Charleston

History

Pre-Columbian Era

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.

American Revolution (1776–1783)

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.

American Civil War (1861–1865)

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 moved into 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)

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.

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.

Geography

The city proper consists of six distinct districts.

Downtown, sometimes referred to as "The Peninsula", is Charleston's center city separated by the Ashley River to the west and the Cooper River to the east

West Ashley, residential area to the west of Downtown bordered by the Ashley River to the east and the Stono River to the west

Johns Island, far western limits of Charleston, bordered by the Stono River to the east, Kiawah River to the south, and Wadmalaw Island to the west

James Island, a popular residential area between Downtown and the town of Folly Beach with portions of the independent town of James Island intermixed

Cainhoy Peninsula, far eastern limits of Charleston, bordered by the Wando River to the west and Nowell Creek to the east

Daniel Island, residential area to the north of downtown, east of the Cooper River and west of the Wando River

Topography

The incorporated city fit into 4–5 sq mi (10–13 km2) as late as World War I, but has since greatly expanded, crossing the Ashley River and encompassing James Island and some of Johns Island. The city limits also have expanded across the Cooper River, encompassing Daniel Island and the Cainhoy area. The present city has a total area of 135.51 square miles (351.0 km2), of which 115.03 square miles (297.9 km2) is land and 20.48 square miles (53.0 km2) (15.11%) is water. North Charleston blocks any expansion up the peninsula, and Mount Pleasant occupies the land directly east of the Cooper River.

Charleston Harbor runs about 7 miles (11 km) southeast to the Atlantic with an average width of about 2 miles (3.2 km), surrounded on all sides except its entrance. Sullivan's Island lies to the north of the entrance and Morris Island to the south. The entrance itself is about 1 mi (2 km) wide; it was originally only 18 ft (5 m) deep but began to be enlarged in the 1870s. The tidal rivers (Wando, Cooper, Stono, and Ashley) are evidence of a submergent or drowned coastline. There is a submerged river delta off the mouth of the harbor, and the Cooper River is deep.

Climate

Charleston has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), with mild winters, hot humid summers, and significant rainfall all year long. Summer is the wettest season; almost half of the annual rainfall occurs from June to September in the form of thundershowers. Fall remains relatively warm through the middle of November. Winter is short and mild and is characterized by occasional rain. Measurable snow (≥0.1 in or 0.25 cm) has a median occurrence of only once per decade at the airport, but freezing rain is more common; a snowfall/freezing rain event on January 3, 2018, was the first such event in Charleston since December 26, 2010. However, 6.0 in (15 cm) fell at the airport on December 23, 1989, during the December 1989 United States cold wave, the largest single-day fall on record, contributing to a single-storm and seasonal record of 8.0 in (20 cm) snowfall.

Downtown Charleston's climate is milder than the airport's due to more substantial maritime influence. This is especially true in the winter, with the average January low in downtown being 43.6 °F (6 °C) to the airport's 38.9 °F (4 °C) for example.

The highest temperature recorded within city limits was 104 °F (40 °C) on June 2, 1985, and June 24, 1944; the lowest was 7 °F (−14 °C) on February 14, 1899, although there was an unofficial record low of 1 °F (−17 °C) in February 1835. At the airport, where official records are kept, the historical range is 105 °F (41 °C) on August 1, 1999, down to 6 °F (−14 °C) on January 21, 1985. Hurricanes are a major threat to the area during the summer and early fall, with several severe hurricanes hitting the area—most notably Hurricane Hugo on September 21, 1989 (a category 4 storm). The dewpoint from June to August ranges from 67.8 to 71.4 °F (19.9 to 21.9 °C).

Metropolitan statistical area

As defined by the Office of Management and Budget, for use by the U.S. Census Bureau and other U.S. Government agencies for statistical purposes only, Charleston is included within the Charleston-North Charleston, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which consists of three counties: Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester. The metropolitan statistical area had an estimated population of 849,417 in 2023. North Charleston is the second-largest city in the metro area and ranks as the third-largest city in the state; Mount Pleasant and Summerville are the next-largest cities.

