Old Exchange and Provost

It was interesting to explore the Exchange and Provost.  I learned about the history of the building from the guided tour.

The building was built in the late 1700’s and served many functions, including as a public meeting place and a jail.  During the Revolutionary War confiscated tea was stored there and revolutionary leadership councils adjourned there until the British captured Charleston.  The British used the building as a barracks and prison.

After the war, the building was used by the South Carolina convention to ratify the US Constitution; George Washington also held functions here during his stay in Charleston.  In the 1800’s the building became a post office, where abolitionist pamphlets were mailed despite objections by Charleston residents.  During the Civil War the building served as a Confederate post office until it had to be abandoned due to damage from gun fire.

In the early 1900’s the Daughters of the American Revolution took over ownership of the building, so as to preserve it.  Then during WW I the building served as Army headquarters; in WW II the building served as a canteen, station for the US Coast Guard, and a USO facility.  In the 1960’s, the Half-Moon Battery, a fortification dating back to the 1600’s, was discovered under the building.

It was amazing to see how well SC’s DAR chapter has kept up one of Charleston’s oldest buildings.