I'll post some general city pics later, for now I'm posting photos I took at the Charleston Exchange and Provost, a building raised in 1767, which has housed everything from a military prison to a merchandise exchange to a brothel. In 1790 delegates from all over South Carolina met here to ratify the new Constitution and a year later president Washington himself was wined & dined in the second floor hall, on his tour of the southern states.
It is considered one of the most important buildings in early US history and is operated today by the Daughters of the American Revolution. They have turned it into a well made little museum, with guides in costumes and lots of interesting displays. I highly recommend you stop by if you're ever in Charleston.
All pics here.
Pirates awaiting execution. The whole "age of pirates" in the US lasted all of 35 years, appx. They were captured and hung, often the next day. Their bodies were unceremoniously dumped to the sharks in the bay and their heads placed on a pole for two weeks. I wish we had the balls to do the same to pirates today.
The building was used as an "exchange" for most of its active life. Here, goods from one of the up to 200 ships that visited Charleston daily, would be brought and traded.
It was used as a military prison for two years by the British. The siege of Charleston was a 45 day affair that left the city population starved and sick.
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