The traditional parish system persisted until counties were established during the Reconstruction Era. Nevertheless, traditional parishes still exist in various capacities, mainly as public service districts. When the city of Charleston was formed, it was defined by the limits of the Parish of St. Philip and St. Michael, which now also includes parts of St. James' Parish, St. George's Parish, St. Andrew's Parish, and St. John's Parish. However, the last two are mostly still incorporated rural parishes.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Charleston had a population of 150,227. The median age was 35.7 years. 17.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 15.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 91.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 88.5 males age 18 and over.

98.2% of residents lived in urban areas, while 1.8% lived in rural areas.

There were 67,675 households in Charleston, of which 22.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 38.3% were married-couple households, 20.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 33.5% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 77,479 dwelling units, of which 12.7% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.2% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.9%.

In 2023, of the 150,227 people in Charleston, about 134,996 of them lived in Charleston County, and 15,231 of them lived in Berkeley County.

Language

Charleston historically had a large concentration of African Americans who spoke Gullah, a creole language that developed on the Sea Islands and in the Low Country, and local speech patterns were also influenced by this community. Today, Gullah is still spoken by some African-American residents. However, rapid development since 1980, especially on the surrounding Sea Islands, has attracted residents from outside the area and led to a decline in Gullah's prominence.

The traditional educated Charleston accent has long been noted throughout the state and South. It is typically heard in wealthy European American older people who trace their families back generations in the city. It has ingliding or monophthongal long mid-vowels, raises ay and aw in certain environments, and is nonrhotic. Sylvester Primer of the College of Charleston wrote about aspects of the local dialect in his late 19th-century works: "Charleston Provincialisms" (1887) and "The Huguenot Element in Charleston's Provincialisms", published in a German journal. He believed the accent was based on English, as the earliest settlers spoke it; therefore, it was derived from Elizabethan England and preserved with modifications by Charleston speakers. The disappearing "Charleston accent" spoken mainly by older natives is still noted in the local pronunciation of the city's name. Many Charleston natives ignore the 'r' and elongate the first vowel, pronouncing the name as "Chalston".

Religion

Charleston is known as "the Holy City". Despite beliefs that the term dates to the city's earliest days and refers to its religiously tolerant culture, the expression was coined in the 20th century, likely as a mockery of Charlestonians' self-satisfied attitude about their city. Many sources, however, traditionally link the term to the many old church spires dotting the skyline of downtown Charleston. Regardless of the nickname's origin, residents have embraced the term and have explained it in more flattering ways.

The Anglican church was dominant in the colonial era, and the Cathedral of St. Luke and St. Paul is today the seat of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina. St. John's Protestant Episcopal Church is another historic church in Charleston. Many French Huguenot refugees settled in Charleston in the early 18th century. The Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church is the oldest African Methodist Episcopal church in the Southern United States and houses the oldest black congregation south of Baltimore, Maryland.

South Carolina has long allowed Jews to practice their faith without restriction. Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim, founded in 1749 by Sephardic Jews from London, is the fourth-oldest Jewish congregation in the continental United States and was an important site for the development of Reform Judaism. Brith Sholom Beth Israel is the oldest Orthodox synagogue in the South, founded by Sam Berlin and other Ashkenazi German and Central European Jews in the mid-19th century.

The city's oldest Catholic parish, St. Mary of the Annunciation Catholic Church is the mother church of Catholicism in South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. In 1820, Charleston was established as the see city of the Diocese of Charleston, which at the time comprised the Carolinas and Georgia and presently encompasses the state of South Carolina.

The Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite, established in Charleston in 1801, is considered the mother council of the world by Scottish Rite Freemasons.

Culture

Charleston's culture blends traditional Southern U.S., English, French, and West African elements. The downtown peninsula has several arts, music, local cuisine, and fashion venues. Spoleto Festival USA, held annually in late spring, was founded in 1977 by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Gian Carlo Menotti, who sought to establish a counterpart to the Festival dei Due Mondi (the Festival of Two Worlds) in Spoleto, Italy.

Charleston's oldest community theater group, the Footlight Players, has provided theatrical productions since 1931. A variety of performing arts venues includes the historic Dock Street Theatre. The annual Charleston Fashion Week held each spring in Marion Square brings in designers, journalists, and clients nationwide.

