Preservation Society of Charleston’s Fall Tours Shares This Week’s Lineup Highlights

Read the original Holy City Sinner article here. 

Press Release

In celebration of Charleston, the Preservation Society of Charleston’s Fall Tours & Master Series offers guests rich and rare glimpses into a city defined by its historic architecture, intimate gardens, and diverse cultural heritage. Now in its 45th year, the annual Fall Tours & Master Series serves as one of the Preservation Society’s signature educational events. The tours and master series will be interpreted by architects, historians, preservationists, and local story-tellers. Tours will take place Tuesdays-Saturdays between October 7th and November 6th, 2021. Tickets are now on sale and are limited.

With this week’s lineup of Fall Tours & Master Series events, the PSC hopes to spark interest in the city’s rich and storied past, shine a light on the pressing issues threatening Charleston, and showcase the remarkable architecture, gardens, and neighborhoods in and around the city.

The below tours for this week still have tickets available.

Master Architecture Series Tour – Thursday, October 21 from 2-5 PM. Preservation Society of Charleston staff members and noted experts in their fields will interpret a behind-the-scenes tour for a rare opportunity to dive deeper into Charleston’s unique architecture and cultural heritage. In most instances, guests will be invited into some of the finest houses. Tickets can be found here.

Ansonborough Piazzas and Gardens Tour – Friday, October 22 from 2-5 PM. Guests will visit 4-6 private piazzas and gardens in the historic Ansonborough neighborhood. Interiors may be included for some properties. Anson Street was named for the British Naval Officer Lord Admiral George Anson. In 1746 he subdivided the property that became the city’s first suburb, Ansonborough. In 1838 one of the most destructive fires in America’s history swept through the city, virtually destroying Ansonborough. The swath of destruction covered 150 acres and destroyed at least 1,100 buildings. As a consequence of the calamity, some of the grandest homes had to be rebuilt in the city’s most desirable neighborhood. Tickets can be found here.

Rainbow Row Piazzas and Gardens Tour – Saturday, October 23 from 2-5 PM. Guests will visit 4-6 private piazzas and gardens within the Rainbow Row/French Quarter neighborhood. Interiors may be included for some properties. At the transition of East Battery to East Bay Street is Rainbow Row, a collection of 18th century buildings constructed by merchants for residences and places of business and the longest cluster of Georgian row houses in the US. In the depression following the Civil War, those buildings on East Bay Street became neglected and dilapidated and were considered a slum. By the early 20th century, however, they became a focus of early preservation endeavors. In the 1920s Susan Pringle Frost bought six of the buildings but lacked the money to restore them and subsequently sold them to like-minded preservationists. In 1931, however, Dorothy Porcher Legge and her husband Judge Lionel Legge led the way in rehabilitating these icons as dwellings. “Rainbow Row” derives its name from the tradition Mrs. Legge initiated when she painted her house a vibrant pastel based on a colonial Caribbean color scheme. Other owners followed suit, creating the rainbow of pastel colors you see today. Tickets can be found here.

Tickets for tours are limited and advance reservation is recommended. For more information on Fall Tours & Master Series programs and to reserve your spot, visit bit.ly/2021falltours or call 843.405.1050.