“Charleston County and the city of Charleston, its county seat, are the most historic locations in the state.” Situated in the Lowcountry, the county serves as a popular vacation destination but also relies on the business that results from its port. The area in general serves as a large cultural and economic hub for the state.
Charleston County was founded as Charleston District in 1769, and the district became smaller after some of its lands were used to create Colleton and Berkeley counties. The county and its seat were named after King Charles II.
The city and county are saturated with Revolutionary War and Civil War history. Three signers of the United States Constitution and two famous abolitionists resided in Charleston County, and the Civil War began when soldiers fired shots from the county’s Fort Sumter.
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Sir Peter Parker (1721-1811) was the naval commander who directed the British fleet in the abortive attack against Fort Sullivan in the summer of 1776. Courtesy of the South Caroliniana Library.
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Osceola ( -1838), the celebrated Seminole Chief, died in captivity at Fort Moultrie on January 30th, 1838. Osceola's death marked the end of a long and determined resistance by his people to the...
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Born in Charleston, William Moultrie (1730-1805) served in the South Carolina House of Commons, and in 1761, became involved in the Cherokee War. In 1775, he was elected to the first South Carolina...
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Dr. John Moultrie, a physician, illustrates the sometimes painful divisions within families that civil war and revolution can cause. The older brother of General William Moultrie (see William Moultrie...
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Benjamin Mordecai, a Jewish merchant in Charleston, made the first and largest contribution to the war-chest of South Carolina, and was thanked by the Secession Convention (still in session) for his...
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Arthur Middleton (1742-1787) was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Born at Middleton Place on the Ashley River, Middleton was educated in South Carolina and in England at Hackney Academy...
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Christopher Gustavus Memminger (1803-1888) became secretary of the treasury of the Confederacy, and played a key role in financing the Civil War. Born in Germany, he was brought to Charleston by his...
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Clelia Peronneau McGowan (1865-1956) of Charleston was a pioneer woman suffragist in South Carolina. After the 19th Amendment was passed giving women the right to vote, she became the first woman...
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Born in Charleston, Governor Burnet R. Maybank (1899-1954) attended local public schools, Porter Military Academy, and the College of Charleston. During WWI, he served as a seaman in the U.S. Navy...
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Gabriel Manigault (1758-1809), the grandson of Huguenot immigrants, was a member of one of the richest pre-Revolutionary families in South Carolina. A rice planter, he studied law in London, but...
