war in October 1671. The settlers initially allied with the Westo, a northern indigenous tribe that traded in enslaved Indians. The settlers abandoned their alliance with the Westo in 1679 and allied with the Cusabo instead.

The initial settlement quickly dwindled and disappeared while another village—established by the settlers on Oyster Point at the confluence of the Ashley and Cooper rivers around 1672—thrived. In 1680, this second settlement formally replaced the original Charles Town, which today is commemorated as Charles Towne Landing. The second location was more defensible and had access to a fine natural harbor. The new town had become the fifth largest in North America by 1690.

A smallpox outbreak erupted in 1698, followed by an earthquake in February 1699. The latter caused a fire that destroyed about a third of the town. During rebuilding, a yellow fever outbreak killed about 15% of the remaining inhabitants. Charles Town suffered between five and eight significant yellow fever outbreaks over the first half of the 18th century.

It developed a reputation as one of the least healthy locations in the Thirteen Colonies for ethnic Europeans. Malaria was endemic. Although malaria did not have such high mortality as yellow fever, it caused much illness. It was a major health problem throughout most of the city's history before dying out in the 1950s after the use of pesticides cut down on the mosquitoes that transmitted it.

Charles Town was fortified according to a plan developed in 1704 under Governor Nathaniel Johnson. Both Spain and France contested Britain's claims to the region. Various bands of Native Americans and independent pirates also raided it.

On September 5–6, 1713 (O.S.), a violent hurricane passed over Charles Town. The Circular Congregational Church manse was damaged during the storm, and church records were lost. Much of Charles Town was flooded as "the Ashley and Cooper rivers became one." At least seventy people died in the disaster.

From the 1670s, Charleston attracted pirates. The combination of a weak government and corruption made the city popular with pirates, who frequently visited and raided the city. Charles Town was besieged by the pirate Blackbeard for several days in May 1718. Blackbeard released his hostages and left in exchange for a chest of medicine from Governor Robert Johnson.

Around 1719, the town's name began to be generally written as Charlestown and, excepting those fronting the Cooper River, the old walls were largely removed over the next decade. Charlestown was a center for the inland colonization of South Carolina. It remained the southernmost point of the Southern Colonies until the Province of Georgia was established in 1732. As noted, the first settlers primarily came from Europe, Barbados and Bermuda. The Barbadian and Bermudan immigrants were planters who brought enslaved Africans with them, having purchased them in the West Indies.

Early immigrant groups to the city included the Huguenots, Scottish, Irish, and Germans, as well as hundreds of Jews, predominately Sephardi from London and significant cities of the Dutch Republic, where they had been given refuge. As late as 1830, Charleston's Jewish community was the most prominent and wealthiest in North America.

By 1708, most of the colony's population were Black Africans. They had been brought to Charlestown via the Atlantic slave trade, first as indentured servants and then as enslaved people. In the early 1700s, Charleston's largest slave trader, Joseph Wragg, pioneered the settlement's involvement in the slave trade. Of the estimated 400,000 captive Africans transported to North America to be sold into slavery, 40% are thought to have landed at Sullivan's Island off Charlestown. Free people of color also migrated from the West Indies, being descendants of white planters and their Black consorts and unions among the working classes.

In 1767, Gadsden's Wharf was constructed at the city port on the Cooper River; it ultimately extended 840 feet and could accommodate six ships at a time. Many enslaved people were sold from here. Devoted to plantation agriculture that depended on enslaved labor, South Carolina became a slave society: it had a majority-Black population from the colonial period until after the Great Migration of the early 20th century, when many rural Blacks moved to northern and midwestern industrial cities to escape Jim Crow laws.

At the foundation of the town, the principal items of commerce were pine timber and pitch for ships and tobacco. The early economy developed around the deerskin trade, in which colonists used alliances with the Cherokee and Creek peoples to secure the raw material.

At the same time, Native Americans kidnapped and enslaved each other in warfare. From 1680 to 1720, approximately 40,000 native men, women, and children were sold through the port, principally to the West Indies (such as Bermuda and the Bahamas), but also to other Southern colonies. The Lowcountry planters did not keep enslaved Native Americans, considering them too prone to escape or revolt. They used the proceeds of their sale to purchase enslaved Black Africans for their own plantations. The slave raiding—and the European firearms it introduced—helped destabilize Spanish Florida and French Louisiana in the 1700s during the War of the Spanish Succession. But it also provoked the Yamasee War of the 1710s that nearly destroyed the colony. After that, South Carolina largely abandoned the Indian slave trade.

