Ongoing: Charles Pinckney National Historic Site. Charles Pinckney, a principal
author and signer of the U.S. Constitution, owned seven plantations. Enslaved
Africans and African-Americans on Lowcountry plantations developed a
unique culture known collectively today as “Gullah.” Gullah people made significant
contributions not only to the Lowcountry plantation system but also to American
culture in general. Charles Pinckney National Historic Site, 1254 Long Point
Rd. Mt. Pleasant. Open daily, 9a.m.-5p.m. Admission is FREE. For more info, call
(843) 881-5516 and visit www.nps.gov/chpi.
Ongoing: Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site. Cannons boom. Muskets
bark. Interpretive rangers in 17th century dress tend heirloom crops. They’re
all part of the “new” Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site. Here a group of
English settlers landed in 1670 and established what would become the birthplace
of the Carolinas colony, the plantation system of the American South, and
one of the continent’s first major port cities. And here the story is still told. Opened
in 1970 as Charles Towne Landing State Park, the peaceful park on a marshy
point off the Ashley River was rebuilt in 2006 with a sharpened focus on the site’s
remarkable past. Begin with the 12-room, interactive museum in the Visitors Center
that includes a “digital dig.” Then walk the self-guided history trail, using the
MP3 players that add an audio tour to the experience. Admire the Adventure, a
full-size replica sailing ship built onsite, and the authentic experimental crop garden.
Talk to archaeologists at work. And leave time for the Animal Forest natural
habitat zoo and 80 acres of gardens that includes an elegant live oak alle’ and the
Legare-Waring House. Charles Towne Landing, 1500 Old Towne Rd. Open daily
from 9a.m.-5p.m. Admission is $7.50/adults; $3.75/S.C. seniors; $3.50/students
ages 6-15, FREE/children under 6. For more info, call (843) 852-4200 and visit
www.charlestownelanding.travel.
Ongoing: Charleston Art Tours presents Charleston Fine Art Gallery Tour.
Reserve your spot to see 6 to 8 of Charleston’s most exciting art galleries with a
Charleston professional artist as your guide! In this informative and enjoyable two
hour VIP walking tour you will see the wealth of celebrated and emerging talent
in a quiet, unrushed fashion while getting a professional artist’s perspective. You
will also get the inside scoop on the artists and their artwork, allowing you to have
a rare, private look into the best of the Charleston art world in a small personal
group of up to 8 people. Finish up your tour with champagne, sparkling water,
and chocolates. Be enlightened and inspired! Ages 14+. Starts at the Charleston
Art Tour office, 53 Broad St., Suite 201. 10a.m.-12p.m. or 2-4p.m. Admission is
$49. For more info, call (843) 860-3327, email info@CharlestonArtTours.com and
visit www.CharlestonArtTours.com.
Ongoing: Charleston Art Tours presents The Charleston Renaissance Tour.
Start your tour at the Gibbes Museum with professional artist tour guide; learn and
see how the painters of the Charleston Renaissance (beginning in 1915) influenced
Charleston with a flourish of artistic activity and started the building of Charleston as
a center of art. Explore the Gibbes’ masters of today and visit the art galleries in the
French Quarter that show their works! The whole picture is a fascinating look at how
Charleston has evolved into one of the most vibrant artist colonies in the East. Ticket
includes entry to the Gibbes Museum, 6 galleries, small personal group of up to 8,
champagne, chocolates and a gift bag. Ticket includes re-entry to the Gibbes Museum
after the tour. Meet at Gibbes Museum, 135 Meeting St. Tues.-Sat. from
10a.m.-12:30p.m. $55. For more info, call (843) 860-3327, email info@charlestonarttours.
com and visit www.CharlestonArtTours.com.
Ongoing: Charleston City Hall Council Chamber. The 2nd oldest Council
Chamber in continuous use in the U.S., contains 27 black walnut desks made in
1818. The two chandeliers, originally lit with gas, date back to 1850. Above the
main floor is a Visitors’ Gallery encircled by a bowed cast iron railing. Exposed
earthquake rods are incorporated into the design of the hand-painted tin paneled
ceiling, the perimeter of which contains the original 1896 Thomas Edison light
bulbs that burned in the room until 1983. The Chamber also serves as an art
gallery displaying a priceless collection of original oil portraits of figures important
to state and national history, including likenesses of four U.S. Presidents.
Charleston City Hall, 80 Broad St. Open Mon.-Fri. from 8:30a.m.-5p.m. Admission
is FREE. For more info, call (843) 724-3727 and visit www.charleston-sc.gov.
Ongoing: The Charleston Museum. America’s first museum showcases cultural
and natural history of South Carolina’s coastal region. Enjoy the rich variety
of exhibited objects ranging from ancient fossils and an enormous whale skeleton
to Civil War artifacts and historic Charleston silver. Charleston Museum, 360
Meeting St. Mon.-Sat. 9a.m.-5p.m.; Sun. 1-5p.m. Admission is $10/adults;
$5/children 3-12; FREE/children under 3. For more info, call (843) 722-2996
and visit www.charlestonmuseum.org.
