Few cities anywhere can boast their own complete culture, with a distinctive architecture, cuisine, language (the Gullah-Geechee dialect spoken among South Carolina's African-Americans), and craft (the baskets woven by Gullah artisans). Charleston, South Carolina, has all of this and more.


Pride of place is felt exuberantly by the denizens of this 17th-century coastal town. A local line holds that Charleston is found at a point where the Ashley and the Cooper (here pronounced more like "cupper") rivers join to form the Atlantic Ocean.


Coastal South Carolina had seen attempts at European settlement throughout the 16th century, as Spanish and French explorers scouted the Lowcountry, as this part of the world is called. Sir Walter Raleigh gave settlement along this shore a good English "go" twice in the 16th century, but both efforts failed. The second one is the source of the famed "Lost Colony" on Roanoke Island.


Originally named Charles Town for the English King Charles II, the city was part of the colony of Carolina granted to ex-generals who had supported Charles as Prince of Wales against Richard (son of Oliver) Cromwell's forces. In 1669 three ships--the Albemarle, the Port Royal, and the Carolina--set sale from London. They brought with them a vital document, The Fundamental Constitution of Carolina, written by the philosopher John Locke. This extraordinary document, guaranteeing religious freedom, shaped Carolina's social fabric in a most extraordinary way, attracting to it Roman Catholics, French Huguenots and Sephardic Jews.


Reaching Barbados, the ships were lashed by a hurricane; the Albemarle was lost and the other two damaged. Charles Town was finally founded in 1670 on the west bank of the Ashley River, and later moved to its current site at the tip of the peninsula formed by the Ashley and the Cooper rivers. Known as "The Battery," this waterside tip of land holds some of the city's most historic homes. By 1700, Charles Town was a major commercial center and had enough wealth to levy a tax designed to construct a public-supported library, perhaps the first in the United States.


The city's rare mix of nations and races led to its unique culture, and gave rise to a thriving artistic life early in its history. Charleston claims to have built America's first building constructed specifically to be a theater, on the site of the present-day Dock Street Theatre.


Charleston is today proud of its history, much of which has been carefully preserved and restored. The city's distinctive architecture, West Indian in feeling perhaps because of those early settlers from Barbados, relies on a pastel color palette for its distinctive look. Houses were equipped with side verandahs, a functional element that captured breezes in the warm summer air, but the result is a distinctive architectural feature that is specific to Charleston. While many of these fine historic homes are still privately owned, many are open for public viewing.


The city is equally proud of its cuisine, which is a melding of French, English and African flavors. Local rice plantations made Carolina rice famous throughout the world. Enriched with crab roe, she-crab soup is just one of the glories of Lowcountry cooking. South Carolina-style barbecue covers myriad flavors, but the mustard-based sauce is perhaps the best known and most often associated with this part of the state. Charleston's restaurants today explore the city's unique culinary richness with enthusiasm.


Today's Charlestonians live not only in its historic district, but also in the surrounding towns and villages. Mt. Pleasant, which lies across the bridge along U.S. 17 from Charleston, is a charming village with many restored buildings and fine restaurants, as well as modern conveniences. Retirees and second-home residents flock to luxury communities built on many of the nearby islands. More moderately priced housing draws families to suburban communities such as Goose Creek and Moncks Corner.


Served by Interstates 26 from Columbia, the capital, and I-95, Charleston is not far from either the heart of the nation or the heart of the state. Charleston lives daily with one foot back in time, but has another foot firmly planted in the modern world.