Charleston (city, South Carolina)

Charleston (city, South Carolina), city in southeastern South Carolina, seat of Charleston County. It is situated on a narrow, low-lying peninsula between the Ashley and Cooper rivers, at the head of a broad bay leading to the Atlantic Ocean. The city also includes an area on the western bank of the Ashley River.

Charleston is one of the busiest ports of the southeastern United States; its fine, nearly landlocked harbor handles both coastal and overseas trade. The city is also a rail, road, and air transportation hub. Among the many manufactures here are paper, metal products, chemicals, cigars, molded rubber products, and petrochemicals. A large United States Navy shipyard and an air force base are located north of the city. It is the seat of the College of Charleston (1770), the oldest municipal college (since 1837) in the country; the Medical University of South Carolina (1824); The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina (1842); Charleston Southern University (1964); and Trident Technical College (1964). A cultural center of the South, it is the site of an annual arts festival, the American counterpart of the Festival of the Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. Also here are the Gibbes Museum of Art and the Charleston Library Society (1748), one of the oldest libraries in the country. A major tourist attraction is the extensive historic district, noted for its lush gardens and the varied architecture. Three fortifications stand at the mouth of Charleston Harbor: Fort Sumter and Castle Pinckney (1797), both built on shoals, and Fort Moultrie, on Sullivans Island.

Charleston was founded in 1670 at Albemarle Point on the western bank of the Ashley River and named Charles Town in honor of Charles II, king of England. The settlement was moved to its present peninsular site in 1680. The community soon prospered as the commercial and shipping center for the region's great rice and indigo (and, later, cotton) plantations; and as America's major port in the slave trade. By the mid-18th century, it had become famous as a center of luxury and culture, with a distinctly cosmopolitan population that included many French Huguenots and the largest Jewish community in the American colonies. During the American Revolution, it repulsed two British naval attacks (1776 and 1779) but was captured in 1780 and occupied until 1782. In 1783 it was incorporated as a city and its name was shortened to Charleston. The state capital was moved inland from Charleston to Columbia in 1790, and by the early 19th century the port had declined dramatically. The city lacked banking and financial resources, allowing Northern financiers to become the brokers in its commerce, and after 1800, Charleston became increasingly dependent on a single crop, cotton. The South Carolina Ordinance of Secession was passed here in December 1860, and the American Civil War began with the firing on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. The city was captured by Union forces in February 1865 after a 19-month siege. Phosphates were discovered nearby in 1867, bringing a much-needed source of industrial wealth. In 1886 a major earthquake caused extensive damage in the city. Revival of the economy came with the establishment of a naval shipyard in the area during World War I (1914-1918), and several military-related industries during World War II (1939-1945). In 1989 Charleston was battered by Hurricane Hugo. That same year, reductions in personnel began at the naval shipyard in Charleston; it closed in April 1996. Population 69,510 (1980); 80,414 (1990); 96,650 (2000); 106,712 (2005 estimate).