By John Fitzgerald
There are few experiences more rewarding than that of strolling along Murray Boulevard in Charleston’s South Battery as dusk descends on the waters of Charleston Harbor.
Caught in the rich, late afternoon light (excellent for photography), the antebellum mansions of Charleston’s rich or lucky look serene and imposing. With their handsome staircases and high columns, they present a romantically enduring image of this mannerly Southern city where both light and dark chapters of American history were written.
Located at the southernmost part of the Charleston peninsula, The Battery, also known as White Point Gardens, was opened as a public park in 1837 and studded with cannons during the Civil War to help prevent invasion by Union soldiers. It lies directly across the harbor from the Fort Sumter National Monument where hostilities began among the states on April 12, 1861. When the war ended in 1865 with the surrender of the Confederates’ General Robert E Lee to General Ulysses S Grant, there had been more than 600,000 casualties.
The first shots of the Civil War were actually fired at Fort Sumter that rests in Charleston Harbor and is, of course, a U.S. National Historic Site. Accessible by boat (visits to the fort leave from The Fort Sumter Visitor Education Center in Liberty Square adjacent to the South Carolina Aquarium; log on to www.us.parks.com). Fort Sumter Tours (800-789-3678) offers a two and a half hour excursion that includes an hour long visit to the fort and cruise around Charleston’s harbor.
Charleston’s delightful 12-acre Waterfront Park (Concord St., downtown) was inaugurated in 1990 and is the perfect place to stroll or relax. The park is laid out along the salt water marshes of the Cooper River and includes a 400-foot wharf, promenade, lawns and gardens. Dip your toes in one or the other of the park’s two spectacular fountains.
The city is one of America’s favorite vacation spots thanks to the plethora of immaculately preserved heritage houses and buildings, its great location, and the array of other of attractions it offers. Each year, for example, Charleston hosts the world-famous arts festival known as Spoleto Festival USA that features emerging talents and established stars. Held in May, Spoleto showcases opera, theater, dance and music performances staged at various sites throughout the city. The sheer eclecticism and quality of the offerings invariably leaves audiences and critics (70,000-80,000 people normally attend the festival) dazzled.
If you’re a first time visitor, and want orientation and other information as well to purchase tickets for various tours, head to The Charleston Visitor Center (375 Meeting St.; open daily 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.). Available at the Meeting St. location, the Charleston Heritage Passport allows you to visit nine historic and cultural sites with 40 percent off the regular admission price. The sites include Charleston Museum, Gibbes Museum of Art and a number of historic houses.
The restored Old City Market, located between Meeting and East Bay Sts.) is home to The Charleston United Daughters of the Confederacy Museum (188 Meeting St., 843-723-1541; open Tues.-Sat. 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m.) devoted to Civil War memorabilia. Situated on the top floor of the beautiful Market Square building, erected in 1841 in the style of a Greek temple, the Civil War collection is considered one of the nation’s most important. It includes such pieces as the Secession Flag that flew over Charleston in 1860, regimental and battle flags, documents, and a ship model of the CSS Palmetto State Ironclad. Downstairs, there are dozens of vendors selling their wares, including woven sweet-grass baskets.
Don’t miss the Gibbes Museum of Art that has possibly the most significant collection of American art and objets in the Southeast. Detailing Charleston’s rich history as a colonial and antebellum city, the museum is housed in a magnificent 1905 Beaux Arts building (135 Meeting St; 843-722-2706; www.gibbesmuseum.org; closed Monday; Tues.-Sun. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun. 1 p.m.-5 p.m.). And check out the period costumes and gorgeous antique silver on display at The Charleston Museum, the nation’s first, having been established in 1773 (360 Meeting St., 843-722-2996; www.charlestonmuseum.org). Many of the pieces in the permanent collection showcase the history of Charleston and the Low Country. Under the museum’s umbrella are two historic houses that are worth visiting. Both situated in the historic district, the 19th century Heyward-Washington House (87 Church St.) which dates from 1772, and the 19th century Joseph Manigault House (350 Meeting St.) are furnished with period antiques.
