A Little About Charleston
By Everett Ward
Janet and I have been taking weekender trips to Charleston for a number of years, traveling from Wilmington down highway 17 at a leisurely pace, usually getting there in the afternoon. There is a lot to do in Charleston. Best of all, a great many of sights, things, and activities are free.
On such a weekend trip we concentrate our activity to the downtown area. There is a mixture of colonial, antebellum, revolutionary, and War Between the States history. Mixing in is WWI and WWII. The preservation of the downtown area has been a drawing card for several years. Mostly we walk and enjoy the free side of Charleston.
One of the first things to visit is the City Market. This is the epitome of local color with a very wide range of items on sale. Anything from jewelry to wheat straw baskets is on display. There are lots and lots of things. One of our favorites is recipe books and bagged local food items. Prices run from cheap to expensive, depending how you interpret the terms. The popularity of the City Market is evident by the large crowd milling up and down the compact aisles. The Market, by the way, is another example of preservation and is in its original form dating back to the pre-war days. The war, as you might know, was that which some people refer to the War Between the States; though some still abide by “The Late Unpleasantness.” One of the must do things there is to converse with some of the locals known as the gullahs. They are descendants of former slaves who inhabited the low land barrier islands on the coast. For years they lived in isolation. They have preserved an old culture and are the originators of a unique dialect known as Gullah.
Sometime for lunch we gather some cheese, munchables, and crackers and make a picnic on the Battery. This is a waterfront view that practically encircles the southern half of Charleston. As such, it fits as a prominent feature of the Charleston peninsula and generally conforms to the southern tip. It is called the Battery because it was a defensive gun position in most of Charleston’s history, except, of course, the time it was used offensively against Fort Sumter. The Battery is bound on the east by the Cooper River; and on the west by the Ashley River. It is a park, which contains many markers of historical interest about Revolutionary War and the War of Late Unpleasantness history. The east battery faces the main harbor and has been the scene of much historical activity, including memorials to WW II sailors. The water view is expansive. There is plenty of shade from the palmetto trees and there is a lot of marine traffic to see, principally container ships, many yachts, some tankers, and other bulk carriers. Fort Sumter is in the middle; Fort Moultrie, on Sullivan’s Island, is off to the east. That, by the way, was the setting for Edgar Allen Poe’s, “The Gold Bug.” Mt. Pleasant and “Patriots’ Point” with USS Yorktown, USS Laffey, USS Clamagore and USCG Ingham is just abreast, across the river from the downtown battery area. Dominating the approach to Charlestown to the north is the new skyway bridge that brings Highway 17 through Charleston and heads on down to Savannah, about 90 miles to the south. Crossing it is an adventure because of its height and span. Attached to the battery, just off the area of the City Market, is the city park. Its fun to go to the park and just sit and watch the harbor and people. There are gazebos, water fountains, swings, and a really people friendly atmosphere. Usually I will meet Janet there when she goes off to do serious shopping.
There are plenty of upscale and lower, if you wish, shopping opportunities in the old downtown area. I’m happy with a bag of roasted peanuts and a Pepsi. Like Ferdinand the bull, sometime I “sits and thinks;” and sometime I just “sits.”
A trip to Fort Sumter is a must for a visit to Charleston. This famous fort is the site of the opening of The Great Unpleasantness of 1861. It is a national park and has a very informative group of Ranger Ricks who have an unlimited knowledge of the site. Its fun going there again and again because each ranger has new twists, tidbits, I call them, to the history that took place there. Off to the south is Morris Island where the events portrayed in the movie “Glory” took place. In fact, anyplace you look in the area has some historical ring. Take for instance the area to sea off Fort Moultrie. That’s where CSS Hunley sank USS Housatonic. Hunley never returned from the world’s first successful submarine attack until 1995 when it was discovered not far from the Housatonic wreck. It is one of history’s mysteries that is being explored in the North Charleston Historical Preservation Center. There on view is the archeological laboratory where research continues to explore, excavate, and preserve this famous relic. On display is the gold coin that saved Captain Dixon’s life in the battle of Shiloh and CSS Hunley itself, after 130 years on the ocean floor.
Besides the Fort Sumter tour there is a harbor tour which goes by the fort and up the Cooper River past the old Naval Station (site of the Hunley museum). The tour comes in close to the Patriots’ Point Naval Museum and passes an old British fort which held prisoners in the Revolutionary War. If there is time in the day, it is recommended as one of those MUST things. Of course, if time is limited we usually plan to take the cruise another time.
Back downtown there are choices of walking and viewing the old homes and churches--- St. Michaels Church is one of those MUST things; maybe stopping for a cool beer in one of the open style saloons, or even taking a carriage ride and listing to the narrator as he gives an intriguing treatise on the culture and history of his route.
When we get a little appetite we usually head out to “Ah Shucks,” a popular seafood establishment next to the Market. The cuisine is what the locals call “low country” and is typical southern shrimp, crab, fish, hush puppies, soups, and chowders. Many other eateries are in abundance, including a Scottish place call McDonalds, if you wish. They range from family types to those requiring reservations. Some even require coat and tie. It depends on what you like and how much you want to spend. You’ll see a lot of advertisement of “shrimp and grits.” Bubba Grump Shrimp is touted because the home of Forest Gump, McCleanville, is only 10 miles to the north. Its only fair to say these are not ordinary grits. Also, don’t forget collards, either, and hushpuppies--more on hushpuppies to come.
Another favorite place is the Charleston Visitors’ Center. That is an excellent place to get oriented. It is also a wonderful museum. Located next to the medical college, a tour of the facility can take up to at least a half-day. Janet and I have been there on several occasions and think it is one of those MUST things. Exhibits begin in the stone-age and work up to modern times. I like the history of rice and indigo production. Of course, there is a lot of antebellum culture and relics of the “Great War of the Rebellion,” another name for you know what. It is one of the best organized and through museums I have been in short of the Smithsonian. Not far away from the Visitors’ Center is a small railroad museum with a full-scale replica of the Rocket, the first successful steam locomotive in America. It’s worth a look, too
(See Charleston Page 5)
