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Charleston’s Historic Pioneers: 14 Firsts & Oldest Landmarks

It is impossible to spend a day in Charleston without immersing yourself in its living history. The city boasts America’s first playhouse and museum, the oldest landscaped gardens, and the nation’s earliest municipal college. Truly deserving of the title “where history lives,” Charleston invites you to discover 14 of its pioneering achievements and enduring landmarks.

  1. Founded in 1670, Charleston is the oldest city between Virginia and Florida.

  2. America’s first golf course, Harleston Green, and the inaugural South Carolina Golf Club were established in Charleston.

  3. The world’s first successful submarine attack took place in Charleston Harbor in 1864 when the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley sank the Union warship Housatonic.

  4. The Charleston Museum, organized in 1773, was America’s first museum.

  5. The College of Charleston, chartered in 1773, is the oldest municipal college in the United States.

  6. Dock Street Theatre, located on Church Street in downtown Charleston, is the nation’s first permanent playhouse.

  7. Magnolia Plantation & Gardens houses America’s oldest public gardens.

  8. In 1786, André Michaux introduced Mimosa, Crepe Myrtle, and Tea Olive to the Charleston region.

  9. Drayton Hall, completed in 1742, stands as one of the finest pre‑Revolutionary Georgian Palladian structures.

  10. She‑crab soup, a signature Charleston delicacy, was created by William Deas, butler to former Mayor R. Goodwyn Rhett, and popularized by President William H. Taft.

  11. The Angel Oak, South Carolina’s oldest living oak, graces the Charleston area.

  12. The poinsettia was first introduced to America by Dr. Joel Poinsett in Charleston in 1833.

  13. Old St. Andrew’s Parish Church, founded and built in 1706, is the oldest surviving church in the Carolinas.

  14. The Battle of Fort Sullivan on Sullivan’s Island marked the first American victory of the Revolutionary War.

Test your knowledge of Charleston’s rich past with our official Explore Charleston quiz!


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