21 May 2013
Don’t forget–Wednesday, May 22nd is the day for the illustrated lecture, “A Brief History of Broughton’s Battery, 1734–1784.”
The program starts at 6 p.m. in the 2nd Floor Classroom at the Charleston County Public Library, 68 Calhoun Street.
I hope to see a phalanx of Walled City fans there!
20 May 2013
Following the 2008 and 2009 excavations of the colonial-era redan at the east end of Tradd Street (now South Adger’s Wharf), the Mayor’s Walled City Task Force began planning with the City of Charleston to depict the outline of the redan’s foundation on the present landscape. After considering and dismissing several methods and materials for accomplishing this goal, Mayor Joseph P. Riley insisted that brick should be used in order to render the outline as visible and as durable as possible. Some months ago Charleston Museum’s archaeologist Martha Zierden used spray-paint to touch up the series of pink dots on the road surface that indicate the outline of the redan’s inner and outer faces. This morning workers used masonry saws to connect those dots, and removed the asphalt and cobblestones between the inscribed lines. In the coming days, we’ll see the finished effect–a handsome brick pathway that follows the precise outline of the redan’s walls, which remain standing just two feet below the modern surface. The public is invited to visit South Adger’s Wharf and view the new work. If you can’t make it down to the site, enjoy these photos taken by task force co-chair, Katherine Saunders Pemberton, earlier today. 
6 May 2013
For those of you who were unable to attend the recent program discussing the graves found at the Gaillard Center, I’m pleased to announce that a video of the entire event is now available online. You can watch it at Youtube.com, or right here:
At the end of last week’s program, Dr. Eric Poplin, the leader of the team from Brockington and Associates that excavated the graves, agreed to return to the Charleston County Public Library after further laboratory research has been completed. Stay tuned–the follow-up event will probably take place towards the end of 2013.
We owe a special thanks to Dr. Eric Poplin for sharing his work with the Charleston community, and to CCPL’s own Kevin Crothers for creating and editing the video documentation.
29 April 2013
Most of Charleston has been fascinated by the recent discovery of a previously unknown graveyard at the site of the Gaillard Center renovation project. In February and March of this year, a team led by Dr. Eric Poplin, senior archaeologist with Brockington and Associates, unearthed the remains of
Dr. Poplin and the Brockington team
37 individuals who were laid to rest at that site, on the east side of Anson Street, sometime between 1680 and 1740. Many among the community are curious to know more about these people: Who are they? How and when did they die? Why were they interred at this spot–well outside of the “walled city”? Wouldn’t we all like to know the answers to these questions?
Well, now’s your chance to hear the latest conclusions from the experts. The Charleston County Public Library invites the public to a free program on Wednesday, May 1st, 2013, at 6 p.m. CCPL’s public historian, Dr. Nic Butler, will provide a brief overview of this early history of the site on which the Gaillard Center now stands, and then introduce the featured guest, Dr. Eric Poplin, who will describe the discovery and excavation of the bodies. Using photographs and maps, Dr. Poplin will discuss the clues discovered in the graves that inform his conclusions about the dates of the burials and the status of the individuals interred there. We may not have all the answers at this early date in the research process, but we hope to give the public a better understanding of this fascinating discovery in Charleston’s own backyard. So please join us for
Charleston County Public Library Auditorium
68 Calhoun Street
Wednesday, May 1st
6:00 p.m.
For more information contact Dr. Nic Butler at nmbutler[at]ccpl.org, or call 843-805-6968.
24 April 2013
Due to a death in my family, I regret to announce that tonight’s program on the “Brief History of Broughton’s Battery” has been postponed to Wednesday, May 22th, at 6:00 p.m. I apologize to all our “Walled City” fans for the last-minute change. Thanks for your support–Nic Butler.
17 April 2013
A 1739 view of Broughton’s Battery
Please join the Walled City Task Force for an illustrated overview of the history of Broughton’s Battery, a substantial brick fortification that stood at the south end of Church Street, in what is now White Point Garden, between 1737 and 1784. Although it guarded the confluence of the Ashley and Cooper Rivers for less than half a century, its history is relatively well documented among the surviving records of South Carolina’s colonial government. Beginning with the design, construction, and namesake of Broughton’s Battery, we’ll discuss its armament, strategic importance, and several interesting episodes in its history. Demolished by order of the City of Charleston in the summer of 1784, this battery represents a significant part of our city’s military heritage and deserves better recognition. If you’ve stood next to the St. Jasper statute in White Point Garden and admired the scenic view of the harbor, then you’ve stood on the historic ramparts of Broughton’s Battery!
Wednesday, April 24, 2013 at 6:00 p.m.
2nd Floor Classroom,
Charleston County Public Library
68 Calhoun Street
For more information, contact Dr. Nic Butler 843-805-6968 or at butlern[at]ccpl.org.
14 March 2013
Over the past several months I’ve presented lectures surveying the history of the brick fortifications built along Charleston’s eastern waterfront. From Granville’s Bastion at the south end to Craven’s Bastion at north end, approximately seven million bricks were laid between 1696 and 1713. These defensive works stood until the 1780s, and their foundations remain under our streets at sidewalks today.
Profile of an earthen entrenchment by John Muller
But what about the early walls that surrounded the north, west, and south sides of the town? What about Colleton’s Bastion, Ashley’s Bastion, Carteret’s Bastion, and Johnson’s Ravelin? The surviving documentary evidence suggests that these fortifications were made of earth and wood rather than brick, and conceived from their inception to serve as temporary works. Details of their construction are sparse, but they are certainly interesting. When and where were these earthen structures built, and what did they look like? Please join me for an illustrated survey of this fascinating part of our city’s military history.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 6:30 p.m.
2nd Floor Classroom,
Charleston County Public Library
68 Calhoun Street
For more information, contact Dr. Nic Butler 843-805-6968 or at butlern[at]ccpl.org.
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