Ongoing: Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry. The mission of the Children’s
Museum of the Lowcountry is to spark the love of learning in all children.
Through interactive, interdisciplinary, hands-on environments and experiences with
the arts, sciences and humanities, children will develop creative thinking and problem
solving skills, and a belief in their own potential. Open Tues.-Sat. from 9a.m.-
5p.m., Sun. from 1-5p.m. Admission is $7/adults & children; FREE/members &
children under 1. Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry, 25 Ann St. For more info,
call (843) 853-8962 and visit www.explorecml.org.
Ongoing: Confederate Museum. 188 Meeting St., corner of Meeting and Market
Sts. Open Tues.- Sat. from 11am-3:30pm. Admission is $5/adults & teens;
$3/children 6-12; FREE/children under 6. Donations are always welcome. For
more info, visit www.csa-scla.org and call (843) 723-1541.
Ongoing: Drayton Hall. A National Historic Landmark and a property of the National
Trust for Historic preservation. Built in 1738, it is the oldest and finest colonial
plantation house in Charleston. It is the only plantation that survived the Civil
War intact. It is noted for its hand-carved woodwork and plasterwork. After seven
generations, the Revolutionary and Civil wars, and numerous hurricanes and earthquakes,
the main house remains in nearly original condition. Drayton Hall, 3380
Ashley River Rd. Open daily from 8:30a.m.-5p.m. Admission is $15/adults;
$8/youth ages 12-18; $6/children ages 6-11; FREE/children under 5. For more
info, call (843) 769-2605 and visit www.draytonhall.org.
Ongoing: Fort Sumter Monument & Museum. The National Park Service
presents tours of Fort Sumter, located on an island in Charleston harbor. The
concession-operated ferry leaves from two locations: Liberty Square, 340 Concord
St., and Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum, 40 Patriots Point Rd.,
Mt. Pleasant. For ferry departure times, visit the concessionaire’s website at
www.fortsumtertours.com. For more info, call (843) 883-3123 and visit
www.nps.gov/fosu/.
Ongoing: Hampton Plantation. Offers historic house museum tours, interpreting
colonial architecture and rice plantation life. Hampton Plantation, 1950
Rutledge Rd., McClellanville. Admission to the grounds is FREE; house admission
fee is $4/adults; $2.50/S.C. seniors; $3/child or youth age 6-15. Grounds open
daily from 9a.m.-6p.m. The mansion is open for tours Sat. through Tues. at 1p.m.,
2p.m. and 3p.m. For more info, visit www.southcarolinaparks.com.
Ongoing: Heyward-Washington House and Joseph Manigault House.
Charleston Museum presents tours of the historic Heyward-Washington House
and Joseph Manigault House. Charleston Museum, 360 Meeting St. Open Mon.-
Sat. from 10a.m.-5p.m.; Sun. from 1-5p.m. The last tour each day is at 4:30p.m.
Admission is $10/adults; $5/children 3-12; FREE/members. For more info, call
(843) 722-2996 and visit www.charlestonmuseum.org.
Ongoing: The Hunley. On the night of February 17, 1864, the H.L. Hunley embarked
on a dangerous mission that would forever mark her place in history. Eight
men, led by Lt. George Dixon, entered an experimental vessel that was to become
the first successful submarine in world history, with a mission to sink an enemy
ship, the USS Housatonic. That night, the Hunley rammed her spar torpedo into
the hull of the Housatonic. She then surfaced long enough for her crew to signal
their comrades on the shore of Sullivan’s Island with a blue magnesium light, (or
lantern) indicating a successful mission. The shore crew stoked their signal fires
and anxiously awaited the Hunley’s safe return. But minutes after her historic
achievement, the Hunley and all hands onboard vanished into the sea without a
trace. Warren Lasch Conservation Center, 1250 Supply St. (on the old Charleston
Naval Base), North Charleston. Tours on Sat. from 10a.m.-5p.m., Sun. from 12-
5p.m. Admission is $12/adults; $10/seniors, military & members; FREE/children
under 5; order in person, at www.etix.com or call (877) 448-6539. For more info,
call (843) 743-4865 ext. 10 and visit www.hunley.org
Ongoing: Middleton Place. A National Historic Landmark and a carefully preserved
18th-century plantation that has survived revolution, Civil War, and earthquake.
It was the home of four important generations of Middleton’s, beginning with
Henry Middleton, President of the First Continental Congress; Arthur, a signer of the
Declaration of Independence; Henry, Governor of South Carolina and an American
Minister to Russia; and Williams, a signer of the Ordinance of Secession. Visitors
are invited to tour the Gardens, the House Museum, and the Plantation Stableyards.
