Charleston Celebration: A History of Pleasurable Pastimes from Colonial Charles Town through the Charleston Renaissance

Carolina Colony was the birthplace of entertainment and leisure activities in Colonial America, including the first public library, opera, golf club, and many other firsts. Charleston's remarkable landscaping was so widely known that Louis XVI sent Andre Michaux to catalog and collect plants and trees for the royal nurseries in France. The region has drawn famous characters for hundreds of years, from political leaders to pirates, and the artists, writers, musicians, and architects who ushered in the Charleston Renaissance in the twentieth century.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 240 pages
Publication date: 01 January 2023
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Before Boston became the cradle of the American Revolution, Carolina Colony was the epicenter of entertainment and leisure activities in Colonial America. Building a civilized city in the uncharted New World was a daunting task, but Southern settlers ensured they carved out time for more lighthearted pursuits. Inspired by the court of Charles II, the Merry Monarch, settlers in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Charles Town established the country's first public library on November 16, 1700. They also hosted Henrietta Dering Johnston, the first professional female artist in the colonies, from 1707 to 1729. Charleston witnessed the first opera performance in America on February 18, 1735, at Shepeards Tavern. Furthermore, it founded the first golf club in 1786 and many other groundbreaking firsts as the centuries unfolded. Every aspect of the port city exuded pleasure, from its architectural marvels to the magnificent parks and meticulously manicured gardens. Charlestons remarkable landscaping gained such widespread recognition that in 1785, Louis XVI dispatched Andre Michaux, known as "the king's botanist," to America to catalog and collect plants and trees for the royal nurseries in France.

Throughout the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Great Depression, Charleston and other seaside towns along South Carolina's coast thrived as fertile grounds for art, music, and opportunity. It's no wonder the region has attracted renowned figures for hundreds of years, ranging from political leaders (George Washington; Thomas Heyward, Jr.; John C. Calhoun) to pirates (Stede Bonnet and Blackbeard), and the artists, writers, musicians, and architects who ushered in the Charleston Renaissance in the twentieth century.

Embark on a journey through Charleston's past with a glimpse into the talented individuals and inspiring events that shaped the city and its surrounding region into a cultural mecca of art, music, dance, and design. Each chapter features.

Weight: 322g
Dimension: 223 x 154 x 11 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781493061501