In 1847, Charles Jugnot and Oliver Hillard, owners of Mount Pleasant Ferry Company, developed a picnic ground in a grove of live oaks, called Hort’s Grove. They built the first Alhambra as a summer retreat and dance hall overlooking Charleston Harbor. The present building was constructed in 1937 and is maintained by the town as a multipurpose recreational facility.
]]>Named by an Act of the General Assembly in honor of State Senate Arthur Ravenel, Jr., who enthusiastically spearheaded a broad-based effort to secure the funds for its construction Arthur Ravenel, Jr. was born in 1927, and is a Native of Charleston, US Marine, graduate of the College of Charleston, successful businessman, environmentalist, SC House of Representatives 1953-1958, SC Senate 1981-1986,US Congress 1987-1994, SC Senate 1999-2004.
]]>Boone Hall Plantation, established in 1681 by a grant to Major John Boone, remained in the family for 130 years. The plantation, purchased by the Horlbeck family in 1817, produced primarily Sea Island cotton. A cotton gin, smokehouse, and 9 slave cabins, all built of brick made here, survive from the antebellum period. The present main house at Boone Hall was built for Thomas A. Stone in 1936.
]]>Brickyard Plantation is a portion of the vast Boone Hall Plantation. The soils that cover much of the tract contain dense red clay and sand making it suitable for brick production. In 1817, “a plantation with a Brick Yard established thereon called Boon Hall” was purchased by John and Henry Horlbeck. The brothers were partners in the construction industry having built several notable structures in Charleston such as the St John’s Lutheran Church and St. Stephen’s Chapel. The Horlbecks developed the brick yard into a major enterprise. From 1850 to 1860, twenty five million bricks were produced at a profit of $170,000. The brick yard operated throughout the nineteenth century and was later known as the Horlbeck Brick and Tile Company. The facility consisted of several kilns, workshops, drying areas, a brick lined cistern, a commissary, and a steam boiler. The boiler’s brick chimney stands today.
]]>In 1776, a force of British Army regulars attempted to cross Breach Inlet in an effort to capture Fort Sullivan (Fort Moultrie). Their advance was thwarted and many British lives lost when their boats were caught in treacherous currents while under fire from Colonel Thomson’s Eutawville sharpshooters who had erected a temporary fort near this spot overlooking Breach Inlet.
]]>In 1864, the Confederate submarine, H.L. Hunley departed from Battery Marshall near this spot on Sullivan’s Island. It passed through Breach Inlet on assignment to sink the U.S.S. Housatonic. The Hunley crew signaled Battery Marshall that their mission was successful, but the submarine sank. The wreck of the H.L. Hunley and crew were recovered in 2000.
]]>On September 25, 1954, WUSN, the second television station in Charleston, signed onto the airwaves as a NBC affiliate. The call letters stood for U.S. Navy in an effort to gain a loyal following among Charleston Navy Yard personnel. Early local programs included The Lucky 2 Ranch, Time for Teens, and Afloat & Afield. In 1975, the call letters were changed to WCBD, a reference to the tri-county.
In 1954, Drayton Hastie, owner of WUSN, purchased Suzie Q, an Asian elephant, for $2,700 from a New York importer. A gimmick to lure viewers from WCSC, Suzie Q became WUSN’s mascot in residence sharing the grounds with an alligator, kangaroo, donkey, exotic birds, and other animals. This pachyderm packed pleasure and adventure in her trunk and imprinted indelible memories on the Lowcountry.
]]>The Church Act of 1706 created Christ Church Parish. The first church, a wooden structure built in 1707, accidentally burned in 1725. A brick church was erected in 1726, and although the British burned it in 1782 and the interior was destroyed by Union Troops in 1865, the original walls still stand. In 1874, the church was restored and consecrated.
]]>In the 1700s, the King’s Highway began in Virginia and wound down the coast through the Carolinas. The section of road that passed through Mount Pleasant became one of the first coastal roadways serving as a colonial post road for the delivery of mail. President George Washington traveled this route in 1791 during his Southern tour. The road was later designated S.C. 40, then U.S. 17.
]]>In 1958, the section of U.S. 17 that passed through Mount Pleasant, also known as Old Georgetown Road, was named in honor of Mayor Francis F. Coleman (1946-1960). During his term in office, the road was widened, town limits extended, and the population grew from 1500 to 5000. He was also known for his dedication to improving the standard of living for all citizens of Mount Pleasant.
]]>The earthworks nearby are remains of the 1861 fortification built to defend Mount Pleasant. They extended east 2.5 miles from Butler’s Creek at Boone Hall Plantation to Fort Palmetto on Hamlin Sound. Supporting this line were Battery Gary and those at Hobcaw Point, Hog Island, Hibben Street, and Venning’s and Kinloch’s landings. Federal troops occupied the town 18 February 1865.
]]>This plantation cemetery predates the American Revolution. It was established by early members of the Hamlin, Hibben and Leland families. James Hibben (d. 1835), one of the founders of Mount Pleasant, is buried here. Generations of both white and black families are interred here. In 2003 this cemetery was listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
]]>On August 8, 1929, a grand three day celebration and parade opened the first bridge to span Charleston Harbor. Built as a private toll bridge in 17 months for $6 million, it was a major link between Maine and Florida. With its steep inclines, dip, and sharp mid-way curve, the bridge was like a giant rollercoaster. In 1943, it was named to honor former Charleston Mayor John P. Grace. The state purchased the bridge in 1945 and removed the tolls.
]]>Before the Revolutionary War, a plank bridge built on barrels was constructed across the inlet separating Mount Pleasant from Sullivan's Island. In 1864, the H.L.Hunley crew crossed the footbridge on the way to Breach Inlet to test dive the submarine. A trolley bridge spanned the cove in 1898 and was replaced by a vehicle bridge in 1927 known as Pitt Street Bridge.
]]>This building was constructed in 1884 as the Berkeley County Courthouse. Mount Pleasant served as the Berkeley County seat from 1883 to 1895, when the town rejoined Charleston County. The old courthouse, named in 1991 for former Mayor G. Magrath Darby Jr., has been used for newspaper offices, a school, seminary, Baptist church and Town Hall.
]]>Edmund Jenkins, an African-American veteran of the Civil War, was elected as a Town Marshal in Mount Pleasant and served from the 1890s until the late 1920s. He died on December 26, 1930. His gravestone is directly to the left of this marker. The public housing facility located two blocks north was built in 1952 and named the Edmund Jenkins Homes in his memory.
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]]>An 1883 town ordinance created Ocean Grove Cemetery on this block. The section bordering Simmons Street on the right is called Ocean View by the community. The adjoining section is owned by St. Paul’s Lutheran Church. In 1902, Hallelujah Lane was added to separate the cemetery into two sections.
]]>On November 18, 1859, a Warrant of Constitution was granted to Etiwan Lodge No. 95 by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Ancient Free Masons of South Carolina. The lodge organized under dispensation on February 19 and held their first meeting in Town Hall on March 4. The fraternity purchased its current lodge hall that same year for $500. The structure was built in 1835 as the original St. Andrews Episcopal Chapel. During the Civil War, lodge meetings were suspended. Mount Pleasant served as the Berkeley County Seat from 1885 to 1895, and some members traveled for two days to attend meetings. In 1913, members contributed funds to help organize a chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star. The lodge has grown steadily from 67 members in 1908 to 203 members in 1945 and more than 350 in 2009. This marker was erected in honor of the 150th anniversary of the Etiwan Lodge No. 95 A.F.M.
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