Charleston Firsts!

I see in the Newspaper that the Best Friend of Charleston has come home from Atlanta! It’s great that this important piece of America’s Industrial Revolution history is back home. It was the first train to offer regularly scheduled train passenger service and originated from Charleston on December 25, 1830. The South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company's new steam locomotive, Best Friend of Charleston, "flew" 141 brave souls along six miles of wood and metal rails at speeds of 15-25 miles per hour. Part of the wreckage of that train was later used to cast the first cannon to be built in the Confederate States.

Of course, Charleston was, early on, a progressive city and there are a number of things that happened here first. I had some guests on my walking tour last week who had just retired to Charleston, into a downtown townhouse they purchased some 25 years ago when they last lived here. Their son was fascinated by Charleston ‘firsts‘. That prompted me to brush up on some of those firsts, and so here I share my latest list with you!

 America's first free library was established in Charleston in 1698.

Henrietta Johnston, original name Henrietta Deering (born before 1670, probably Ireland—buried March 7, 1729, Charles Towne, South Carolina , was the first female professional portrait artist in America, paid for her work in Charleston as early as 1708.

The first mutual fire insurance company, Friendly Society for the Mutual Insurance of Houses, was established in 1735.

The first opera in American was performed in Charleston on February 18, 1735.

The Charleston Chamber of Commerce, established in 1773, was the first city Chamber of Commerce and  the longest in continuous operation.

The Charleston Museum, America's first public museum, was organized on January 12, 1773.

The first time a British flag was taken down and replaced by an American flag was in Charleston in 1775.

The first independent government among American colonies was formed in Charleston in March 1776.

The South Carolina Golf Club—now chartered as the Country Club of Charleston—was founded in 1786 and has been recognized by no less an authority than GOLF Magazine as the nation's first golf club.

The first cotton mill was built on James Island in 1789.

The College of Charleston, chartered in 1785, became America’s first municipal college on April 1, 1838.

On the night of February 17, 1864, eight men led by Lt. George Dixon entered an experimental vessel that was to become the first submarine in world history to successfully sink an enemy ship. That night, the H. L. Hunley entered the dark waters off Sullivan's Island and rammed her spar torpedo into the hull of the USS Housatonic

In April 1737, Dr. John Lining recorded the first systemic scientific recording of weather information, taking observations of Charles Towne's weather three times a day from his home on Broad Street. He recorded temperature, rainfall, atmospheric pressure, humidity, wind direction, and wind speed.

In 1762, The St Cecilia Society was founded in Charles Towne as the first organization with a mission of supporting music and the arts.

Chartered in 1785, the College of Charleston is the oldest municipal college in America. Additionally, it is the only college in America to have four signers of the Declaration of Independence as founding members. It became America’s first municipal college in 1838.

Construction of the first fireproof building in the United States began in 1823 and was completed four years later. This building, which is located at 100 Meeting Street, was designed by Robert Mills to house state records. Robert Mills, the first trained native born American architect, was himself a Charleston original.

 The First Reform Jewish Congregation, known as the The Reformed Society of Israelites, was founded in Charleston on Nov. 21, 1824 by 47 members of Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim after their petition to change the Sephardic Orthodox liturgy was denied.

The first artificial ice was made in Charleston by John Gorrie in 1851.

The nation’s first historic preservation ordinance was passed by Charleston City Council on October 13, 1931.

 

Southern Memory

I was looking for some information in the Charleston Mercury newspaper ( the old one, not the current newspaper) for an 1864 article. As often happens when I peruse, I found myself on other topics. I happened across a poem that somehow touched an ancient retained memory, one barely discernible in an age so far removed from the time of the War Between the States.You see, my family  was burned out by Sherman's March. So many people move here from other places, with no understanding of Southern Memory.Perhaps this poignant poem will lend perspective.

Published in the Charleston Mercury
May 1864

At Fort Pillow.
By James R. Randall

You shudder as you think upon         
The carnage of the grim report--
The desolation when we won
The inner trenches of the fort.