Cuisine

The cuisine in Charleston is strongly influenced by British, French, and Gullah elements. The city is known for dishes such as shrimp and grits, she-crab soup, fried oysters, frogmore stew, deviled crab cakes, and red rice. Local seafood—especially oysters, blue crab, shrimp, flounder, redfish, and black sea bass—features prominently due to the region's estuaries and marshes. Gullah Geechee foodways continue to shape Charleston's culinary identity through staples like Carolina Gold rice, okra, field peas, and benne seeds, reflecting the agricultural knowledge brought by enslaved West Africans. In the twenty-first century, Charleston has become a nationally recognized dining destination, with a growing number of award-winning restaurants and chefs contributing to its modern food scene. As of July 2026, Charleston is home to three restaurants awarded one Michelin star.

Annual cultural events and fairs

Charleston annually hosts Spoleto Festival USA founded by Gian Carlo Menotti, a 17-day art festival featuring over 100 performances by individual artists in various disciplines. The annual Piccolo Spoleto festival takes place at the same time and features local performers and artists, with hundreds of performances throughout the city. Other festivals and events include Historic Charleston Foundation's Festival of Houses and Gardens and Charleston Antiques Show, the Taste of Charleston, The Lowcountry Oyster Festival, the Cooper River Bridge Run, The Charleston Marathon, Southeastern Wildlife Exposition (SEWE), Charleston Food and Wine Festival, Charleston Fashion Week, the MOJA Arts Festival, and the Holiday Festival of Lights (at James Island County Park), and the Charleston International Film Festival. The Charleston Conference is a major library industry event, held in the city center since 1980.

Music

The Gullah community has had a tremendous influence on music in Charleston, especially when it comes to the early development of jazz music. In turn, Charleston's music has influenced the rest of the country. The geechee dances that accompanied the music of the dock workers in Charleston followed a rhythm that inspired Eubie Blake's "Charleston Rag" and later James P. Johnson's "Charleston", as well as the dance craze that defined a nation in the 1920s. "Ballin' the Jack", which was a popular dance in the years before "Charleston", was written by native Charlestonian Chris Smith.

The Jenkins Orphanage was established in 1891 by the Rev. Daniel J. Jenkins in Charleston. The orphanage accepted donations of musical instruments, and Rev. Jenkins hired local Charleston musicians and Avery Institute Graduates to tutor the boys in music. As a result, Charleston musicians became proficient on various instruments and could read music expertly. These traits set Jenkins musicians apart and helped land some of them positions in big bands with Duke Ellington and Count Basie. William "Cat" Anderson, Jabbo Smith, and Freddie Green are but a few of the alumni who became professional musicians. Orphanages around the country began to develop brass bands in the wake of the Jenkins Orphanage Band's success.

As many as five bands were on tour during the 1920s. The Jenkins Orphanage Band played in the inaugural parades of Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Taft and toured the US and Europe. The band also played on Broadway for the play "Porgy" by DuBose and Dorothy Heyward, a stage version of their novel of the same title. The story was based in Charleston and featured the Gullah community. The Heywards insisted on hiring the genuine Jenkins Orphanage Band to portray themselves on stage. Only a few years later, DuBose Heyward collaborated with George and Ira Gershwin to turn his novel into the now famous opera, Porgy and Bess (so named to distinguish it from the play). George Gershwin and Heyward spent the summer of 1934 at Folly Beach outside of Charleston writing this "folk opera", as Gershwin called it. Porgy and Bess is considered one of the first Great American Operas and is widely performed.

To this day, Charleston is home to many musicians in all genres. For example, Heyrocco is a local indie band.

Live theater

Charleston has a vibrant theater scene, home to America's first theater. Most of the theaters are part of the League of Charleston Theatres, better known as Theatre Charleston. Some of the city's theaters include:

Dock Street Theatre, opened in the 1930s on the site of America's first purpose-built theater building, is home to the Charleston Stage Company, South Carolina's largest professional theater company.

Queen Street Playhouse, a former cotton warehouse, was fully converted into a theater in 1986. It is the home of the Footlight Players, a Charleston theater troupe first organized in 1932.

Sottile Theater, on the campus of the College of Charleston.

Museums, historical sites, and other attractions

Charleston has many historic buildings, art and historical museums, public parks, and other attractions, including:

Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture, established to collect, preserve, and make public African Americans' unique historical and cultural heritage in Charleston and the South Carolina Low Country. Avery's archival collections, museum exhibitions, and public programming reflect these diverse populations and the wider African Diaspora.

