Welcome to Charleston’s Museum Mile.
Along a one-mile section of Meeting Street you will find 6 museums, 5 nationally renowned historic houses, 4 scenic parks, a Revolutionary War powder magazine, and an array of historic houses of worship and public buildings such as the Market and City Hall.
To start planning your trip, simply click the banners on the map.
- = Museums
- = Places of Worship
Aiken-Rhett House Museum
Built in 1820 and expanded by Governor and Mrs. William Aiken, Jr. in the 1830s, this house and its outbuildings are preserved as rare intact artifacts. The extensive property allows visitors to explore the interconnections among all members of the household, both free and enslaved.
- Aiken-Rhett House Museum
- 48 Elizabeth Street
- Charleston, SC 29403
- Phone
- (843) 723-1159
- Hours
- Sun – Sat: 10 am – 5 pm
- Last tour begins at 4 pm
The Charleston Museum
America's First Museum showcases an outstanding collection that tells the story of Charleston and the Lowcountry. Whether you have an interest in early southern culture, decorative arts, historic weaponry or military history, The Charleston Museum has something for everyone in your family.
- The Charleston Museum
- 360 Meeting Street
- Charleston, SC 29403
- Phone
- (843) 722-2996
- Hours
- Mon – Sat: 9 am – 5 pm
- Sun 12 – 5 pm
The Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry
The Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry offers nine hands-on exhibits, including a two-story Medieval Castle, a pirate ship and a dedicated Art Room, which allow your children to explore the arts, sciences and humanities through the power of PLAY.
- The Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry
- 25 Ann St
- Charleston, SC 29403
- Phone
- (843) 853-8962
- Hours
- Monday: 9 am – 5 pm
- Tuesday: closed
- Wednesday: Member Morning 8 am – 9 am
- Wednesday: Open to the public 9 am – 5 pm
- Thursday: 9 am – 5 pm
- Friday: 9 am – 5 pm
- Saturday: 9 am – 5 pm
- Sunday: 12 – 5 pm
Joseph Manigault House
One of Charleston's most exquisite antebellum structures, the Joseph Manigault House, built in 1803, reflects the urban lifestyle of a wealthy, rice-planting family and the enslaved African Americans who lived there.
- Joseph Manigault House
- 350 Meeting Street
- Charleston, SC 29403
- Phone
- (843) 722-2996
- Hours
- Mon – Sat: 10 am – 5 pm
- Sun: 12 – 5 pm
- Last guided tour begins at 4:30 pm
Washington Light Infantry
Founded in 1807, the Washington Light Infantry is one of America’s oldest militia units. Its historic military collections feature uniforms, weapons, flags and accouterments from the Civil War to present day.
- Washington Light Infantry
- 287 Meeting St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Hours
- Visitation by appointment only.
Museum at Market Hall
Since 1898, the Daughters of the Confederacy have operated the Museum, whose collection includes flags, uniforms, swords and other Confederate memorabilia. Market Hall, which now houses the museum, was built in 1841.
- Museum at Market Hall
- 188 Meeting St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Hours
- Thursday - Sunday: 11 am – 4 pm
- Phone
- (843) 723-1541
- Admission
- Adults & Teens: $7
- Children (6 – 12): $3
- Children under 6: Free
The Powder Magazine
Completed in 1713, The Powder Magazine is South Carolina's oldest government structure and the only building that remains from Charleston's early walled city fortifications. The building was used for gunpowder storage from 1713-1748 and again during the American Revolution. Interact with interpreters and explore museum exhibits devoted to Charleston's history at this family-friendly site.
The Gibbes Museum of Art
The Gibbes Museum of Art, the oldest museum building in the South, is home to the foremost collection of American art that incorporates the story of Charleston. The Museum connects the city and region’s artistic past to a vibrant contemporary art scene.
- The Gibbes Museum of Art
- 135 Meeting St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 722-2706
- Hours
- Monday: 10am – 5pm
- Tuesday: 10am – 5pm
- Wednesday: 10am – 8pm
- Thursday: 10am – 5pm
- Friday: 10am – 5pm
- Saturday: 10am – 5pm
- Sunday: 1pm – 5pm
- Admission
- Adult: $12
- Senior, 62+: $10
- Military (with valid ID): $10
- College Student (with valid ID): $10, (Free Wednesdays from 4pm – 8pm)
- Children age 4 – 17: $6
- Children age 0 – 3: Free
Old Slave Mart Museum
The only remaining structure from a complex of buildings known as Ryan’s Mart, where hundreds of slave auctions were held from 1856 to 1863, the Old Slave Mart Museum exhibits focus on the domestic slave trade from the perspectives of historically-documented buyers, traders, and enslaved African Americans, and speak to their stories, contributions and legacies.
- Old Slave Mart Museum
- 6 Chalmers Street
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 958-6467
- Hours
- Mon – Sat 9 am – 5 pm
- Sunday: closed
- Admission
- Adults: $12
- Children (7 – 17 yrs): $5
- Children 6 and under: Free
South Carolina Historical Society Museum
Located in the historic Fireproof Building, the South Carolina Historical Society Museum spans six interactive galleries and showcases more than 350 years of South Carolina history through the artifacts, personal treasures, and handwritten accounts of those who experienced it.
- South Carolina Historical Society Museum
- 100 Meeting St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Admission
- Adults: $12
- Military and Seniors (60+): $10
- Youth (6 – 17 yrs): $8
- Children 5 and under: Free
- SC Eductators: Free
- Phone
- (843) 723-3225
- Hours
- Tues – Sat: 10 am – 4 pm
- Sun: closed
Postal Museum
In 1896, the existing post office moved to the new Post Office Building, erected over the ruins of the old police station, destroyed in the earthquake of 1886. The building at Meeting and Broad streets is the oldest continuously operated post office in the Carolinas.
