“Charleston County and the city of Charleston, its county seat, are the most historic locations in the state.” Situated in the Lowcountry, the county serves as a popular vacation destination but also relies on the business that results from its port. The area in general serves as a large cultural and economic hub for the state.
Charleston County was founded as Charleston District in 1769, and the district became smaller after some of its lands were used to create Colleton and Berkeley counties. The county and its seat were named after King Charles II.
The city and county are saturated with Revolutionary War and Civil War history. Three signers of the United States Constitution and two famous abolitionists resided in Charleston County, and the Civil War began when soldiers fired shots from the county’s Fort Sumter.
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Charles Lowndes (1719-1763), born on the British West Indian island of St. Kitts, came to Charleston in 1730. Like many other immigrants from the islands, he became a successful planter, settling in...
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Joshua Lazarus (1796-1861) was president of the congregation Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim in Charleston from 1851-1861, and an investor whose efforts helped bring natural gas lighting to Charleston...
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John Laurens (c1755-1782) was the son of Continental Congress President Henry Laurens, and aide-de-camp to George Washington. Born in South Carolina, Laurens went to London to study law, but returned...
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Henry Laurens (1724-1792), one of South Carolina's leading figures during the Revolution, was a member of the First and Second Provincial Congresses, President of the Council of Safety, and President...
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Produced by Darren K. Woodland Jr., 2017 Knowitall.org Spring Semester Intern Dr. Ernest E. Just was born in Charleston, S.C. in 1883. He was an African American biologist, teacher, and scholar who...
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Alice DeLancey (1745-1832), a native of New York, married Ralph Izard in 1767. A son of one of the 6 great planter families who dominated the Colonial Council, Izard nevertheless became active in...
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Alfred Huger (1788-1872), a noted Unionist and supporter of Andrew Jackson during the Nullification Controversy, was appointed by Jackson to be Postmaster in 1834, a post he held until 1865, when he...
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Born in Charleston in 1922, E. "Fritz" Hollings (1922- ) received his education in local public schools and the Citadel, from which he graduated in 1942. During WWII, Hollings served in the U.S. Army...
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Robert Y. Hayne (1791-1839) served as governor of South Carolina from 1832-1834. Hayne was born on his family's plantation, Pon Pon, in St. Paul's Parish. After studying law under Langdon Cheves...
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Born in Charleston, Governor Wade Hampton III (1818-1902) was educated by private tutors and later graduated from the South Carolina College. He studied, but never practiced, law. Instead, Hampton...