The area's unsuitability for growing tobacco prompted the Lowcountry planters to experiment with other cash crops. The profitability of growing rice led the planters to pay premiums for enslaved people from the "Rice Coast" who knew its cultivation; their descendants make up the ethnic Gullah who created their own culture and language in this area. Slaves imported from the Caribbean showed the planter George Lucas's daughter Eliza how to raise and use indigo for dyeing in 1747.

Throughout this period, enslaved people were sold aboard the arriving ships or at ad hoc gatherings in the town's taverns. Runaways and minor slave rebellions prompted the 1739 Security Act, which required all white men to carry weapons at all times (even to church on Sundays). Before it fully took effect, the Cato or Stono Rebellion broke out. The white community had recently been decimated by a malaria outbreak, and the rebels killed about 25 white people before being stopped by the colonial militia. As a result of their fears of rebellion, whites killed a total of 35 to 50 Black people.

The planters attributed the violence to recently imported Africans and agreed to a 10-year moratorium on slave importation through Charlestown. They relied for labor upon the slave communities they already held. The 1740 Negro Act also tightened controls, requiring a ratio of one white for every ten Blacks on any plantation (which was often not achieved) and banning enslaved people from assembling, growing personal food, earning money, or learning to read. Drums were banned because Africans used them for signaling; enslaved people were allowed to use string and other instruments. When the moratorium expired and Charlestown reopened to the slave trade in 1750, the memory of the Stono Rebellion resulted in traders avoiding buying enslaved people from the Congo and Angola, whose populations had a reputation for independence.

By the mid-18th century, Charlestown was the hub of the Atlantic slave trade in the Southern Colonies. Even with the decade-long moratorium, its customs processed around 40% of the enslaved Africans brought to North America between 1700 and 1775, and about half up until the end of the African trade.

The plantations and the economy based on them made this the wealthiest city in the Thirteen Colonies and the largest in population south of Philadelphia. In 1770, the city had 11,000 inhabitants—half enslaved—and was the 4th-largest port in the colonies, after Boston, New York City, and Philadelphia.

The elite began to use their wealth to encourage cultural and social development. America's first theater building was constructed in 1736; today's Dock Street Theater later replaced it. St Michael's was erected in 1753. Benevolent societies were formed by the Huguenots, free people of color, Germans, and Jews. The Library Society was established in 1748 by well-born young men who wanted to share the financial cost of keeping up with the scientific and philosophical issues of the day.

American Revolution (1776–1783)

Further information: American Revolution and American Revolutionary War

Delegates for the Continental Congress were elected in 1774, and South Carolina declared its independence from Britain on the steps of the Exchange. Slavery was again an important factor in the city's role during the Revolutionary War. The British attacked the settlement three times, assuming that the settlement had a large base of Loyalists who would rally to their cause once given some military support. The loyalty of white Southerners towards the Crown had largely been forfeited, however, by British legal cases (such as the 1772 Somersett case which marked the prohibition of slavery in England and Wales, a significant milestone in the abolitionist struggle) and military tactics (such as Dunmore's Proclamation in 1775) that promised the emancipation of people enslaved by Patriot planters; these efforts did, however, unsurprisingly win the allegiance of thousands of Black Loyalists.

The Battle of Sullivan's Island saw the British fail to capture a partially constructed palmetto palisade from Col. Moultrie's militia regiment on June 28, 1776. The Liberty Flag used by Moultrie's men formed the basis of the later South Carolina flag, and the victory's anniversary continues to be commemorated as Carolina Day.

Making the capture of Charlestown their chief priority, the British sent Sir Henry Clinton, who laid siege to Charleston on April 1, 1780, with about 14,000 troops and 90 ships. Bombardment began on March 11, 1780. The Patriots, led by Benjamin Lincoln, had about 5,500 men and inadequate fortifications to repel the forces against them. After the British cut his supply lines and lines of retreat at the battles of Monck's Corner and Lenud's Ferry, Lincoln's surrender on May 12, 1780, became the greatest American defeat of the war.

The British continued to hold Charlestown for over a year following their defeat at Yorktown in 1781. However, they alienated local planters by refusing to restore full civil government. Nathanael Greene had entered the state after Cornwallis's pyrrhic victory at Guilford Courthouse and kept the area under a kind of siege. British Army officer Alexander Leslie, commanding Charlestown, requested a truce in March 1782 to purchase food for his garrison and the town's inhabitants. Greene refused and formed a brigade under Mordecai Gist to counter British forays. The British finally evacuated Charlestown in December 1782. Greene presented the British leaders of the town with the Moultrie Flag.

