South of Broad, Charleston, South Carolina, USA

A self-portrait on the entrance stairs to the Calhoun Mansion. This private residence built in 1876 is the largest single family home in Charleston with more than 24,000 square feet of living space. It is open to the public daily for tours.

I was able to get past the tough looking "Security Cat" and into the gardens.........

Side garden and koi ponds.

Backyard fountain.

 

Chandeliers inside and reflection outside from across the street.



Elsewhere, these three photographers, rumored to be members of a photo club from the North somewhere (you know how pushy those Northerners are), were so obsessed to photograph another mansion that they climbed the wall to get "the shot."  What passion - what commitment - what nuts! ( Their faces have been obscured to protect their identity).

 

If the doorway looks sloped to you, that's because it is. This doorway, and many others in Charleston, opens onto the first floor piazza and the open air piazzas are sloped to allow rain water to run off. That requires the bottom of the door be cut on a matching slope in order to swing properly.

Who knows what stories lie hidden beneath layers of history?

South of Broad, Charleston, South Carolina, USA

This is the public sidewalk and entrance in front of the John Rutledge House Inn on Broad Street.

Ironwork at the front entrance to the Inn.

And on a quiet side street, a nice gate and walkway to come home to every evening for some fortunate homeowner.

I really don't know much about architecture but, it looks odd to me to combine Ionic columns with Corinthian columns in the same building. I also never knew that these porches are called piazzas. I thought piazzas were public squares in Italy but, according to the Historic Charleston Foundation: "In the buildings of Charleston, a piazza is defined as a covered open porch or veranda supported by columns or pillars and attached to the outside of a building. In Charleston such porches usually append to the side elevation of single houses and were intended as outdoor living space and a device to shade south- or west-facing windows from the heat of the sun. Piazzas are one of the most distinctive features of Charleston architecture." Now you know.

 

Flowers blooming in a window box in January is always a good sign for someone who has spent a few winters in New England.

South of Broad, Charleston, South Carolina, USA

The area South of Broad Street at the tip of the Charleston Peninsula is one of the more beautiful residential neighborhoods in urban America. The elegant architecture spans the entire range of American history. You can see Georgian gables,  Adamesque staircases and moldings, Greek Revival columns and parapets,  Italianate arches, cornices, and decorative Victorian turrets and chimneys. The live oaks dripping moss, the sculpted gardens, and the picturesque street scenes display a timelessness that makes Charleston a special city in which to wander around.

Most of these random photos are on or near South Battery.  They speak for themselves about the feel and ambiance of this charming area of the city.