- Postal Museum
- Broad St & Meeting St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Lobby Hours
- Mon – Fri: 7 – 5
- Sat: 7 – 12
- Museum Hours
- Mon – Fri: 11:30 – 3:30
Heyward-Washington House
Built in 1772, Charleston’s Revolutionary War House was the town home of Thomas Heyward, Jr., Revolutionary War patriot and signer of the Declaration of Independence. The house features magnificent Charleston-made furniture and a formal 18th century garden.
- Heyward-Washington House
- 87 Church St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 722-2996
- Hours
- Mon – Sat 10 am – 5 pm
- Sun 12 – 5 pm
- Last audio tour begins at 4:15 pm
Nathaniel Russell House Museum
Built in 1808, the grand Federal style townhouse of Charleston merchant Nathaniel Russell is a National Historic Landmark. Set amid spacious gardens, the house boasts graceful interiors, a notable collection of decorative and fine arts, and a magnificent Free-flying staircase.
- Nathaniel Russell House Museum
- 51 Meeting St
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 724-8481
- Hours
- Sun – Sat: 10 am – 5 pm
- Last tour begins at 4 pm
Old Exchange & Provost Dungeon
Completed in 1771, the building is recognized as one of the three most historic colonial public buildings in the United States. Visitors can explore Charleston’s colonial, Revolutionary and Civil War past while retracing the steps of presidents, patriots and pirates.
Edmondston-Alston House
One of the first dwellings built on the High Battery in 1825, the House overlooks Charleston Harbor and depicts the 19th-century commitment to elegance, style and comfort with its fine collection of family furnishings, books, silver and paintings.
Second Presbyterian Church
Organized as an outgrowth of the First (Scots) Presbyterian Church, this congregation attracted a new generation of Scottish merchants who planned an ambitious building, which was then outside of the boundaries of the city.
Citadel Square Baptist Church
The first spire of this Romanesque Revival style church was toppled by a hurricane in 1885 and the second by Hurricane Hugo in 1989. In 1990, a new steeple was raised which matched the 224-foot height of the first.
- Citadel Square Baptist Church
- 328 Meeting Street
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 577-3707
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church
Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church is the oldest AME church in the south. It is referred to as "Mother Emanuel". Emanuel has one of the largest and oldest black congregations south of Baltimore, MD.
Trinity United Methodist Church
Perhaps the least altered of Charleston’s late-Greek Revival church buildings, this imposing structure presents a monumental Corinthian-columned portico and massive dual flight of stone steps. In 1926, the Trinity Methodist congregation purchased the building from Westminster Presbyterian Church.
- Trinity United Methodist Church
- 273 Meeting Street
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 722-8449
Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim
Founded in 1749, this became the first Reform Jewish congregation in the United States in 1841, and is the fourth oldest Jewish congregation in the continental United States. The current sanctuary, c. 1840, is a National Historic Landmark. It has been described as one of the most impressive examples of Greek Revival architecture in America.
St. Johannes Evangelical Lutheran Church
Distinguished architect Edward Brickell White designed this Classical Tuscan church building at the corner of Anson and Hasell Streets. The sanctuary , at a cost of $11,000 was completed on June 15th and dedicated on June 22nd, 1842. In March 1872, the congregation now known as St. Matthew's Lutheran Church moved from this location to a new edifice on King Street. The building which they formerly occupied was sold to Salem Baptist Church in 1872 which they occupied until 1878. A group of 53 Lutherans from St. Matthews Lutheran Church decided to return to their original location and organized this congregation to be known as the “Deutschen Evangelisch-Lutherischen Sanct Johannes Kirche on April 11th, 1878.
St. Mary of the Annunciation
This building is the third church on the site and houses the first Roman Catholic congregation established in the Carolinas and Georgia. The group purchased the site about the time the congregation was incorporated by the South Carolina Legislature in 1791.
- St. Mary of the Annunciation
- 89 Hasell Street
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 722-7696
Circular Congregational Church, U.C.C.
Founded in 1681, Circular Church is one of the oldest continuously worshipping congregations in the Southeast. Today, it has over 300 members and is affiliated with the United Church of Christ.
St. Philip’s Church
Established in 1680, St. Philip’s is a center of vibrant worship seeking to live out its mission statement of building up the Body for the work of the Gospel. All visitors are welcome.
- St. Philip’s Church
- 142 Church Street
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 722-7734
French Huguenot Church
This church was designed by renowned Charleston architect Edward Brickell Wright for the oldest continuously active Huguenot congregation in the United States, organized in 1687. Each year, a service is conducted in French commemorating the Edict of Nantes.
- French Huguenot Church
- 140 Church Street
- Charleston, SC 29401
- Phone
- (843) 722-4385
St. Michael’s Church
St. Michael’s Church has long been considered one of America’s most sophisticated colonial church buildings. Edward Rutledge, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, signer of the U.S. Constitution, are buried in the graveyard.
First (Scots) Presbyterian Church
First Scots is one of the oldest ecclesiastical buildings in the city and its churchyard contains over fifty 18th century gravestones. Ties to the Church of Scotland are exemplified by the stained glass window depicting its seal.
First Baptist Church
First Baptist Church, Charleston, the earliest Baptist church in the South was organized on September 25, 1682 in Kittery, Maine, under the sponsorship of the First Baptist Church of Boston. Late in 1696, the pastor William Screven, and 28 members of the Kittery congregation immigrated to Charleston, South Carolina.