Antebellum era (1783–1861)

Between the Revolutionary War and the Civil War, Charleston experienced an economic boom, at least for the top strata of society. Expanding cotton as a cash crop in the South led to massive wealth for a small segment of society and funded impressive architecture and culture. However, it also escalated the economic importance of enslaving people and led to greater and greater restrictions on Black Charlestonians.

By 1783, the city's growth had reached a point where a municipal government became desirable; therefore, on August 13, 1783, an act of incorporation for Charleston was ratified. The act originally specified the city's name as "Charles Ton", as opposed to the previous Charlestown, but the spelling "Charleston" quickly came to dominate.

Although Columbia had replaced it as the state capital in 1788, Charleston became even more prosperous as Eli Whitney's 1793 invention of the cotton gin sped the processing of the crop over 50 times. Britain's Industrial Revolution—initially built upon its textile industry—took up the extra production ravenously and cotton became Charleston's major export commodity in the 19th century.

The Bank of South Carolina, the second-oldest building in the nation to be constructed as a bank, was established in 1798. In 1800 and 1817, branches of the First and Second banks were also located in Charleston.

Throughout the Antebellum Period, Charleston continued to be the only major American city with a majority-slave population. The city's widespread use of enslaved people as workers was a frequent subject of writers and visitors: a merchant from Liverpool noted in 1834 that "almost all the working population are Negroes, all the servants, the carmen & porters, all the people who see at the stalls in Market, and most of the Journeymen in trades". American traders had been prohibited from equipping the Atlantic slave trade in 1794 and all importation of enslaved people was banned in 1808, but American merchantmen frequently refused to permit British inspection for enslaved cargo, and smuggling remained common. Much more important was the domestic slave trade, which boomed as the Deep South developed into new cotton plantations. As a result of the trade, there was a forced migration of more than one million enslaved people from the Upper South to the Lower South in the antebellum years. During the early 19th century, the first dedicated slave markets were founded in Charleston, mostly near Chalmers and State streets. Many domestic slavers used Charleston as a port in the coastwise trade, traveling to such ports as Mobile and New Orleans.

Enslaving was the primary marker of class, and even the town's freedmen and free people of color typically enslaved people if they had the wealth to do so. Visitors commonly remarked on the sheer number of Blacks in Charleston and their seeming freedom of movement, though in fact—mindful of the Stono Rebellion and the slave revolution that established Haiti—the whites closely regulated the behavior of both enslaved and free people of color. The town fixed wages and hiring practices, sometimes required identifying badges, and sometimes censored work songs. Punishment was handled out of sight by the city's workhouse, whose fees provided the municipal government with thousands a year. In 1820, state law mandated that each act of manumission (freeing an enslaved person) required legislative approval, effectively halting the practice.

The effects of slavery were pronounced on white society as well. The high cost of enslaving people in the 19th century and their high rate of return combined to institute an oligarchic society controlled by about ninety interrelated families, where 4% of the free population controlled half of the wealth, and the lower half of the free population—unable to compete with enslaved or rented people—held no wealth at all. The white middle class was minimal: Charlestonians generally looked down upon hard work, considering it as labor meant for enslaved people. All the enslavers taken together held 82% of the city's wealth and almost all non-enslavers were poor. Olmsted considered their civic elections "entirely contests of money and personal influence" and the oligarchs dominated civic planning: The lack of public parks and amenities was noted, as was the abundance of private gardens in the wealthy's walled estates.

In the 1810s, the town's churches intensified their discrimination against their Black parishioners, culminating in Bethel Methodist's 1817 construction of a hearse house over its Black burial ground. 4,376 Black Methodists joined Morris Brown in establishing Hampstead Church, the African Methodist Episcopal church now known as Mother Emanuel. State and city laws prohibited Black literacy, limited Black worship to daylight hours, and required a majority of any church's parishioners be white. In June 1818, 140 Black church members at Hampstead Church were arrested, and eight of its leaders were given fines and ten lashes; police raided the church again in 1820 and pressured it in 1821.

