Due the government shutdown, Fort Sumter Tours will not be running to the Fort. We will, however, be offering non-stop Charleston Harbor tours that will go by the Fort.

Please either call for details or simply come to the ticket window at 360 Concord Street for downtown departures or 40 Patriots Point Road for Mt. Pleasant departures.

Holiday greetings are evident at the Blacklock House at 18 Bull Street. At the time of its construction in 1800, 18 Bull Street was considered more of a suburban retreat, as the area did not yet have much surrounding construction. As Charleston grew, houses sprang up in the area, but 18 Bull still stands out as a grand mansion in the area and is now on the National Register of Historic Places.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJT2uUZ0shE&feature=youtu.be

This week we focus on 73 Rutledge Avenue, directly across the street from the house in last week’s post. As in the case of 74 Rutledge, this lot was also originally part of the property inherited by John Harleston from his aunt, Affra Harleston Coming. The house at 73 Rutledge was built by William G. Whilden around 1856.

There’s nothing more comforting in the winter chill than sitting around a fire with warm drinks and good friends or family. Here is our list of our favorite classic (and not-so-classic) drinks to warm you up this holiday season.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdCpT95qiKI&feature=youtu.be

This week we return to the west side of the Charleston peninsula, not far from the Colonial Lake. We will focus on 74 Rutledge Avenue, a fine example of a double house completed around 1783 by Isaac Child Harleston.

Harleston was an officer during the American Revolution and a member of the Continental Congress.

Will Haynie has been Mount Pleasant's mayor for a year now. He sits down with me exclusively to reflect on his 1 year as mayor for this edition of "Quintin's Close-Ups."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDwmqZNazbM&feature=youtu.be

This large park was named for Revolutionary War Hero Francis Marion, and has a variety of monuments and memorials, and even an original part of colonial fortifications. The surrounding cityscape is breathtaking, and an area where dirigibles flew in 1909 has a multi-steepled skyline, featuring the city’s highest spire at St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, one of its oldest in Second Presbyterian Church, and one of its most beloved in Emanuel AME Church.

This week, we visit a public building that has undergone extensive renovation within the last several years and is now open to the public again -- the Fireproof Building inside Washington Park. The street address and entrance to the museum is 100 Meeting Street.

Completed around 1827, this building is remarkable for several reasons. It was built to be fireproof, using ironwork, brick covered with stucco, and other nonflammable materials inside.