History That You Just Never Knew!

Secessionville is a village originally known as Riverside. They did NOT secede from the Union, other than as part of South Carolina. No, indeed. They seceded from their neighbors, the Johnsons, creating a distinct community of their own. As a side note, “the most important battle of the Civil War” (as was each and every battle for which a monument was erected) was fought here in 1862 and 500 Confederate soldiers defeated the attempt of 6,600 Union men to take Charleston.

 Charleston was one of only three walled cities in the New World (the others being Quebec and St. Augustine). The wall was 20 feet high, constructed of beams from palmetto trees so that cannon balls actually bounced off of it. In fact, during one battle, soldiers ran outside the wall to pick up cannon balls that did not explode.

Piracy in the Charleston was encouraged by the British crown because it aided in the defeat of the French and Spanish. The crown was not so thrilled when the pirates became so skilled that English ships came under attack. 

The open market in Charleston is an art market now, but once it was a food market, not a hygenic one. The trash and scraps from the market were thrown out into the street, until the city of Charleston changed a few laws. Meat sellers had to wear clean aprons. More importantly, buzzards were not to be shooed away. Turkey buzzards cleaned the streets, becoming known for their noteworthy services as the “Charleston Eagle.” With the same Charlestonian taste for “dressing things up” rats became known as “river dogs.”

Settlers in South Carolina began 30 miles inland; in light of enemy forces, it seemed safer. The enemy they forgot was the mosquitos. Not realizing this, they chose to battle the diseases by moving downstream toward the ocean, thus avoiding the “malarious breezes.” Said breezes did aid in aversion of the actual mosquito carriers.

Homes in Charleston have a door next to the house, opening onto the patio. Not a gate  in the yard fence, mind you, a “privacy door.” If open, feel free to visit a colonial family. If closed, they are probably cooling off in an “undressed state” on the patio. Undressed meaning the women had only three layers and the men had removed their jackets. 

Charleston is on the second most active fault line in the United States. It was the epicenter for the earthquake of 1886, when most of the structures were destroyed. Those left standing required repair, which was done by screwing giant bolts in all the way through the house. These bolts are still visible and are a sign of historic authenticity, since it is illegal to put any fake bolt like decorations on a downtown Charleston home. Unfortunately, many of the bolts were screwed so tightly that the homes have little give and would surely be destroyed in another earthquake.

Speaking of legality, it is also illegal for Charleston carriage companies to work a horse for more than 8 hours or more than 5 days a week. A horse (or mule) may be used only for one tour before having at least a 15 minute break. And, of course, the horses wear diapers to keep the streets clean.  Tour guides are also regulated; they have a 2 hour written test on Charleston history as well as a bus ride with random opportunities to display knowledge of said history in order to earn a tourist license. 

Homes in Charleston have romance; they are the settings of every good novel, history book, and historical movie. One young lady was given a wedding present of $75,000 by her father, to build her dream home; the groom’s family, not to be outdone, sent the couple on a two year honeymoon to Europe, where she bought furnishings for said home. The most valuable piece, however, was a gift from a friend who visited later - stained glass windows from Tiffany’s. Another home was built by another man for the love of his life; unfortunately, by the time he finished, she had married another. He died in the beautiful home, a bachelor. We passed Beauregard’s center of command, as well as the hotel from which Lee watched Charleston burn; supposedly, Lee saved the hotel by encouraging residents to wet their linens and hang them outdoors.

Charleston has an intersection which might be the only place in the United States where one could buy a marriage license, get married, mail the announcements, and get divorced all within an hour and without a walk. A church, municipal building, state courthouse, and post office sit on corners opposite one another (hell, jail, bail, and mail).

The park in Folly Beach commemorates the campsite of Union troops, the first black troop to serve in the Union army, consisting entirely of freed slaves. Other than this, every event in Folly Beach is classified as “pre” or “post” Hugo, including the erosion of the beach park.

The best item for a tableful of kids in Charleston is the “vegetarian sausage pasta.” At least according to Skirt magazine.

This will be posted will be posted on the blog with Jessica’s contribution of pictures, since she didn’t hear most of the information. :-)