In 1822, members of the church, led by Denmark Vesey, a lay preacher and carpenter who had bought his freedom after winning a lottery, planned an uprising and escape to Haiti—initially for Bastille Day—that failed when one enslaved person revealed the plot to his enslaver. Over the next month, the city's intendant (mayor) James Hamilton Jr. organized a militia for regular patrols, initiated a secret and extrajudicial tribunal to investigate, and hanged 35 and exiled 35 or 37 enslaved people to Spanish Cuba for their involvement. Hamilton imposed more restrictions on both free and enslaved Blacks: South Carolina required free Black sailors to be imprisoned while their ships were in Charleston Harbor, although international treaties eventually required the United States to quash the practice; free Blacks were banned from returning to the state if they left for any reason; enslaved people were given a 9:15 pm curfew; the city razed Hampstead Church to the ground and erected a new arsenal. This structure later was the basis of the Citadel's first campus. The AME congregation built a new church, but in 1834, the city banned it and all Black worship services following Nat Turner's Rebellion in Virginia in 1831. The estimated 10% of enslaved people who came to America as Muslims never had a separate mosque. Enslavers sometimes provided them with beef rations instead of pork in recognition of religious traditions.

The Charleston Fire Scare of 1826 began on Christmas Eve 1825 when an arson fire on King Street caused over $80,000 worth of damage. For more than the next six months, until mid-June, fires were started night after night, sometimes as many as 5 fires at a time, devastating the city's wooden architecture. The city council offered a reward of $1000 for the capture of arsonists, who the white population believed to be slaves or Free Blacks; an angry crowd almost lynched some suspected culprits. At least 3 Blacks were convicted in connection with the fires. The final blaze caused another $100,000 in damage, again on King Street. Coming so soon after the Vesey Rebellion, the Fire Scare caused unease among the white population of the city. If the apparently elaborate planning behind the rebellion pointed to a man of unusual intelligence, the arsons, if caused by slaves or Free Blacks, were different only in scale from the kind of "passive resistance and petty sabotage" that every slaveholder experienced on a regular basis from their slaves. This underlined the fact that servile rebellion did not necessarily require great ingenuity and skill to effectively strike back at the enslavers of Blacks.

The registered tonnage of Charleston shipping in 1829 was 12,410. In 1832, South Carolina passed an ordinance of nullification, a procedure by which a state could, in effect, repeal a federal law; it was directed against the most recent tariff acts. Soon, U.S. soldiers were dispensed to Charleston's forts, and five United States Coast Guard cutters were detached to Charleston Harbor "to take possession of any vessel arriving from a foreign port, and defend her against any attempt to dispossess the Customs Officers of her custody until all the requirements of law have been complied with." This federal action became known as the Charleston incident. The state's politicians worked on a compromise law in Washington to gradually reduce the tariffs.

Charleston's embrace of classical architecture began after a devastating fire leveled much of the city. On April 27, 1838, Charleston suffered a catastrophic fire that burned more than 1000 buildings and caused about $3 million (equivalent to $87,139,000 in 2024) in damage at the time. The damaged buildings amounted to about one-fourth of all the businesses in the main part of the city. A great cultural awakening occurred when many homes and businesses were rebuilt or repaired. Before the fire, few homes were styled as Greek Revival; many residents decided to construct new buildings in that style after the conflagration. This tradition continued, making Charleston one of the foremost places to view Greek Revival architecture. The Gothic Revival also made a significant appearance in the construction of many churches after the fire that exhibited picturesque forms and reminders of devout European religion.

By 1840, the Market Hall and Sheds, where fresh meat and produce were brought daily, became a hub of commercial activity. The slave trade also depended on the port of Charleston, where ships could be unloaded and enslaved people bought and sold. The legal importation of enslaved Africans had ended in 1808, although smuggling was significant. However, the domestic trade was booming. More than one million enslaved people were transported from the Upper South to the Deep South in the antebellum years, as cotton plantations were widely developed through what became known as the Black Belt. Many enslaved people were transported in the coastwise slave trade, with slave ships stopping at ports such as Charleston.

American Civil War (1861–1865)

Main article: Charleston in the American Civil War

Charleston was significant in the American Civil War. As a pivotal city, the U.S. Army and Confederate States Army vied for control of it. The rebellion began in Charleston Harbor in 1861 and ended mere months after the U.S. soldiers retook control of Charleston in 1865.

Following the election of Abraham Lincoln, the South Carolina General Assembly voted on December 20, 1860, to declare secession from the United States, becoming the first state to do so. On December 27, the U.S. Army garrison of Castle Pinckney surrendered to the state militia. On January 9, 1861, Citadel cadets opened fire on the USS Star of the West as it entered Charleston Harbor.

The first full battle of the war occurred on April 12, 1861, when shore batteries under the command of General P. G. T. Beauregard fired upon the US Army-held Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. After a 34-hour bombardment, Major Robert Anderson surrendered the fort.

