Charleston's Museum Mile

Here are some pictures of our miles of walking and touring the historic houses of Charleston. We ( specifically me) had to be careful walking on the above sidewalks. This was an accident waiting to happen for a klutz like me. The Museum Mile has the most on one walk to see. It still took us a couple of days to get to what we toured and we didn't go to everything. It sounds corny but this trip was much like a second honeymoon. We toured all of Newport, Rhode Island mansions and the Biltmore in North Carolina on our honeymoon. We were in our element in Charleston with all of the history and great places to eat!

So here are some of the places we made it to.

The Heyward-Washington House was a home of Thomas Heyward, signer of the Declaration of Independence and a home George Washington stayed for a week visiting.

This is the back of the house and the kitchen building. Kitchens were always detached from the house to prevent any chance of house fires.

Slaves did the cooking and the laundry in these two rooms.

Laundry Tub

The Nathanial Russell house was home to a Charleston merchant in 1808. This house was beautifully restored with gold leaf crown molding.

I had to go to the Powder Magazine and get these pictures for Lindy and Paige. We had just read about the magazine in the Felicity American Girl books from the Revolutionary War. They really got a kick out of seeing the kegs of gun powder just like they were described in the book.

Built in 1713 this is Charleston's oldest building.

The Calhoun Mansion is not on the official Museum Mile because it is still privately owned yet open for tours. The movie The Notebook had scenes filmed here when it was empty between owners. The woodworking was unbelievable. The current owner has all of their art and collectibles displayed throughout the house. Quite a lot to take in! They must employ someone full time to dust, I have never seen so much stuff!

The Edmondston-Alston House built in 1825 is also a beautifully restored home with an incredible view of the harbour. We waited for our tour to start on the porch. I tried out the joggling board which was fun.

Just the door is beautiful.

This church is just a few doors down from our hotel. We stopped in one day and took a quick peak. All of the stained glass was incredible.

The Joseph Manigault House was the only house that allowed photography. The house belonged to a wealthy rice-planting family. It has been restored and has furniture displayed from the Charleston Museum.

Love this molding detail and this was my favorite china pattern I saw in any of the houses.

Probably my favorite house was the Aiken-Rhett home. Built in 1820 and lived in by the former Governor Aiken it is preserved. The carriage sits in the stables, somewhat falling apart, but feeling like someone just climbed out. The slave quarters were really neat. The tour was audio which was nice because you can take your time. This is one we will definitely be bringing the kids back to.

We really had a wonderful time exploring all of these homes. We took a walking tour on Sunday that was fabulous. We got so much insight on the South, the man who did the tour was a wealth of information. I'd like to send Kyle down to talk with him for about a week! Seriously, next year when we are at the beach I will be sending Kyle and Ethan on this tour with Bill. I don't think the girls will be quite ready for it, but they would love the carriage ride tour. The tour was one of the highlights of our trip, so many great stories.

Well, that's about all on our trip. I have a few more pictures of some places we ate and some other sightseeing. Will try to post if I get a chance! Enjoy.