South Carolina's Low Country March 2005

The morning of Day Four, we left our narrow third-floor "penthouse pad" and set out for the Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon.

Unfortunately, the thunderstorms that had passed through overnight were still lingering, so our morning stroll quickly turned into a sprint.

By the time we reached our destination, The Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon, the rain had let up but the wind was howling. The site of the Exchange dates back to the earliest days of Charleston, when it was known as Charles Towne, in honor of England's Charles II.

In April 1670, two British sloops sailed into the wide harbor under the command of Captain Joseph West and landed on the first high ground they saw on the western shore of the Ashley River. It is said that the new arrivals were intent on creating their own version of Charles II's aristocratic England in the New World. Therefore, it was only natural they would name it after the man who was crowned King of England after Oliver Cromwell's Protectorate and the Republic collapsed in 1659-1660.

The Exchange was built on the waterfront at the foot of Broad Street. The site was where one of the town's early defensive bastions had been constructed -- the old Half-Moon Battery. Because of that, it is still possible (due to recent archaeological excavations and restorations) to see the old seawall. It was at this location that Stede Bonnett, the famous gentleman pirate and a captain who sailed with the infamous "Blackbeard," was held before his hanging. When we reach Beaufort, South Carolina, later in our travels we will learn more about Blackbeard.

As you can see from the photo above (taken in the dungeon beneath the building) and the sketch, early Charles Towne was a walled town and, during the 1700's, was the fourth largest town in the American Colonies, rivaling merchant centers like Boston and New York City. Charles Towne was one of the wealthiest cities in the colonies, deriving its riches from shipping, indigo, rice, and the brutal slave trade (slaves were sometimes called "black ivory"). Knowing this, it is easy to see why Charleston was a secessionist hot-house for the American Civil War (1861-1865) and the first state to secede (1860).

Above you can see the remains of the old seawall upon which the bastion and, later, the old Council House sat. Even though fill was used to extend the Exchange's foundations beyond the seawall, water still collects here from natural seepage and must be pumped out. Think about the immense human effort needed more than 300 years ago to construct this seawall.

Beneath the building is the Provost Dungeon. Intended as a storehouse for goods, it actually was a dungeon during the American Revolution, when British forces imprisoned prominent Charlestonians here. Among those held here in horrible conditions was Edward Rutledge, a signatory of the American Declaration of Independence and a delegate to the Continental Congress.

It seems that we cannot escape the Disney-ification of historical sites, so we endured the recorded spiel of this "animatronic" mannequin. The information provided by the human guide was much more interesting. Below is a picture of more mannequins meant to represent captured pirates.

This stairwell to nowhere is above the seepage area next to the old seawall. I would imagine that, before the seawall and the dungeon were restored in the 1960's, that it led from the dungeon up into the Exchange House.

In the modern stairwell leading up to the Exchange we saw this lithograph of Charles Towne in the mid-18th century. If memory serves, the city was renamed Charleston at the onset of the American Revolution (for obvious reasons).

The Exchange was built as a place where both public and private business could be conducted and to accomodate the city's extensive import and export trade. Here, on the upper floor, is a large room called the Great Hall that was used for public events.

One of the most memorable events was the visit by President George Washington in May, 1791. I encourage you to visit the preceding link and read about the many honors accorded the Revolutionary War hero who was "First in War, First in Peace, and First in the Hearts of his Countrymen." It must truly have been an epic extravaganza. Here are sample quotes:

Many respectable ladies and gentlemen attended--at least four hundred ladies, "the Number and appearances of which, " said Washington, "exceeded any thing of the kind I had ever seen." Even native Charlestonians marveled at the sight. "So much beauty and elegance, " reported the newspaper, "were never before displayed in this country--it was truly worthy of the occasion..."

"The Revolutionary War sailor Commodore Alexander Gillon had suggested place settings that surrounded Washington with interesting female company. Mrs. [John] Rutledge sat on his right, Claudia Smith -- reputedly the wittiest woman in Charleston -- sat on his left, and directly in front sat Susanna Shubrick -- said to be the most beautiful woman in Charleston. Washington had no complaints..."

The Exchange also houses a number of interesting historical pieces. Above you can see a servant's prayer chair, hand-made by the servant so that he would not have to stand during the lengthy church services of the time.

Here are various artifacts relating to the visit by President Washington.

A corner portion of one room has been left exposed so that visitors can see the 18th century brick work.

A silk dress worn by one of Charleston's leading ladies.

Beneath this portrait of Charles II sits the Governor's Chair, oversized so as to indicate his importance.

The Charleston post office operated out of the Exchange from 1815 to 1896.

The Lord Proprietors

Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon; George Monck, Duke of Albemarle; Lord William Craven; Lord John Berkeley; Lord Anthony Ashley Cooper, Earl of Shaftesbury; Sir George Carteret; Sir William Berkeley; and Sir John Colleton.

The display above depicts the coats-of-arms of the eight Baronys, or royal land grants handed out by Charles II to eight of his most loyal supporters. These grants included most of what are now North Carolina and South Carolina and extended westward to the Mississippi River. In Charleston, the Proprietory government was finally overthrown (without violence) around 1719 and the once privately held colony became a royal colony.

Although the view of Broad Street was much different on May 12, 1788, it was here at the Exchange Building that South Carolina's delegates gathered to consider the Constitution of the United States of America. On the 23rd of May, the delegates voted 149 to 73 to ratify and South Carolina became the eighth state to agree to this new national union.

The above images show the Exchange during the Civil War.

To learn more about the restoration of this remarkable structure, click here.

When we exited the Exchange we found that the rains had gone but the wind had not. Still, I braced myself and took another photo of one of Charleston's remarkable cobbled streets.

I mentioned before the many grave markers denoting the death of a child. I wish now that I had jotted down what was on this marker, but I believe it is from the 1840's and marks "The Grave of Our LITTLE LILLIE, Mary Elizabeth Bennett," who lived only two years before her grieving parents lost her to sickness and buried her here.

It was then back to the rental car and a short drive through Charleston to our beloved Highway 17 and the Road to Beaufort.

... To Be Continued ...