On December 11, 1861, an enormous fire burned over 500 acres (200 ha) of the city.

U.S. Navy control of the North Atlantic coastline permitted the repeated bombardment of the city, causing vast damage. Although Admiral Du Pont's naval assault on the town's forts in April 1863 failed, the U.S. Navy's blockade shut down most commercial traffic. Throughout the war, some blockade runners got through, but not a single one made it into or out of Charleston Harbor between August 1863 and March 1864. The early submarine H.L. Hunley made a night attack on the USS Housatonic on February 17, 1864.

General Gillmore's land assault in July 1864 was unsuccessful but the fall of Columbia and advance of General William T. Sherman's army through the state prompted the Confederates to evacuate the town on February 17, 1865, burning the public buildings, cotton warehouses, and other sources of supply before their departure. U.S. soldiers liberated the city within the month. The War Department recovered what federal property remained. Also, it confiscated the campus of the Citadel Military Academy and used it as a U.S. Army garrison for the next 17 years. The facilities were finally returned to the state and reopened as a military college in 1882 under the direction of Lawrence E. Marichak.

Postbellum (1865–1945)

Reconstruction

After the defeat of the Confederacy, U.S. soldiers remained in Charleston during the Reconstruction era. The war had shattered the city's prosperity. Still, the African-American population surged (from 17,000 in 1860 to over 27,000 in 1880) as freedmen moved from the countryside to the major city. Blacks quickly left the Southern Baptist Church and resumed open meetings of the African Methodist Episcopal and AME Zion churches. They purchased dogs, guns, liquor, and better clothes—all previously banned—and ceased yielding the sidewalks to whites. Despite the efforts of the state legislature to halt manumissions, Charleston had already had a large class of free people of color as well. At the onset of the war, the city had 3,785 free people of color, many of mixed race, making up about 18% of the city's Black population and 8% of its total population. Many were educated and practiced skilled crafts; they quickly became leaders of South Carolina's Republican Party and its legislators. Free men of color comprised 26% of those elected to state and federal office in South Carolina from 1868 to 1876.

The Pacific Guano Company, established in 1861, opened a plant in Charleston which consumed immense quantities of menhaden scrap brought from the water by the vessels which carried on their return trip a supply of South Carolina phosphates for the Woods Hole, Massachusetts factory. By the late 1870s, industry was bringing the city and its inhabitants back to a renewed vitality; new jobs attracted new residents. As the city's commerce improved, residents worked to restore or create community institutions. In 1865, the Avery Normal Institute was established by the American Missionary Association as the first free secondary school for Charleston's African American population. Gen. Sherman lent his support to the conversion of the United States Arsenal into the Porter Military Academy, an educational facility for former soldiers and boys left orphaned or destitute by the war. Porter Military Academy later joined with Gaud School and is now a university-preparatory school, Porter-Gaud School.

In 1875, Black people made up 57% of the city's and 73% of the county's population. With leadership by members of the antebellum free Black community, historian Melinda Meeks Hennessy described the community as "unique" in being able to defend themselves without provoking "massive white retaliation", as occurred in numerous other areas during Reconstruction. In the 1876 election cycle, two major riots between Black Republicans and white Democrats occurred in the city, in September and the day after the election in November, as well as a violent incident in Cainhoy at an October joint discussion meeting.

Violent incidents occurred throughout the Piedmont of the state as white insurgents struggled to impose white supremacy in the face of social changes after the war and the granting of citizenship to freedmen by amendments to the U.S. Constitution. After former Confederates were allowed to vote again, election campaigns from 1872 on were marked by violent intimidation of Black people and Republicans by conservative Democratic paramilitary groups, known as the Red Shirts. Violent incidents occurred in Charleston on King Street on September 6 and nearby Cainhoy on October 15 in association with political meetings before the 1876 election. The Cainhoy incident was the only one statewide in which more whites were killed than black people. The Red Shirts were instrumental in suppressing the Black Republican vote in some areas in 1876 and narrowly electing Wade Hampton as governor, and taking back control of the state legislature. Another riot occurred in Charleston the day after the election when a prominent Republican leader was mistakenly reported killed.

Politics

In the early 20th century, strong political machines emerged in the city, reflecting economic, class, racial, and ethnic tensions. The factions nearly all opposed U.S. Senator Ben Tillman who repeatedly attacked and ridiculed the city in the name of upstate poor farmers. Well-organized factions within the Democratic Party in Charleston gave the voters clear choices and played a large role in state politics.