The Battery, a historic defensive seawall and promenade located at the tip of the peninsula along with White Point Garden, a park featuring several memorials and Civil War-era artillery pieces.

Calhoun Mansion, a 24,000-square-foot (2,200 m2), 1876 Victorian home at 16 Meeting Street, is named for a grandson of John C. Calhoun, who lived there with his wife, the builder's daughter. The private house is periodically open for tours.

Charleston Museum, America's first museum, founded in 1773.

Exchange and Provost, built in 1767, it is operated as a museum by the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Gibbes Museum of Art, opened in 1905, it houses principally American works with a Charleston or Southern connection.

Gov. William Aiken House, also known as the Aiken-Rhett House, is a house museum built in 1820.

Fireproof Building houses the South Carolina Historical Society, which offers a rotating series of historical displays.

Fort Sumter, the site of the first shots fired in the Civil War, is located in Charleston Harbor. The National Park Service maintains a visitor center for Fort Sumter at Liberty Square (near the South Carolina Aquarium), and boat tours including the fort depart nearby.

Sports

Charleston is home to some professional, minor league, and amateur sports teams:

Charleston RiverDogs, a Minor League Baseball team, plays in the Single-A Carolina League and are an affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. The RiverDogs play at Joseph P. Riley Jr. Park.

Charleston Battery, a professional soccer team, play in the USL Championship. The Battery plays at Patriots Point Soccer Complex.

South Carolina Stingrays, a professional hockey team, plays in the ECHL. The Stingrays play in North Charleston at the North Charleston Coliseum. The Stingrays are an affiliate of the Washington Capitals and Hershey Bears.

Credit One Charleston Open, a major Women's Tennis Association Event, hosted at Credit One Stadium, on Daniel Island.

Charleston Outlaws RFC, a rugby union club in the Palmetto Rugby Union, USA Rugby South, and USA Rugby. It competes in Men's Division II against the Cape Fear, Columbia, Greenville, and Charlotte "B" clubs. The club also hosts a rugby sevens tournament during Memorial Day weekend.

Lowcountry Highrollers, a women's flat-track roller derby league in the Charleston area. The league is a local Women's Flat Track Derby Association member.

Charleston Gaelic Athletic Association, a Gaelic athletic club focusing on the sports of hurling and Gaelic football. The club competes in the Southeastern Division of the North American County Board of the GAA. The club hosts other division clubs in the Holy City Cup each spring.

Other notable sports venues in Charleston include Johnson Hagood Stadium (home of The Citadel Bulldogs football team), McAlister Field House (home of The Citadel Bulldogs basketball team), and Toronto Dominion Bank Arena at the College of Charleston, which seats 5,100 people who view the school's basketball and volleyball teams.

Books and films

Various books and films have been set in Charleston; some of the best-known works are listed below. In addition, Charleston is a popular filming location for movies and television, both in its own right and as a stand-in for Southern historical settings.

Porgy (1925), by DuBose Heyward, adapted into the play in 1927. George Gershwin's folk opera Porgy and Bess (1935), based on the novel Porgy, is set in Charleston and was partially written at Folly Beach, near Charleston. A film version was released in 1959.

North and South, series of books by John Jakes, was partially set in Charleston. The North and South miniseries was partially set and filmed in Charleston.

Part of the 1989 film Glory, starring Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, and Morgan Freeman, features the 1863 Second Battle of Fort Wagner on Morris Island.

The movies Swamp Thing (1982) and The Lords of Discipline (1983) (based on the novel by Pat Conroy) were partly filmed in Charleston.

Economy

Commercial shipping is important to the economy. The city has two shipping terminals, of a total of five terminals owned and operated by the South Carolina Ports Authority in the Charleston metropolitan area, which are part of the fourth-largest container seaport on the East Coast and the seventh-largest container seaport in the United States. The port is also used to transfer cars and car parts for Charleston's auto manufacturing business, such as Mercedes and Volvo.