Charleston has numerous great houses that can be visited with or without the Heritage Pass. Drayton Hall, the oldest preserved plantation house in the U.S. that is open to the public has a fine Georgian Palladian design. The National Historic Landmark property, built from 1738-1742 is the sole plantation house on the Ashley River to have come through the Revolutionary and Civil wars all in one piece. (3380 Ashley River Rd. 843-769-2600; www.draytonhall.org).
Elsewhere, The Manor at Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, situated on the banks of the Ashley River, is the oldest major public garden in the country. Founded in 1676 by Thomas and Ann Drayton, the estate is still owned by their descendants. Open to the public since the 1860s, the magnificent gardens feature a Barbados Tropical Garden, a Biblical Garden and a Horticultural Maze. The plantation house has a very good collection of heirlooms and Early American furniture. You can also take a 45-minute tram tour through the plantation’s many landscapes (3550 Ashley River Rd; 843-571-1266; open daily, www.magnoliaplantation.com).
The Old Slave Mart (6 Chalmers St., 874-724-3753) used to be one of the sites where slaves were sold in the city, the last occasion for these terrible transactions being in 1863. It’s been estimated that from 40 per cent to 60 per cent of all of the Africans forced into slavery disembarked at Low Country ports, including, of course, Charleston. The region’s rice-growing industry required a constant supply of slave workers.
Gullah Tours (41 John St., 843-7637551; www.gullahtours.com) focuses on sites relating to Charleston’s African-American history with knowledgeable and friendly guides taking visitors to the Old Slave Mart, Catfish Row and Emanuel A.M.E. Church. Catfish Row on Church St. was once a windowsill market where African-Americans engaged in small sale commerce. It was also the inspiration behind the Gershwin classical Porgy and Bess.
Local tour companies offer literally dozens of options for sightseeing. Gray Line (tours leave from the Visitors Center at 375 Meeting St.; www.graylineofcharleston.com) has a two hour bus excursion that takes in the historic district. Another interesting way to see the city is to take an hour-long carriage tour. Companies such as Classic Carriage Tours, Inc. (874-853-3747; www.classiccarriage.com), Old South Carriage Company (874-723-9712; with guides dressed in Confederate uniform) and Palmetto Carriage Works (874-723-8145; www.carriagetour.com) have different packages. The advantage is this type of touring is that it’s at a leisurely pace which seems to fit into the mood of this elegant Southern city.
Worth experiencing as well, especially if you’re traveling with youngsters, is the South Carolina Aquarium (100 Aquarium Wharf on the Charleston Harbor; 843-720-1990; www. scaquarium.org). There are more than 60 exhibits that concentrate on major regions of the Appalachian Watershed. The aquarium’s Great Ocean Tank extends from the first to third floors and contains 300 animals, excepting dolphins and whales which, under South Carolina law, cannot be kept captive.
Also with young ones in mind, Charles Towne Landing (1500 Old Towne Rd., just three miles from the city; 843-4200) is a sublime 80-acre park, parts of which served as home for the first British settlers to arrive in the Carolinas in 1670. Open daily from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., the park has a zoo, replica sailing ship and restored heritage village as well as hiking and bike paths.
The Charleston area has some of the finest golf courses in the country with a number of private clubs allowing access to non-members. Fees vary but are roughly $60-$65 US per person for a single round. One of them is Rivertowne Country Club that was designed by Arnold Palmer and named the 2004-2005 Charleston Area Golf Course of the Year. Rivertowne (1700 Rivertowne CC Dr., Mt. Pleasant; 843-216-3777 offers a range of amenities, including complimentary range balls and putting areas. (For a full list of Charleston area clubs and what they offer guests, log on to www.charlestongolf.guide.com).
If you can find the time to play a little tennis, Family Circle Tennis Center (161 Seven Farms Dr., 843-849-5300; www.familycircletenniscenter.com; open daily) is roughly 15 minutes drive from downtown and offers 17 courts, all open to the public.
