Most things in Charleston were replaced when the Charleston Place complex went up in the early 1980s. St. Mary of the Annunciation Catholic Church was the only structure preserved on the lot when the complex was built, which borders the church on all sides.
The congregation has been here since 1789. It started as the first Catholic parish in the Carolinas and Georgia. They have seen three different buildings on this exact site. The first structure was replaced by a brick church that burned in a fire in 1838.
They rebuilt the current structure quickly, reopening it on June 9, 1839. It is a rectangular building measuring 84 ft by 50 ft, built of brick with a stucco covering. Four Doric columns support a large entablature on the building. The parapet wall at the top was probably constructed around 1896. The church features stained glass windows imported from Munich.
Inside, the nave contains a central aisle and two large rows of pews, with smaller pews along the side aisles. Above the altar, there is a painting of the Crucifixion by John S. Cogdell. He donated this painting to replace his own 1814 work which was destroyed in the 1838 fire.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by Kyle McLonely
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