Wikipedia

Architecture of Charleston, South Carolina

The architecture of Charleston, the largest city in the US state of South Carolina, has English and Barbadian influences.[1]

Architectural styles

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Charleston Single House

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Main article: Charleston single house
 
The Charles Graves House is a good example of the Charleston single house style

The Charleston single house is the city's most famous architectural style. The house is built with the longer side perpendicular to the street, and normally has a piazza on the south or west side to take advantage of the prevailing winds.[2]

Tallest buildings

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The zoning requirements of Charleston discourage tall buildings, and folklore states that no building can be taller than the tallest church steeple, which is that of St. Matthew's Lutheran Church.[3][4] Therefore, Charleston has no skyscrapers by the modern definition, although the first building described as such was the eight-story People's Office Building, completed in 1911.[5]

11 Tallest Buildings
Rank Name Image Height Year Floors Notes
1
 St. Matthew's Lutheran Church
 
 255 ft

(78 m)

1872 [6]
2
 Citadel Square Baptist Church
 
 224 ft

(68 m)

1856 [7]
3
 Dockside Condominiums
 
 204 ft

(62 m)

1978 18
4
 St. Philip's Church
 
 200 ft

(61 m)

1838

(Steeple completed 1850)

[8]
5
 St. Michael's Episcopal Church
 
 186 ft

(57 m)

1761 [9]
6
 Ashley River Tower 185 ft

(56 m)

2008 9 [10]
7
 Morrison Yard Offices 180 ft

(55 m)

2022 12 [11]
8
 Holiday Inn Charleston-Riverview
 
 170 ft

(52 m)

1971 14
9
 Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist
 
 167 ft

(51 m)

1907

(Spire added 2010)

[12]
10
 Francis Marion Hotel
 
 165 ft

(50 m)

1924 12 [13]
11
 The Canterbury House 158 ft

(48 m)

1972 13

Bridges

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Charleston has many bridges over the Ashley, Cooper, Stono, and Wando rivers due to the city's peninsular geography. Particularly noteworthy is the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge, which at the time of its construction was the longest cable-stayed bridge in the Western Hemisphere.[14]

Street grid

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Board of Architectural Review

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The Board of Architectural Review is a part of the Charleston city government that was created in 1931 to oversee the preservation of buildings in the Charleston Historic District.[15] The city architect oversees the Board. The current city architect is Tory Parish.[16]

References

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  1. ^ "From Crape Myrtles To Long Houses, Charleston Is A 'Big Barbados'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  2. ^ "Single House | Charleston Magazine". CHARLESTON SC |. 2013-07-03. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  3. ^ "10 Things You Might Not Know about Charleston". discoversouthcarolina.com. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  4. ^ "Municode Library". library.municode.com. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  5. ^ Ashley, Jen (2018-08-23). "Charleston's first skyscraper". CHStoday. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  6. ^ "St. Matthew's German Lutheran Church (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  7. ^ "Property File - 328 Meeting Street (Citadel Square Baptist Church) | Historic Charleston Foundation". charleston.pastperfectonline.com. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  8. ^ "St. Philips Episcopal Church (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  9. ^ "History". St. Michaels Church | Downtown Charleston, SC | Anglican. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  10. ^ "Ashley River Tower". Modern Charleston. 2015-07-16. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  11. ^ "Morrison Yard, TKC's $71M, 12-story Office Building Begins Construction". The Keith Corp. 2021-01-12. Retrieved 2023-08-21.
  12. ^ "History". Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  13. ^ "Hotel History in Charleston, South Carolina - Francis Marion Hotel". Historic Hotels Worldwide. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  14. ^ "High Steel - The Arthur Ravenel Jr Bridge over the Cooper River". www.highsteel.com. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  15. ^ "Board of Architectural Review (BAR-L & BAR-S) | Charleston, SC - Official Website". www.charleston-sc.gov. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
  16. ^ "City of Charleston Welcomes New City Architect". Charleston, SC. Archived from the original on 2021-02-24. Retrieved 2021-12-11.
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