Sometimes known as Silicon Harbor, the city is becoming a popular location for high tech and innovation, and this sector has had the highest rate of growth between 2011 and 2012, due in large part to the Charleston Digital Corridor. In 2013, the Milken Institute ranked the Charleston region as the ninth-best performing economy in the US because of its growing IT sector. Notable companies include Blackbaud, Greystar Real Estate Partners, Evening Post Industries, Le Creuset, SPARC a Booz Allen Hamilton subsidiary, BoomTown, CSS, and Benefitfocus.

In June 2017, the mean sales price for a home in Charleston was $351,186 (equivalent to $440,700 in 2024) and the median price was $260,000 (equivalent to $326,200 in 2024).

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, with the mayor acting as the chief administrator and the executive officer of the municipality. The mayor also presides over city council meetings and has a vote, the same as other council members. The current mayor, since 2024, is Republican William S. Cogswell Jr. The council has 12 members who are each elected from single-member districts.

Fire department

The City of Charleston Fire Department consists of over 300 full-time firefighters. These firefighters operate out of 21 companies located throughout the city: 16 engine companies, two tower companies, two ladder companies, a heavy rescue company, a HAZ-MAT unit, and several special units. Training, Fire Marshall, Operations, and Administration are the department's divisions. The department operates on a 24/48 schedule and is a Class 1 ISO rating. Russell (Rusty) Thomas served as Fire Chief until June 2008, and was succeeded by Chief Thomas Carr in November 2008. Chief Daniel Curia presently leads the department.

Police department

The City of Charleston Police Department, with 456 sworn officers and 117 civilians is South Carolina's largest police department. Chico Walker serves as the current Chief of Police. He follows Luther Reynolds, Greg Mullen and Reuben Greenberg. Chief Reynolds is credited with continuing successful community outreach programs such as The Illumination Project and fostering a culture of mutual respect. Under Chief Reynolds, the agency has successfully withstood challenges such as the Coronavirus and downtown disturbances. Additionally, the agency continues to recruit police candidates in a competitive market.

EMS and medical centers

Emergency medical services (EMS) for the city are provided by Charleston County Emergency Medical Services (CCEMS) & Berkeley County Emergency Medical Services (BCEMS). The city is served by the EMS and 911 services of both Charleston and Berkeley counties since the city is part of both counties.

Charleston is the primary medical center for the eastern portion of the state. The city has several major hospitals located in the downtown area: Medical University of South Carolina Medical Center (MUSC), Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center, and Roper Hospital. MUSC is the state's first school of medicine, the largest medical university in the state, and the sixth-oldest continually operating school of medicine in the United States. The downtown medical district is experiencing rapid growth of biotechnology and medical research industries coupled with substantial expansions of all the major hospitals. Additionally, more expansions are planned or underway at another major hospital located in the West Ashley portion of the city: Bon Secours-St Francis Xavier Hospital. The Trident Regional Medical Center located in the City of North Charleston and East Cooper Regional Medical Center located in Mount Pleasant also serve the needs of residents of the city of Charleston.

Coast Guard Station Charleston

Coast Guard Station Charleston responds to search and rescue emergencies, conducts maritime law enforcement activities, and performs ports, waterways, and coastal security (PWCS) missions. Personnel from Station Charleston are highly trained professionals, composed of federal law enforcement officers, boat crew members, and coxswains capable of completing various missions. In 2020, the Coast Guard announced plans to construct a 2,800-acre (11 km2) "superbase" on the former Charleston Naval Shipyard complex to consolidate all its Charleston-area facilities and become the homeport for five Security cutters and additional offshore cutters. Construction began on the Superbase in 2024.

Coast Guard Eurocopter HH-65 Dolphin, Johns Island

Coast Guard Helicopter Air Facility, Johns Island, Charleston

Coast Guard Maritime Law Enforcement Academy

Coast Guard Reserves, Charleston

Coast Guard Station Charleston

USCGC Anvil, 75-foot inland construction tender, Charleston

USCGC Calhoun (WMSL-759) National Security Cutter

USCGC Friedman (WMSL-760) National Security Cutter (2024 Delivery)

USCGC Hamilton (WMSL-753) National Security Cutter

USCGC James (WMSL-754) National Security Cutter

USCGC Stone (WMSL-758) National Security Cutter

USCGC Willow, (WLB-202), Charleston

USCGC Yellowfin, Marine Protector-class coastal patrol boat, Charleston

Military

Army Corps of Engineers, Charleston District Headquarters

Joint Base Charleston (Navy & Air Force)

U.S. Coast Guard

Crime

The following table shows Charleston's crime rate for six crimes that Morgan Quitno uses to calculate the ranking of "America's most dangerous cities" in comparison to the national average. The statistics shown are for the number of crimes committed per 100,000 people. Since 1999, the overall crime rate in Charleston has declined markedly. Charleston's total crime index rate in 1999 was 597.1 crimes committed per 100,000 people, while in 2011, the total crime index rate was 236.4 per 100,000.

