Historic Charleston Homes and churches
 

I’ll be in Charleston, SC the second weekend of December. I love historic homes and churches, so I know I’m in for a treat. As I will only have two days, I have to figure out which ones I’ll visit. I’m definitely visiting the Aiken Rhett house, but I thought I’d solicit suggestions for others. The bigger and grander, the better! I especially love houses with interesting features such as cool staircases, hidden doors or passages, wonderful wood work etc. For churches, I really love stained glass. I will not have a car and will be staying in the historic district.

No car is a good idea for Charleston. You shouldn’t need it unless you’re headed out to a plantation or something more out of the way.

There are actually scads of good historic historic houses to see. The Aiken Rhett is a good one, and its crumbling original furnishings provide a uniquely spooky feel to the place. Others to consider are the Edmondston Allston House, Nathaniel Russell House, Hayward Washington House, and Joseph Manigault House. This last has a nice staircase, if memory serves, and isn’t far from the Aiken Rhett.

The Gibbes Museum is a pleasant enough little art museum, while the Charleston Museum gives a great overview of the city’s history. The latter is pretty large.

I didn’t find any churches of note to see in Charleston.

Hi aggiegirl,

The Nathaniel Russell House was restored while the Aiken-Rhett House, which was preserved. I liked both equally---the Aiken-Rhett fascinating in how it showed how 150 years caused the family possessions to fade and become worn and the Nathaniel Russell in giving a sense of how things looked.

Best wishes,

Daniel

You might find my blog posts useful, including 2 of the houses mentioned above.
https://www.travelgumbo.com/blog/por...harleston-sc-1

St, Michael's Church (Broad and Meeting) has quite a bit of history, is the oldest church building in Charleston (1761) and, to me, is also the prettiest church. George Washington and Robert E. Lee both visited and sat in the same pew (although about 100 years apart). There is a scar from the Civil War era and the church steeple sank several feet after an earthquake a century ago. There is a beautiful chancel window by Tiffany and other stained glass windows from the same period (which look like they may be Tiffany). Two signers of the Constitution are buried in the graveyard.

St. Philip's has the oldest congregation (1681). John C. Calhoun is buried in its graveyard. Nearby is the French Huguenot Church. If it is open, volunteers are usually on hand to give a quick tour or answer questions.

I do think the churches here are charming and have a lot of history. Given your interest in churches and houses, you might consider a walking architecture tour. You will get some good information on the unique and interesting aspects of Charleston architecture (those side porches are called piazzas; those circles, stars or crosses on some old buildings are earthquake bolts).

Thanks for the responses!