But there are deeds you may not know         
That scourge the pulses into strife;
Dark memories of deathless woe       
Pointing the bayonet and knife.

The house is ashes, where I dwelt     
Beyond the mighty inland sea;
The tombstones shattered where I knelt        
By that old Church in Pointe Coupee.

The Yankee fiend! that came with fire,         
Camped on the consecrated sod,
And trampled in the dust and mire    
The Holy Eucharist of God!

The spot where darling mother sleeps,           
Beneath the glimpse of yon sad moon,
Is crushed with splintered marble heaps        
To stall the horse of some dragoon!

God! when I ponder that black day, 
It makes my frantic spirit wince--
I marched--with Longstreet--far away,         
But have beheld the ravage since.

The tears are hot upon my face          
When thinking what bleak fate befell
The only sister of our race--   
A thing too horrible to tell.

They say that, ere her senses fled,     
The rescue of her brothers cried;
Then feebly bowed her stricken head,           
Too pure to live thus--so she died.

Two of those brothers heard no plea,
With their proud hearts forever still--
John shrouded by the Tennessee,      
And Arthur there at Malvern Hill.

But I have heard it everywhere         
Vibrating like a passing knell;
'Tis as perpetual as the air      
And solemn as a funeral bell.

By scorched lagoon and murky swamp         
My wrath was never in the lurch;
I've killed the picket in his camp       
And many a pilot on his perch.

With deadly rifle, sharpened brand,  
A week ago, upon my steed,
With Forrest and his warrior band     
I made the hell hounds writhe and bleed.

You should have seen our leader go  
Upon the battle's burning marge,
Swooping like falcon on the foe,       
Heading the grey line's iron charge!

All outcasts from our ruined marts,   
We heard th' undying serpent hiss,
And in the desert of our hearts          
The fatal spell of Nemesis.

The Southern yell rang loud and high
The moment that we thundered in,
Smiting the demons hip and thigh,    
Cleaving them to the very chin.

My right arm bared for fiercer play,  
The left one held the rein in slack;
In all the fury of the fray       
I sought the white man, not the black.

The dabbled clots of brain and gore  
Across the swirling sabres ran;
To me each brutal visage bore
The front of one accursed man.

Throbbing along the frenzied vein,    
My blood seemed kindled into song--
The death-dirge of the sacred slain,   
The slogan of immortal wrong.

It glared athwart the dripping glaives,           
It blazed in each avenging eye--
The thought of desecrated graves       
And some lone sister's desperate cry.

Wilmington, April 25.

 

Springtime in Charleston Means Home and Garden Tours!

Springtime is a bit early , but right on time for the many opportunities coming up right now to visit fine homes and private gardens on tour with several organizations and churches this coming weekend!
The Garden Club of Charleston is holding their Annual House and Garden Tours this coming Friday and Saturday March 23 and 24th, from 2:00 to 5:00 each day. Each tour will provide the opportunity of visiting at least ten private historic homes and gardens in downtown Charleston. One great feature to this tour is that the ladies knock themselves out creating beautiful flower arrangements for each home.   Tickets can be purchased, if still available, at the Visitor's Center on Mary Street. Call 843 724 9349 for details and to confirm available tickets. This event sells out! For mor information , go to www.thegardenclubofcharleston.org
Also coming up on March 23 and 24 are famous long-time tours an hour to the north in Georgetown, where the Episcopal Church Women of Prince George Winyah Parish are offering their 65th Annual Plantation Tours.The list shows 10 plantations and townhouses each day! These tours are from 9:30 to 5:00 each day, and be sure to allot the whole day for the event.Histories and maps with the route are provided for this driving tour. Additionally, the Men of PGW will be hosting an old fashioned oyster roast Saturday at 6:00. Available tickets can be purchased at the Parish Hall either day using your personal check.. Call Mrs. Lisa Collins at 843 545 8291 or email toper4y@aol.com . For more information and to view the schedules, go to
 www.pgwinyah.org
And of course, the Historic Charleston Foundation kicks off their annual Festival of Houses and Gardens tomorrow, March 22 all the way through April  21, but more about that in the next posting!