1886 earthquake

Main article: 1886 Charleston earthquake

On August 31, 1886, Charleston experienced a strong earthquake. The shock was estimated to have a moment magnitude of 7.0 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). It was felt as far away as Boston to the north, Chicago and Milwaukee to the northwest, as far west as New Orleans, as far south as Cuba, and as far east as Bermuda. It damaged 2,000 buildings in Charleston and caused $6 million worth of damage ($185 million in 2024 dollars), at a time when all the city's buildings were valued around $24 million ($738 million in 2024 dollars).

Charleston race riots

Main article: Charleston riot of 1919

The Charleston race riot of 1919 took place on the night of Saturday, May 10, between members of the US Navy and the local Black population. They attacked Black individuals, businesses, and homes, killing six and injuring dozens.

Contemporary era (1945–present)

Charleston languished economically for several decades in the 20th century, though the large federal military presence in the region helped to shore up the city's economy. Charleston's tourism boom began in earnest following the publication of Albert Simons and Samuel Lapham's Architecture of Charleston in the 1920s.

The Charleston Hospital Strike of 1969, in which mostly Black workers protested discrimination and low wages, was one of the last major events of the civil rights movement. It attracted Ralph Abernathy, Coretta Scott King, Andrew Young, and other prominent figures to march with the local leader, Mary Moultrie. The 1969 Charleston hospital strike was built on generations of community-building and activism within Charleston's Black, working-class neighborhoods. Notably, activists from former labor struggles provided guidance for the hospital strike; for example, Lillie Mae Doster and Isaiah Bennett, participants of the 1945-1946 Cigar Factory Strike in Charleston, shared their experience and resources with hospital strikers in 1969.

Joseph P. Riley Jr. was elected mayor in the 1970s and helped advance several cultural aspects of the city.

Between 1989 and 1996, Charleston saw two significant economic hits. First, the eye of Hurricane Hugo came ashore at Charleston Harbor in 1989, and though the worst damage was in nearby McClellanville, three-quarters of the homes in Charleston's historic district sustained damage of varying degrees. The hurricane caused over $2.8 billion in damage. The city rebounded fairly quickly after the hurricane and has grown in population, reaching an estimated 124,593 residents in 2009. Second, in 1993, the Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC) directed that Naval Base Charleston be closed. Pursuant to BRAC action, Naval Base Charleston was closed on April 1, 1996, although some activities remain under the cognizance of Naval Support Activity Charleston, now part of Joint Base Charleston.

After having been a majority-minority city for most of its history, in the late 20th century, many whites began returning to the urban core of Charleston, and the area gentrified with rising prices and rents. From 1980 to 2010, the peninsula's population shifted from two-thirds Black to two-thirds white; in 2010, residents numbered 20,668 whites and 10,455 Blacks. Many African Americans moved to the less-expensive suburbs in these decades.

On June 17, 2015, a 21-year-old white supremacist entered the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church and sat in on part of a Bible study before shooting and killing nine people, all African Americans. The deceased included congregation members Susie Jackson, 87; Rev. Daniel Simmons Sr., 74; Ethel Lance, 70; Myra Thompson, 59; Cynthia Hurd, 54; Rev. Depayne Middleton-Doctor, 49; Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45; Tywanza Sanders, 26; and the pastor, Rev. Clementa Pinckney, 41, who also served as a state senator. The attack garnered national attention and sparked a debate on racism, Confederate symbolism in Southern states, and gun violence, in part based on the shooter's online postings. A memorial service on the campus of the College of Charleston was attended by President Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Jill Biden, and Speaker of the House John Boehner.

Condemnation of role in the slave trade

On June 17, 2018, the Charleston City Council apologized for its role in the slave trade and condemned its "inhumane" history. It also acknowledged wrongs committed against African Americans by slavery and Jim Crow laws.

Geography

Charleston has six main districts. Downtown, also called "The Peninsula", is the center of the city, bordered by the Ashley River on one side and the Cooper River on the other. West Ashley is a residential area west of Downtown, bordered by the Ashley River and the Stono River. Johns Island is far to the west, bordered by the Stono River, Kiawah River, and Wadmalaw Island. James Island is a popular place to live between Downtown and Folly Beach. The Cainhoy Peninsula is far to the east, bordered by the Wando River and Nowell Creek. Daniel Island is a residential area north of downtown, between the Cooper River and the Wando River.

