Charleston, a brief history
Set in the heart of the Carolina Lowcountry, welcome to Charleston, South Carolina, a city of history and preservation. In 1663, King Charles II gave away land stretching from Virginia to Florida and known as Carolina to Eight Lords Proprietors and in 1670 the first colonists arrived in Charleston Harbor.
Fantastic wealth was created by the cultivation of rice, Carolina Gold. By the Revolutionary War, Charleston was the 4th largest city in the colonies and the richest per capita, by far. The Declaration of Independence was signed by three delegates to the Continental Congress who owned homes in Charleston.
The need for labor in the rice fields furthered growth of the slave trade and in 1860 South Carolina was the first state to secede from the nation, within six months confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter and the Civil War began.
Post war, the abolition of slavery transformed everything and wealth declined, the city decayed, overlooked. Majestic and mellowed by time, Charleston passed the first preservation ordinance in the United States in 1931.
Today, Charleston is one of the most beautiful and historical cities in the United States. Yesterday and today are so entwined with the beauty of grand, centuries old homes with magnificent formal gardens, world-famous plantations which offer an intriguing glimpse at life during the antebellum era, plenty of challenging golf courses including the world famous Ocean Course at Kiawah and sun filled beaches just minutes from the city. Enjoy fabulous gourmet dining, world class shopping, take a historic tour by horse drawn carriage or just enjoy a walk and you’ll understand why readers of Conde' Nast Traveler have named Charleston a "top ten" domestic destination for many years and we are a Southern Living favorite most every month.