Now remember, here at Charleston Old Walled City Walking Tours  we offer our very own Home and Garden Tour at 1:00 Wednesday through Sunday, so come seeus. After our tour, you will have a deeper appreciation for what you are looking at on these other tours---enhance your springtime  experience!  Al Ray

Some History on Chicora Park, aka the Officer's Housing Historic District at the Navy Yard.

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Plat of Chicora Park, the design of Frederick Law Olmstead

The neighborhood where the Officer’s Quarters are located is  beautiful rolling high land unusual for the Lowcountry.  In 1895, the City of Charleston Board of Park Commissioners purchased nearly 600 acres of Retreat Plantation bordering the Cooper River some four miles north of the city and by 1896 designated the new development as Chicora Park. Established just east of the Inland Trail, the Trail itself was a vital route of commerce, carrying goods between the sea coast and the Midlands of South Carolina.   The famed Olmstead brothers, Frederick Law and James, were hired to design it, and the street plan for the Officer’s Housing was part of the initial design.  Frederick Law Olmstead was famous for designing fine parks and residential districts in garden settings. Among his accomplishments are Central Park in New York and the Riverside Avondale District in Jacksonville Florida. As the vision for Chicora expanded, the existing Turnbull Plantation was incorporated into the plan. In 1897 a rail line and a passenger station extended tracks from downtown Charleston  to Chicora Park. It was an ambitious project with salt water lagoons and landscaped gardens. A pavilion had been built and many Charlestonians took the trolley to the park to picnic and dance on summer evenings  There was a bandstand and a small zoo.  With the zoo in place, a caretakers cottage was built, and that structure  is today known as Quarters F. In 1899, more land was acquired for a golf course. Chicora Park was Charleston’s first urban planning effort as well as its first substantial experience with professional landscape architects.



Quarters F

In 1900, when the Federal Government was scouting the southeast for a site to expand a navy Yard, Port Royal near Beaufort was a top contender. The City of Charleston successfully lobbied for the new Base and On 12 August 1901, the Navy took possession of the property.  Captain Edwin Longnecker, representing the Navy, had arrived in Charleston from Washington the day before, accompanied by the government paymaster. On the afternoon of the twelfth, they took the trolley to the site and made a final inspection of the property.  Once this was done, a check in the amount of $34,307 was given to the city for 171 acres of Chicora Park and one for $50,000 to Mrs. Celia Lawton’s representative for 258 acres of the old Marshlands Plantation.  The City conveyed the 760 acres of marshland to the south to the Navy for one dollar.  The destiny of Chicora Park was forever changed. On April 8, 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt visited Charleston and stated that Charleston would be an ideal place for a naval base. Construction began shortly thereafter. Over the next decade, the United States Navy took possession of 1,575 acres along the west bank of the Cooper River, consuming the Park through its expansion. For the next 95 years the naval presence in the area defined the development of what we now know as North Charleston. 

Explore and Discover Charles Towne Landing

Mrs. Waring's Gardens at  Charles Towne Landing

   So  many great things to see and do in Charleston! Whenever I have families on my tour I always recommend Charles Towne Landing. The Museum is highly interactive and kids love it (me too!). The Adventure, a reproduction 18th century trading ketch,  is in port and the Animal Forest is always a favorite. I understand there is even a "behind the scenes tour" of the Animal Forest being offered.
Charles Towne Landing is a state park on the site of the original settlement in 1670. The early settlers knew that the Spaniards in St Augustine wouldn't be pleased with the interloping English. After all, they had claimed the area for nearly 200 years! For that reason, the infant colony was founded up the creek ---called Old Town Creek today---on a high bluff that commands a view of the Ashley River and Charleston Harbor in the distance.Even with the hostile Spanish in the neighborhood, immigrants kept coming, and by 1680 they had enough critical mass to feel confident about a relocation to the current site on the eastern peninsula atop a high bluff . This  relocation to deep water resulted in Charleston becoming a major port by 1700.
   For you Camellia fans Fernandina Waring planted literally hundreds of acres of fine old gardens with huge Camellia bushes . She planted many of the old early varieties and a lot of early spring varieties, so there is a good show from November into April..The Waring House is nestled in the gardens, and sits at the end of a fine Avenue of live oaks with flanking camellia gardens.For further information , go to www.charlestowne.org
Oh, and remember, (a plug here) that Charleston Old Walled City Walking Tours are always $4.00 off for tri-county residents and FB friends!