The city of Charleston used to be very small, covering just 4 to 5 square miles before World War I. Since then, it has grown across the Ashley River to include James Island and parts of Johns Island. It has also expanded across the Cooper River to include Daniel Island and the Cainhoy area. Today, the city covers 135.51 square miles, with 115.03 square miles of land and 20.48 square miles of water.

Charleston has a humid subtropical climate, meaning it has mild winters, hot and humid summers, and rain throughout the year. Summer is the rainiest season, with many thunderstorms. Winter is short and mild, with very little snow. The city's downtown area has milder winters than the airport because it is closer to the water.

The Charleston area includes three counties: Berkeley, Charleston, and Dorchester. In 2023, about 849,417 people lived in this area. North Charleston is the second-largest city in the area, followed by Mount Pleasant and Summerville.

Demographics

Charleston, South Carolina, had a population of 150,227 as of the 2020 census. The city is home to people of many different ages, with the median age being 35.7 years. Many residents live in urban areas, and there are also households with children and many different types of family arrangements.

Charleston has a rich history of language and culture. Some African-American residents still speak Gullah, a special language with roots in the area's history. The city is also known for its unique accent, especially among older residents. Charleston is often called "the Holy City" because of its many historic churches and religious buildings.

Culture

Charleston's culture mixes elements from traditional Southern U.S., English, French, and West African traditions. The downtown area has many places for art, music, food, and fashion. The Spoleto Festival USA, held every late spring, started in 1977 by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Gian Carlo Menotti. It is like a big festival in Spoleto, Italy.

Charleston's oldest community theater group, the Footlight Players, has been putting on shows since 1931. There are many places for performing arts, including the historic Dock Street Theatre. Each spring, Charleston Fashion Week brings designers and fashion lovers to Marion Square.

Cuisine

Charleston's food is influenced by British, French, and Gullah traditions. Popular dishes include shrimp and grits, she-crab soup, fried oysters, and red rice. Local seafood like oysters, blue crab, shrimp, flounder, and black sea bass is common. Gullah Geechee cooking adds flavors with foods like Carolina Gold rice, okra, field peas, and benne seeds. Today, Charleston is known for its great restaurants and chefs.

Annual cultural events and fairs

Charleston hosts many yearly events. The Spoleto Festival USA is a 17-day festival with over 100 performances. The Piccolo Spoleto festival happens at the same time with local artists. Other events include the Taste of Charleston, the Lowcountry Oyster Festival, the Cooper River Bridge Run, the Charleston Marathon, and many more.

Music

The Gullah community greatly influenced Charleston's music, especially early jazz. The music and dances of dock workers inspired songs and dances popular in the 1920s. The Jenkins Orphanage, started in 1891, taught music to children and helped many become famous musicians. The band played for presidents and in Broadway shows.

Live theater

Charleston has a lively theater scene. Dock Street Theatre, opened in the 1930s, is home to the Charleston Stage Company. Queen Street Playhouse, turned into a theater in 1986, is where the Footlight Players perform. Sottile Theater is on the College of Charleston campus.

Museums, historical sites, and other attractions

Charleston has many historic buildings and museums. The Avery Research Center focuses on African American history. The Battery is a historic seawall with gardens. The Calhoun Mansion is a large Victorian home. The Charleston Museum is America's first museum. Fort Sumter, where the Civil War began, is in Charleston Harbor. The South Carolina Aquarium shows local aquatic life. Waterfront Park is along the Cooper River.

Sports

Charleston has several sports teams. The Charleston RiverDogs are a Minor League Baseball team. The Charleston Battery is a professional soccer team. The South Carolina Stingrays play hockey. The Credit One Charleston Open is a tennis event. There are also rugby, roller derby, and Gaelic sports teams. Popular venues include Johnson Hagood Stadium and Toronto Dominion Bank Arena.

Books and films

Many books and movies are set in or filmed in Charleston. These include Porgy and Bess by George Gershwin, the North and South series by John Jakes, and films like Glory and Swamp Thing.

Economy

See also: Economy of South Carolina

Charleston's economy is strong in commercial shipping. The city has two shipping terminals, part of five owned by the South Carolina Ports Authority. These terminals make Charleston one of the biggest ports on the East Coast and in the United States. The port helps move cars and car parts for companies like Mercedes and Volvo.

Charleston is also growing as a place for high tech and new ideas. This growth is helped by the Charleston Digital Corridor. In 2013, a group called the Milken Institute said Charleston had one of the best economies in the United States because of its strong IT work. Some big companies in Charleston include Blackbaud, Greystar Real Estate Partners, Evening Post Industries, Le Creuset, and others.