Transportation

Airport and rail

The city of Charleston is served by the Charleston International Airport. It is located in the city of North Charleston and is about 12 mi (19 km) northwest of downtown Charleston. It is the busiest passenger airport in South Carolina (IATA: CHS, ICAO: KCHS). The airport shares runways with the adjacent Charleston Air Force Base. Charleston Executive Airport is a smaller airport located in Charleston's John's Island section and is used by noncommercial aircraft. Both airports are owned and operated by the Charleston County Aviation Authority. As of April 2019, British Airways does seasonal non-stop flights from Charleston to London-Heathrow.

Charleston is served by two daily Amtrak trains: The Palmetto and Silver Meteor at the Amtrak station, located at 4565 Gaynor Avenue in the city of North Charleston, which is approximately 7.5 miles from downtown Charleston.

Interstates and highways

I-26 begins in Downtown Charleston, with exits to the Septima Clark Expressway, the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge and Meeting Street. Heading northwest, it connects the city to North Charleston, the Charleston International Airport, I-95, and Columbia. The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge and Septima Clark Expressway are part of US 17, which travels east–west through Charleston and Mount Pleasant. The Mark Clark Expressway, or I-526, is the bypass around the city and begins and ends at US 17. US 52 is Meeting Street and its spur is East Bay Street, which becomes Morrison Drive after leaving the east side. This highway merges with King Street in the city's Neck area (industrial district). US 78 is King Street in the downtown merging with Meeting Street.

I-26 (eastern terminus is in Charleston)

I-526

US 17

US 52 (eastern terminus is in Charleston)

US 78 (eastern terminus is 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)

The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge across the Cooper River opened on July 16, 2005, and was the longest cable-stayed bridge in the Americas at the time of its construction. The bridge links downtown Charleston with Mount Pleasant, and has eight lanes plus a 12-foot lane shared by pedestrians and bicycles. The bridge's height varies but is estimated at 573 feet. It replaced the Grace Memorial Bridge (built in 1929) and the Silas N. Pearman Bridge (built in 1966). They were considered two of the more dangerous bridges in America and were demolished after the Ravenel Bridge opened.

City bus service

The city is also served by a bus system operated by the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA). Most of the urban area is served by regional fixed-route buses equipped with bike racks as part of the system's Rack and Ride program. CARTA offers connectivity to historic downtown attractions and accommodations with the Downtown Area Shuttle trolley buses, and it offers curbside pickup for disabled passengers with its Tel-A-Ride buses. A bus rapid transit system is in development, called Lowcountry Rapid Transit, that will connect Charleston to Ladson through North Charleston.

Rural parts of the city and metropolitan area are served by a different bus system operated by the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Rural Transportation Management Association. The system is also commonly called the TriCounty Link.

Port

The Port of Charleston, owned and operated by the South Carolina Ports Authority, is one of the largest ports in the United States, ranked seventh in the top 25 by containerized cargo volume in 2018. It consists of six terminals, with the sixth opening in April 2021. Port activity at the two terminals located in the city of Charleston is one of the city's leading sources of revenue, behind tourism.

Today, the Port of Charleston boasts the deepest water in the southeast region and regularly handles ships too big to transit through the Panama Canal. A harbor-deepening project was completed, which makes the Port of Charleston's entrance channel a depth of 54 feet (16 m) and harbor channel 52 feet at mean low tide. With an average high tide of 6 feet (1.8 m), the depth clearances will become 60 feet (18 m) and 58 feet, respectively. At 52 feet (16 m), the Port of Charleston is the deepest harbor on the East Coast.