The trading schooner
 Adventure at Charles Towne Landing

Camellias in Full Bloom at Magnolia Gardens!

Sunday, some guests  on my Home and Garden Tour  told me that they went out to Magnolia Gardens and that the Camellias are in full bloom! Not surprising, the mild weather has made it so that our deep winter bloomers aren't being taken out by the cold. Camellias are thought to have been cultivated in China for at least 5,000 years. Camellia sinensis is the common tea plant.
Camellias first arrived in America as hothouse specimens in Philadelphia in the 1740s. In 1786, Andre Michaux, French botanist and Botanist to King Louis XVI, established a Botanical Garden north of Charleston approximately where the Airport is today, hence Michaux Parkway.  He gave to his friend and patron Henry Middleton four camellias to plant at the corners of his parterre garden, at least one if which still survives.
Tom Johnson, Director of Gardens at Magnolia, takes camellias seriously, and has been collecting heirloom specimens from endangered sites and placing them in a new section of the gardens.So, if you love camellias, or just want to see some flowers in deep winter (?) go visit Magnolia Gardens on one of these pretty days.

BTW, we all know that February is Black History Month. In that theme, this coming Saturday, February 11, Magnolia will feature a Black History Month Event, "From Slavery to Freedom" with more than a dozen separate events highlighting the roles and presence of African Americans in plantation culture. Admission to these events are included as part of the regular $15 admission. For further info, go to the website http://www.magnoliaplantation.com/whatsnew.html

A Beautiful Day Exploring Old Chicora Park

Saturday was an ideal afternoon for the Preservation Society’s  Oyster Roast Fundraiser. An excellent turnout, good oysters and beer benefited saving the Admiral’s Quarters at the old Navy Base. It was good to touch base with old friends and make new ones! It was held on the grand lawn in front of Quarters H, grand former Officers Quarters designed by James Olmstead, brother of Frederick Law. In the process of a remodel, Quarters H was open for touring.

 After we said our goodbyes and left the event, we explored the neighborhood. With beautiful rolling hills and swails, it is not typical Lowcountry landscape. You can feel the influence of Olmstead in the design.
We went by the Admiral’s Quarters, grand but decrepit; truly sad to see it looking so forlorn. But it was after that that we made our greatest discovery. On the way out, we visited another house, finely restored on the outside and used as a set for Army Wives. It is leased , along with two others next to it, by a local 501( c ) 3 non-profit  called South Carolina Strong.  

Their Mission Statement: 

"Our Mission is to rehabilitate criminals and substance abusers and to move people into economic self-sufficiency.SC STRONG is a residential community that is self-governed where residents learn and teach academic and vocational skills, interpersonal and social survival skills, along with the attitudes, values and self reliance necessary to live in the mainstream of society drug and crime free, successfully and legitimately."

 A great bootstrap operation! Consider that many of these guys have felony convictions and, right or wrong, many employers just won’t hire someone with a felony conviction. It is the policy of many corporate and government  entities that people with felonies are forever tainted goods. These rehabilitated  drug and alcohol addicts live in the other two houses and have created  a number of businesses that they own and operate. Prosperity and Security go a long way toward sobriety and clean living, so kudos to them! The house that we toured with them is being meticulously restored as their catering and venue center. With at least five thousand grand square feet, it is sure to be a success! Check out their website at http://www.southcarolinastrong.org/