Top employers

As of the city's 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the Charleston metropolitan area's top employers are:

Government

Charleston has a strong mayor–council government. The mayor is the main leader of the city and also leads the city council meetings. The council has 12 members who are elected from different parts of the city.

The city has its own fire department with over 300 firefighters. They work in many stations across Charleston and provide important safety services.

Charleston's police department is the largest in South Carolina, with many officers and staff working to keep the city safe. The city also has emergency medical services and several major hospitals, making it an important place for healthcare in the state.

The Coast Guard Station Charleston helps with safety at sea and works on many important missions. In 2020, plans were announced to build a large new base for the Coast Guard, and construction began in 2024.

Crime

The following table shows Charleston's crime rate for six crimes that are used to compare the city's safety to the national average. The numbers show how many crimes happen for every 100,000 people. Since 1999, the overall crime rate in Charleston has gone down a lot. In 1999, there were 597.1 crimes for every 100,000 people, but by 2011, this number dropped to 236.4 per 100,000.

Transportation

Airport and rail

Charleston has an airport called the Charleston International Airport. It is in North Charleston, about 12 miles northwest of downtown. This airport is the busiest in South Carolina and shares runways with a nearby Air Force base. There is also a smaller airport on John's Island for private planes.

Charleston has two daily train trips with Amtrak, called The Palmetto and the Silver Meteor, stopping at a station in North Charleston.

Interstates and highways

Several major roads connect Charleston to other places. I-26 starts in downtown Charleston and goes northwest to North Charleston, the airport, and Columbia. The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge links downtown with Mount Pleasant. Other important roads include I-526, which goes around the city, and several U.S. highways like US 17, US 52, and US 78.

Major highways

• I-26 (ends in Charleston)
• I-526
• US 17
• US 52 (ends in Charleston)
• US 78 (ends in Charleston)
• SC 7 (Sam Rittenberg Boulevard)
• SC 30 (James Island Expressway)
• SC 61 (St. Andrews Boulevard/Ashley River Road)
• SC 171 (Old Towne Road/Folly Road)
• SC 461 (Paul Cantrell Boulevard/Glenn McConnell Parkway)
• SC 700 (Maybank Highway)

Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge

The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge opened in 2005. It is very long and has space for cars, pedestrians, and bicycles. It connects downtown Charleston with Mount Pleasant and replaced older, safer bridges.

City bus service

Charleston has buses that help people get around. The Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority runs these buses, which stop at many places in the city. There are special buses for people who need help getting around, and plans for faster bus routes are in development.

Some buses serve the rural areas and are run by another group called the TriCounty Link.

Port

Main article: Port of Charleston

The Port of Charleston is one of the biggest ports in the United States. It has several terminals and handles many big ships. The port is very important for the city's economy. It has very deep water, which allows very large ships to come in. The port also has a place for cruise ships to dock.

Education

See also: List of schools in Charleston, South Carolina

Most of Charleston is in Charleston County and its schools are part of the Charleston County School District. Some parts of the city, like the Cainhoy areas, are in Berkeley County and have their own school system.

Charleston has many private schools too, such as Porter-Gaud School, Charleston Collegiate School, and Ashley Hall. There are also special schools run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston, including several that prepare students for Bishop England High School.

The city has several colleges and universities, like the College of Charleston, The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, and the Medical University of South Carolina. Other schools include Charleston Southern University and Charleston School of Law. There is also a special college, the American College of the Building Arts, that focuses on building skills.

Media

Main article: Media in Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is a smaller city for TV, ranking 89th in the United States. It has many TV stations that people in the area can watch. These stations include channels like NBC, CBS, PBS, Fox, and others, bringing many different shows and news to the city.

Notable people

Main article: List of people from Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina, has been home to many famous people throughout history. These individuals have made important contributions in various fields such as arts, sports, and public service. For a complete list of notable people from Charleston, you can visit the list linked above.

Sister cities

Charleston has several sister cities around the world. These include Doha in Qatar, Freetown in Sierra Leone, Panama City in Panama, Speightstown in Barbados, Spoleto in Italy, and Flers in France.

The partnership with Spoleto began when a famous composer chose Charleston to host a special festival, similar to one held in Spoleto. The city’s charm, historic theaters, and churches made it a great match.

Charleston also shares a special bond with Panama City, both being historic port cities with rich histories and diverse cultures. The city of Speightstown in Barbados inspired the early designs of Charleston.