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.