College of Charleston's 250th Anniversary Tour
In honor of the 250th anniversary of the College, we present this tour of the College of Charleston’s historic campus in downtown Charleston. Founded in 1770, this premiere liberal arts institution was the country's first municipal college and is now part of the state system. Our tour gives special attention to people formerly excluded from the campus, and buildings and sites that no longer exist, while also highlighting the College's present diversity.
For in-person visitors seeking a self-guided tour of our campus, each site on this tour has been marked with a Discovering Our Past medallion. An audio version of each story, voiced by Professor Joy Vandervort-Cobb, can be found with the images accompanying many of the stories.
After 2020, new stories were added to the tour under the direction of the College's Committee on Commemoration and Landscapes.
A History of the College’s Land
Locating the Land
The story of the land that encompasses the College or Charleston campus reflects the history of the city.
The peninsula of Charleston was home to Native Americans long before the first permanent European settlers arrived in 1670. As soon as they entered the harbor, the first settlers saw a large…
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9 College Way
Site of the Book Basement, 1946-71
This building, originally a private residence, and now the home of the College’s Department of Communication, was the site of the Book Basement, a store run by two of Charleston’s most significant gay men of the middle of the 20th century.
Originally constructed circa 1835 and owned by Abiel…
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4 Green Way
Former Residence Hall “The Shack”
Since purchasing the house in 1901, the College has used it as a residence hall, faculty apartments, barracks, fencing court, lab and offices. Ill-treated by student residents in the early 20th century, the house was known as “The Shack.”
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Randolph Hall
The College’s first classroom building
Built 1828-30, Randolph Hall is the signature building of the College of Charleston campus. A National Historic Landmark, the building is one of three historic structures in Cistern Yard, and it appears in the university’s main logo.
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Towell Library
The College’s first library building
Towell Library, dedicated in 1856, served as the College of Charleston’s library until 1972. The building is a National Historic Landmark and is one of three historic structures in the College’s iconic Cistern Yard.
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Cistern Yard
Campus green, graduation venue and performance space
Cistern Yard is the heart of the College of Charleston campus, serving as a green space for generations of students and as a venue for convocation, spring commencement, concerts and other events.
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Porter's Lodge
Entryway to the College and the Cistern Yard
Completing the design of Cistern Yard, this symbolic entrance to the College has also housed janitors, student clubs, and faculty offices. Its arches welcome incoming students and community members to campus and usher new graduates out at the end of commencement.
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The President's House
Bishop Robert Smith House
Today this handsome Georgian mansion with the garden around it serves as the President’s House; it was also the home of the College’s first president over 200 years ago.
The land on which it stands was granted in 1672 to one of the colony’s original settlers, John Coming, whose name is remembered…
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A History of St. Philip Street
40- 70 St. Philip Street
Although a single plot of College property today, for generations this block consisted of a number of privately owned parcels, each with stories of their own. Schools, a synagogue, and residences for black and white Charlestonians are no longer part of the landscape, but property records, city directories, and images record the diversity of the old neighborhood.
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Simons Center/Cato Center
School of the Arts
Forming the nucleus of the College of Charleston’s School of the Arts, the Simons Center for the Arts and The Marion and Wayland H. Cato Jr. Center for the Arts, house art studios, galleries and performance spaces that serve as an integral part of Charleston’s thriving arts community.
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14 Green Way
Built for an African American during Reconstruction, later served as a women’s residence hall
Decorated with elaborate ironwork and a distinctive cupola, this house was built in 1872 for A.O. Jones, African American and clerk of the South Carolina House of Representatives during Reconstruction.
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Addlestone Library & Rivers Green
Former site of African American cemeteries and Bishop England High School
The land occupied by the College of Charleston’s Addlestone Library and Rivers Green has had a complex social, gay, religious and African American history.
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Discovering African American History at the College of Charleston
A Reflection by Professor Emeritus Bernard Powers
A state historical marker stands on George Street just outside of Cistern Yard. It was unveiled on Jan. 30, 2020, exactly 250 years after the Lieutenant Governor of colonial South Carolina proposed a college for Charleston.
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63 ½ Coming Street/Solar Pavilion
The complex evolution of a landscape occupied by enslaved and free African Americans
The simple address used to identify this historical site on campus reflects a complex and nuanced history that threads its way through the fabric of American society today.
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The Omitted Legacy of George D. Grice
A Complicated legacy
As the 14th president (1945-65) of the College of Charleston (CofC), George D. Grice left a complicated legacy. On the one hand, he created several enduring opportunities for faculty and students. For instance, in 1955 Grice founded the College’s Fort Johnson Marine Biological Laboratory, seeing…
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Fort Johnson Monument
One of many monuments glorifying the Confederacy
The Charleston Confederate War Centennial Commission, chaired by Mrs. J. C. Long, gave this monument to the College of Charleston in 1961, one hundred years after the Civil War began. In Charleston, the centennial celebrated the Confederacy and promoted the racial caste system known as Jim Crow.
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