Church Photo in Lieu of Attendance

Karpeles Manuscript Museum, 68 Spring St., Charleston, S.C.

Tricked you. Not only did I take a picture of a church in lieu of attendance but in this case it isn't even a real church any longer. This impressive building is the Karpeles Manuscript Museum on the corner of Spring and Coming St. I am particularly pleased that I featured it this week because the current exhibition is on Florence Nightingale.

The story I heard was that a wealthy gentleman had a private collection of original manuscripts. He believed that the best way to interest people in history was for them to actually see original documents. He set up museums around the country and rotates his collection. There is no entrance fee. I love it when rich people do cool things with their money.

Here is the scoop about this particular building:

The Karpeles Manuscript Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, is housed in a grand and bold Greek Revival structure of the Corinthian order after the Temple of Jupiter in Rome.

The history of the building dates back to 1791 when William Hammet and a group of Methodist dissenters decided to form their own Methodist congregation. The new congregation grew over the period of 65 years until 1856 when a larger sanctuary was needed. Property was purchased and the cornerstone was laid on June 24, 1856. The church was called St. James Chapel, "as he was the great Apostle of practical piety".

During the Civil War the Confederate forces in Charleston used the building as a medical storehouse and hospital until the Union Army attacked and Charleston was evacuated. The building was one of the first attacked in an effort to capture the water supply held in the large cisterns on the ground floor.

The Hurricane of 1989
On the night of September 21, 1989, Hurricane Hugo passed through Charleston leaving the building severely damaged. The roof was torn off and the interior was destroyed. After a major renovation, the building was again opened on November 11, 1990.

Okay kids. I need to jump in the shower. Just back from a long walk and did a bit of yard work in this heat. I am a puddle of sweat.