Charleston: A Historic Walking Tour

Images of America: South Carolina

by Mary Preston Foster

Charleston: A Historic Walking Tour will help natives and visitors alike appreciate the history and residents of this beautiful city. With its architecture, palm trees, and cobblestone streets, Charleston is one of the South's great cultural destinations. Its ballrooms and benevolent society halls attest to grand periods of opulence and high living. The theater, libraries, museum, and college show an appreciation for culture and sophistication. But don't let the city's beauty hide its turbulent history. The horrors of bombardment and occupation by conquering armies have left their marks. The city has experienced bleak times and disasters, including fires, a devastating earthquake, and hurricanes, not to mention the challenges of Reconstruction. Yet Charleston has survived its darker days, and now may be the city's finest hour. Neighborhoods from Calhoun Street to the Battery are in better condition today than they have ever been before. This book offers three tours to explore the historic downtown: the Meeting Street loop, the Legare Street loop, and the Ansonborough tour. Enjoy the walk, and let the city tell you its story.

Genres: Travel, History, Nonfiction, Architecture

128 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2005

Reviews

[Mom · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has very fine historic pictures and I enjoyed looking at them. My problem with this book is that it is written so you actually have to take the tour to know what the author is talking about. I feel that this should only be sold through the tour service.

[Cee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mary is a really sweet lady, but I can't really say anything too complimentary about her "writing" because this is a book of captions. Some of her facts are questionable at best and downright wrong at worst; I'd definitely not recommend spending the sticker price of $22 on this book.

[Bilqis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice introduction to Charleston, with 2 walks in the historic districts and one further out. While there was a lot of construction/renovation when I visited, the book gave me enough basic information to envision what the homes and areas should look like.

The book is not detailed, but rather, it gives enough of an overview to whet your interest so that you can do further research. I'd recommend it for a first time visitor to Charleston.

[Fabien · Rating 3 out of 5]

Went to visit Charleston for a few days, I grabbed this book to have more informations about this beautiful city.
In this volume, you discover the town, in two different itineraries, full of pictures of beautiful homes, churches,..... but doesn't give you enough historical facts and Charleston is a tremendous place to learn about the history of the United States.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for a self-guided historic tour through Charleston, SC. With many pictures, readers can learn and see how the city used to look and how many of it's stuctures came to be.

[Nathan Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool book, but quite dated. Shows a map with the two proposed walking routes, and then shows pictures (with stories) of the homes/buildings seen in order along the route.

[Lesley Looper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed these pictures of Charleston, so many old homes and churches! I want to go!