Historic Charleston Walking & Storytelling Tour
Description
This tour is an exploration of Charleston that highlights the women and men who helped found Charleston and the United States. Did you know, without the pirates and patriots of Charleston, the United States may not exist today? We start our experience in front of the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon, one of Charleston’s oldest and most historical buildings. Learn about George Washington’s visit in 1791, and the dungeon’s prisoners who met their fate. Next, we venture down East Bay Street, passing Rainbow Row. Behold gorgeous mansions, and witness breathtaking views of the Charleston Harbor and White Point Garden. Walk in the footsteps of pirates and their captors. Next, we turn inward and walk through Charleston’s South of Broad neighborhood. Learn about the man George Washington and Thomas Jefferson said was the true father of America. Last, we venture back to our starting point, passing by the Four Corners of the Law and the shops and residences on Broad Street.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Built in 1771 as a commercial exchange and custom house, the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon has been a Charleston landmark for nearly 250 years. Today, it is a non-profit historic site that focuses on the American Revolution and colonial Charleston.
Rainbow Row is the name for a series of thirteen colorful historic houses in Charleston, South Carolina. It represents the longest cluster of Georgian row houses in the United States. The houses are located north of Tradd St. and south of Elliott St. on East Bay Street, that is, 79 to 107 East Bay Street. The name Rainbow Row was coined after the pastel colors they were painted as they were restored in the 1930s and 1940s.
The house is built on the foundation ruins of Fort Mechanic that was at this location in the later part of the eighteenth century. Shipping merchant Charles Edmondston, a Scottish immigrant from the Shetland Islands, had purchased the low sandy lot in 1817. The unstable soggy land was unfit for residential construction until a sea wall was built. Charleston city officials built one in 1820 and Edmondston then started the construction of the house. The antebellum modified Charleston single house (side-hall) was constructed between 1820 and 1828. Edmondston had built the house originally in the English Regency style architecture.
White Point Garden is a 5.7 acre public park located in peninsular Charleston, South Carolina, at the tip of the peninsula. It is the southern terminus for the Battery, a defensive seawall and promenade. It is bounded by East Battery (to the east), Murray Blvd. (to the south), King St. (to the west), and South Battery (to the north).
The 24,000-square-foot house has thirty main rooms and many more smaller rooms. The main hall is 50 feet long and 14 feet wide. The house has a ballroom with a 45-foot-high ceiling.
The Nathaniel Russell House is a historic house at 51 Meeting Street in Charleston, South Carolina, United States. Built by slave trader and wealthy merchant Nathaniel Russell in 1808, it is recognized as one of America's most important Neoclassical houses. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1973.
The Four Corners of Law is a term commonly used to refer to the intersection of Meeting and Broad Streets. It was coined in the 1930s by Robert Ripley, creator of Ripley's Believe it or Not! and refers to the buildings occupying the four corners of the intersection: St. Michael's Anglican Church (Charleston, South Carolina), constructed between 1752 and 1761, stands on the southeast corner of the intersection. On the northeast corner of the Four Corners is Charleston City Hall, constructed in the Adamesque style between 1800 and 1804. Across the street, on the northwest corner, stands the Charleston County Courthouse. Originally constructed in 1753 as South Carolina's provincial capital, the building was rebuilt in 1792 for use as a courthouse. On the southwest corner is the United States Post Office and Federal Courthouse, built in 1896.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Wheelchair accessible
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(25)
We were lucky enough to have had Larry as our tour guide. He gave us a deep history of the area and covered a lot of figurative ground, from the people and architecture to arts and entertainment. He clearly loves his city and is proud to share the history and vibrancy of Charleston with visitors. We sincerely enjoyed the time we spent with him and feel like we have a knowledge of many interesting little-known facts. We highly recommend this tour!
This tour was absolutely terrible DO NOT book it. It is billed as a walking tour of historic Charleston; we stood in the same spot for the first 15 minutes as the guide rattled off a list of so-called “facts” about American history. They were ALL false! This tour guide should lose his job. He claimed Thomas Jefferson was the 2nd president, (he was the 3rd), and that he took the presidential oath of office on a Koran NOT a bible, that Washington read the Declaration of Independence from the steps of the Exchange Building in 1792, (he was elected president in 1789 and we had declared independence in 1776), NYS had a slave market in 1861 (NYS abolished slavery in 1827), and that the first Islamic Temple in the US was built in 1810 (it was 1934). He kept saying he had gotten his facts from Wikipedia, which is the most unreliable source out there. This was a pathetic attempt at a cash grab from a shady company headquartered in a foreign country. Getting through to them on the phone to get my money back took FOREVER! DO NOT book this tour
Super interesting, informative, and entertaining walk through Charleston. Would book again next time. Larry tailors the tour to your existing knowledge of the city and its history.
Larry is the Man!! He was a treasure trove of Charleston history, architecture, and commerce. Lots of stories that were educational and entertaining. Would highly recommend Larry for future tours in the heart of Charleston SC. Bravo
Larry the tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and entertaining. Learned so much! Would like to have covered a larger route. Would definitely recommend it!
This is mostly a historical story of Charleston and America with a little walking mixed in. It is amazing what this town has given our Country. Larry was a wonderful guide who shared a perspective you likely have not witnessed.
This was an outstanding tour. Larry was so knowledgeable I could have listened a couple more hours. 😊👍🏼
Larry was a great tour guide. Not sure all his history is perfectly accurate but he’s a terrific storyteller. We definitely enjoyed it.
Larry is the best tour guide ever! We had a wonderful two hour walking tour of downtown Charleston but it was not physically strenuous. Larry connected the dots of history to paint a realistic picture of Charleston. I went on this tour with two of my girl friends. Three girls in our young twenties found this tour amazing and incredibly interesting. We covered important/serious topics like slavery’s influence on Charleston but also lighthearted anecdotal stories about different buildings and neighbors we passed. I would attend this tour again! I learned so much and Larry left us with lots of ideas to ponder.
This tour exceeded my expectations. We chose the 3pm tour. It turned out that my husband and I were the only ones on the tour that day. So we wound up having a wonderful personalized experience. Our tour guide had a wealth of knowledge. He was very amusing too. We liked the way the walk and information was planned out. Although there is shade along the way, if you choose this tour during the summer wear sunscreen, a hat, and carry a bottle of very cold water. I definitely recommend this tour.
