Charleston Gravetrotters

Last Monday our class visited two interesting churches with a variety of different graves after learning about the the names of grave marker types. This blog is to show some of the different graves that we learned about.As a class we visited Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul and St. Patricks Catholic Church.



The grave marker that I was most intrigued by was the mausoleum. The mausoleums have the caskets of families (usually wealthy families). This one in general was more appealing than the others because it has an upside down torch on the left side that was not lit, indicating the end of a life. This grave marker was located in the graveyard at the Cathedral Church.

(Mausoleum)

Another grave that I was familiar with was the slant marker. My grandfather's grave is a slant marker so that was noticeable to me. Out of all of the graves we saw this seemed to be one of the few that is still pretty common today. This grave marker was pictured as the Cathedral Church.

(Slant Marker)

The most common grave seen today is probably the lawn markers. These graves do not take up too much space and also the cemetery works to efficiently and easily cut the grass. This is another noticeable grave for me because my uncle is buried under a lawn marker. This picture was taken at the St. Patricks Catholic Church.

(Lawn Marker)

These cradle graves are usually used for young children and women who die while giving birth. The cradle grave represents purity and innocence. In the grave pictured, this is most likely a child and mother who both died while giving/ being birthed. This grave was located in the Cathedral Church graveyard. 

(Cradle)

The die in socket grave looked like it took more talent that any other grave we passed. The sculptor/ artisan was so happy with his work that he actually signed the grave marker. This grave is found in the graveyard at St. Patricks Catholic Church.

(Die in Socket)

The ledger grave markers were created because people believed if they covered the entire body with a giant grave, the soul of the buried body would be unable to escape the grave and haunt people. These ledgers were found in the Cathedral Church graveyard.

(Ledgers)

The column grave marker is almost always shaped as if it is sliced across the top which represents someone who's life was cut short and maybe did not meet their max potential. I love the symbolism within this grave marker. This column was pictured in the Cathedral Church graveyard.

(Column)

A common grave from the Victorian Era was the headstones. These are still sometimes seen today but have lost the quantity to the lawn markers. These were common because they were easy to make, less expensive, and took up less room. These were pictured in the St. Patrick Catholic Church graveyard.

(Headstones)

In the box tomb it is very uncommon for a body to actually be inside although there are some cases where it is (also sometimes referred to as sarcophagus). The box tomb is more for look and like the ledgers, to keep the spirits of people from haunting. These box tombs were found in the Cathedral Church graveyard.

(Box Tombs)

A pedestal is more decorative and larger headstones usually include some forms of symbolism within the sculpture. This grave marker was spotted at the Cathedral Church graveyard. 

(Pedestal)

Miller's Thrillers

Ruth Miller is a very interesting woman who can be identified as an author, historian, tour guide, and storyteller. Miller is a former high school teacher and is now a certified tour guide for the city of Charleston. Ruth has written many popular books including: "A Short History of Charleston," "The Old Dog", and her most recent book, "Slavery to Civil Rights."

Miller began her presentation by teaching the history of Charleston. Finding the true history of Charleston is difficult because the Union won the Civil War and they were able to "rewrite the history books"(Ruth Miller).

History of Charleston: Colonial Charleston was actually the richest city. (yes even richer than New York) Colonial Charleston had a greater population than Boston. Charleston also had the most graveyards because it is the "city of freedom of religion" (Miller). Charleston and everything else south of Virginia was owned by Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper.

Wealth in Colonial Charleston: Miller said that Charleston was a "colony of a colony," meaning Charleston literally fed other colonies. The rice in Charleston was the true source of wealth.

History of Slavery in Charleston: Forty percent of all slaves were sold in Charleston. John Newton is an old popular slave owner and trader in Charleston. After a serious illness he began to disagree with the slave trade and wrote the famous song "Amazing Grace."

Fun Fact About Thomas Jefferson's Grave: Jefferson's grave only has three things written on it; author of Declaration of Independence, founder of University of Virginia, and separated church and state.

First Scots Gates Locked

First Scots Presbyterian Church is the church we chose for Assignment 1. The address is 53 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29401.

We selected this church because we were impressed with the architecture and thought it had a unique design compared to the other churches we visited.

The First Scots Presbyterian Church was founded in 1731 by Caledonia immigrants and the first congregations at the church were in 1731 by 12 Scottish families.

The church was built in 1813 by Scottish brothers John and James Gordon. The building contains many Scottish symbols in the stained glass windows. A unique feature to the church is that it has two bell towers.

Fun Fact: The churches bells were donated to the military during World War II.

When we visited the church the graveyard was not open, although looking from the outside the graveyard was small compared to the others that we visited.