Charleston has numerous elegant inns. For atmosphere as well as comfort, Planters Inn (112 N. Market St. Tel. 800-845-7082 for reservations; www.plantersinn.com) is a member of Relais & Châteaux and billed as the only inn on the City Market. Guestrooms have canopied beds, high ceilings and marble baths and Peninsula Grill, the inn’s restaurant is consistently rated as one of Charleston’s best.
Another good bet is the bed & breakfast known as Governor’s House Inn (117 Broad St. Tel 800-720-9812; www.governorhouse.com for rates and reservations). With National Landmark status, the mansion was built in the 1760s and served for a time as home to Governor Edward Rutledge, the youngest signer of the Declaration of Independence. The sumptuous interior reflects the refined taste of its owners with rooms furnished in period style, including fine fireplaces and glistening chandeliers.
If you enjoy conventional hotel surroundings, Charleston Place (800-860-4095 for rates and reservations) is a member of the luxury Orient-Express Hotels group and has a terrific spa. It includes a pool, sauna, massage services as well as various other customized treatments. There is also a number of fitness classes in which you can take part. Not far from the city’s airport and convention center complex, the Sheraton Hotel North Charleston Convention Center (4770 Goer Dr.; 843-747-1900; www.starwoodhotels.com) has 289 rooms and an indoor/outdoor pool for those early morning laps.
Charleston’s most eclectic shopping area is King St. which runs to about 20 blocks and is dotted with graceful palmetto trees. The gift shop in The Preservation Society of Charleston building (147 King St., 843-722-4630; open Mon-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.., www.preservationsociety.org) has a wide selection of books and prints showcasing Low Country architecture and history. There’s also locally made jewelry for sale as well as sweet grass baskets, art work and decorative items. King St. is well known for the number and quality of its antique shops that sell silver and sconces, rare books, vintage lamps and knick knacks of all kinds.
Kate Spade, Mizrachi, Anne Klein and BCBG are just some of the designer labels you’ll find at Copper Penny Shooz Shop (317 King St., 843-723-3838; Mon-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun. noon-5 p.m.). Elsewhere, Charleston Garden (61 Queen St., 843-723-0252; Mon.-Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; closed Sunday has been called one of the premier garden stories in the U.S. Housed in restored building that dates from 1873, the store sells home and garden furnishings that are beautiful to behold.
Next door to the Gallery Chuma, the South’s largest gallery devoted to African-American art (843-722-7568; www.gallerychuma.com; Mon.-Sat. 10 a.m.-6 p.m.), 39 Rue de Jean is a nice place to stop for lunch or dinner. With comfy booth seating and a long zinc bar for sipping an aperitif, the restaurant serves steak frites and other classic bistro favorites. There’s an admirable wine line comprised of many French offerings (39 John St., 843-722-8881; open daily 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m.).
Another good dining option is the recently opened Fleet Landing (186 Concord St., 843-722-8100; wwww.fleetlanding.net; open daily for lunch and dinner) that has a pleasant deck overlooking Charleston Harbor. Designed within a 6,000 square foot naval building that served as a debarkation point for U.S. sailors shipping out during World War II, the restaurant has a hip nautical décor and an interesting menu. Starters include fried oysters with Southern Comfort barbecue sauce, local shrimp, and such mains as Carolina lump crab cakes and cheese encrusted rib eye steak.
Try the pork ribs at Sticky Fingers (235 Meeting St., downtown; 843-853-7427, open daily). They come in a variety of mouth-watering ways, including Memphis sweet and dry and Tennessee whiskey. Elsewhere, Southend Brewery (161 E. Bay St., 843-853-4677; open daily) has been called one of the South’s best microbreweries with wheat, blonde, pale and stout on offer. The restaurant’s wood oven pizzas (think apple wood smoked bacon and chicken) are memorable.
Useful websites:
Charleston Area Conventions & Visitors Bureau — www.charlestoncvb.com
Concise history of the Civil War – www.answers.com and key in American Civil War
Antebellum slavery—www.pbs.org. Click on history on the main page and follow the links
Local Charleston news—www.postandcourier.com
City of Charleston web site—www.ci.charleston.sc.us
Charleston International Airport, located 12 miles out of town, maintains a good web site with flight information: www.chs-airport.com