Part of Union Pier Terminal in Charleston is a cruise ship passenger terminal hosting numerous cruise departures annually through 2019. Beginning in May 2019, until cruise operations were interrupted in April 2020, the Carnival Sunshine was permanently stationed in Charleston, offering 4, 5, and 7-day cruises to the Caribbean.

With the closure of the Naval Base and the Charleston Naval Shipyard in 1996, Detyens, Inc. signed a long-term lease. Detyens Shipyard, Inc. is one of the East Coast's most extensive commercial marine repair facilities, with three dry docks, one floating dock, and six piers. Projects include military, commercial, and cruise ships.

Education

Because most of the city of Charleston is located in Charleston County, it is served by the Charleston County School District, which covers all of Charleston County. Part of the city, however, is served by the Berkeley County School District, which covers all of Berkeley County. This Berkeley County section includes northern portions of the city, such as the Cainhoy Industrial District, Cainhoy Historical District, and Daniel Island.

Charleston is also served by a large number of independent schools, including Porter-Gaud School (K-12), Charleston Collegiate School (K-12), Ashley Hall (Pre K-12), Charleston Day School (K-8), First Baptist Church School (K-12), Palmetto Christian Academy (K-12), Coastal Christian Preparatory School (K-12), Mason Preparatory School (K-8), and Addlestone Hebrew Academy (K-8).

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston Office of Education also operates out of the city and oversees several K-8 parochial schools, such as Blessed Sacrament School, Christ Our King School, Charleston Catholic School, Nativity School, and Divine Redeemer School, all of which are "feeder" schools into Bishop England High School, a diocesan high school within the city. Bishop England, Porter-Gaud School, and Ashley Hall are the city's oldest and most prominent private schools and are a significant part of Charleston's history, dating back some 150 years.

Public institutions of higher education in Charleston include the College of Charleston, The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, and the Medical University of South Carolina. The city is also home to private schools, including the Charleston Southern University and Charleston School of Law. Charleston is also home to the Roper Hospital School of Practical Nursing, and the city has a downtown satellite campus for the region's technical school, Trident Technical College. Charleston has the only college in the country that offers bachelor's degrees in the building arts, The American College of the Building Arts.

Media

Broadcast television

Charleston is the nation's 89th-largest Designated market area (DMA), with 332,770 households and 0.27% of the U.S. TV population. These stations are licensed in Charleston and have significant operations or viewers in the city:

WCBD-TV (2, NBC, CW+)

WGWG (4, MeTV)

WCSC-TV (5, CBS, Bounce TV, Grit)

WITV (7, PBS)

WLCN-CD (18, CTN)

WTAT-TV (24, Fox)

WAZS-CD (29, Azteca America Independent)

WJNI-CD (31, America One Independent)

WCIV (36, MyNetworkTV, ABC)

Sister cities

Charleston's sister cities are:

Doha, Qatar

Freetown, Sierra Leone

Panama City, Panama

Speightstown, Barbados

Spoleto, Italy

Flers, France

The relationship with Spoleto began when Pulitzer Prize-winning Italian composer Gian Carlo Menotti selected Charleston as the city to host the American version of Spoleto's annual Festival of Two Worlds. "Looking for a city that would provide the charm of Spoleto, as well as its wealth of theaters, churches, and other performance spaces, they selected Charleston, South Carolina, as the ideal location. The historic city provided a perfect fit: intimate enough that the Festival would captivate the entire city, yet cosmopolitan enough to provide an enthusiastic audience and robust infrastructure."

Sister city relation with Panama City was described as follows:

As you may be aware, the city of Charleston, like the city of Panama City, is a historic port City that shares a proud and prosperous history. Our stories are very similar as reflected by our citizens of European, African, Caribbean, native descent, our cuisine, our architecture, and our mutual modern growth in meritime commerce. As Panama City is enjoying a global surge of interest so is Charleston, being ranked as a top destination for travellers, commerce, technology, education, culture and fashion.

Charleston is also twinned with Speightstown. The first colonists to settle in the region designed the original parts of Charlestown based on the plans of Barbados's capital city, Bridgetown. Many indigo, tobacco, and cotton planters relocated their plantation operations and the people they enslaved from Speightstown to Charleston after the sugarcane industry came to dominate agricultural production in Barbados.