Middleton Place, 4300 Ashley River Rd. Admission is $25-$45/adults; $5-$30/children.
For more info, call (800) 782-3608 and visit www.middletonplace.org
Ongoing: Nathaniel Russell House and Aiken-Rhett House. Historic
Charleston Foundation offers tours of the historic Nathaniel Russell House and
Aiken-Rhett House. Open Mon.-Sat. from 10a.m.-5p.m., Sun. from 2-5p.m.
Nathaniel Russell House, 51 Meeting St. and Aiken-Rhett House, 48 Elizabeth St.
Admission is $10/one site; $16/both sites. Admission may be purchased at either
site. For more info, call (843) 723-1159 and visit www.historiccharleston.org.
Ongoing: The Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon. A ‘must-see’ for all
Charleston visitors. During your visit, you will discover this building’s integral role
in our country’s quest for independence and its important service to our young nation.
Owned by the South Carolina Society of the Daughters of American Revolution,
the Old Exchange offers public tours of its three floors that highlight various
aspects of Charleston history during the Colonial and Revolutionary eras and put
into context the people and events of the period. Old Exchange Building, 122
East Bay St. Open daily from 9a.m.-5p.m. Admission is $7/adults, $3.50/children
ages 7-12, $3.50/students, FREE/children under 7 accompanied by an adult;
group rates and other discounts available. For more info, call (843) 727-2165
and visit www.oldexchange.com.
Ongoing: The Old Slave Mart Museum. Learn the story of Charleston’s role
in this inter-state slave trade by focusing on the history of this particular building
and site and the slave sales that occurred here. 6 Chalmers St. Open Mon.-Sat.
from 9a.m.-5p.m. Admission is $7/adults; $5/seniors, students, and children over
5; FREE/children under 6. For more info, call (843) 958-6467 and visit
www.nps.gov/nr/travel/charleston/osm.htm.
Ongoing: The Original Charleston Walks presents Gibbes Art Museum
Discovery Tours. Learn of Charleston’s early emergence as one of America’s
great artistic centers, the collapse of the arts as a result of the Civil War, and their
eventual revival during the Charleston Renaissance of the 1920s and 30s. Be inspired
by the same historic streets and sites as DuBose Heyward, Alice Ravenel,
Huger Smith and Alfred Hutty. Guides offer biographical vignettes of the city’s
key visual artists and writers, and give lively readings. Duration: 2 hours. For reservations
and more info, call (800) 729-3420 and visit www.charlestonwalks.com.
Ongoing: Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum. Features the USS Yorktown,
Planes & Flight Deck tours, USS Laffey, USS Clamagore, USS Ingham,
Congressional Medal of Honor Museum, Vietnam Support Base, and the Cold
War Memorial. Admission is $16/adults 12+; $13/seniors & active duty military
w/ID; $9/children 6-11; FREE/active duty military in uniforms & children under 6
with adult admission. Parking is $3/all day. Open daily from 9a.m.-6:30p.m. Patriots
Point Naval & Maritime Museum, 40 Patriot’s Point Rd, Mt. Pleasant. For
more info, call (843) 881-5984 and visit www.patriotspoint.org.
Ongoing: The Powder Magazine. South Carolina’s oldest public building, The
Powder Magazine (circa 1713), served as an arsenal within the old walled city of
Charleston. Interact with historians and see museum exhibits that relate to
Charleston’s colonial and American Revolution history. The Powder Magazine, 79
Cumberland St. Open Mon.-Sat. from 10a.m.-4p.m.; Sun. from 1-4p.m. Admission
is $2/adults; $1/children 6-12. For more info, call (843) 722-9350, e-mail
alan@powdermag.org and visit www.powdermag.org.
Included FREE with your Doin’ The Charleston Tour!
Ongoing: The South Carolina Aquarium Watch our otters get their breakfast,
talk to scuba divers in the Great Ocean Tank to learn how we feed our sharks, and
get up-close-and-personal to a snake, turtle, alligator and more. Educational programs
offered daily. South Carolina Aquarium, 100 Aquarium Wharf. Open daily
from 9am-5pm. Admission is $17.95/adults; $16.95/seniors 62+; $10.95/children
ages 2-11; FREE/children under 2. For more info, call (843) 720-1990 and
visit www.scaquarium.org.
This magnificent plant sale has a whole new look and location! Plantasia has moved to Wragg Square, 342 Meeting Street, in front of Second Presbyterian Church and across from Marion Square. More plants, more vendors and more demonstrations! This is a plant sale extravaganza unlike anything before – unique, cutting-edge plants – tropicals, annuals, perennials, flowering shrubs, small trees and more! There will also be “Member’s Favorites,” plants grown and donated by Charleston Horticultural Society members, at bargain prices as well as “Real Yard Sale” featuring previously loved garden items such as pots, furniture and ornamental items. (Saturday only)
