L - Things to do in the spring/summer

New to Charleston A to Z?  Read this first. 

Pirate Monument

Living History – Plantations, and pirates, and plaques oh my.  I have never been to a city that prides itself in preserving its history quite like Charleston.  I got my first glimpse of this on a carriage ride downtown.  There are lots of historic houses and estates marked with plaques that detail famous southern owners who I have not learned about yet (give me some time, I am a yankee after all).  I can appreciate history on the fringes, so I enjoy Charleston’s pirate history.  One of my favorite monuments can be found in Battery Park.  It marks the capture of “Gentleman Pirate" Stede Bonnet and twenty-nine of his men and nineteen of Richard Worley's crew who all "met their just deserts."

Fort Moultrie on Sullivan's Island

There are bits of history scattered all throughout the area.  I can’t go into it all in this post, so I will just mention Fort Moultrie on Sullivan’s Island (the lesser of the Charleston forts).  For $3 you can tour the small museum and walk through the fort.  Moultrie is set on a beautiful beach landscape, but when you stand atop the fort, survey the island and consider that about 40 percent of African-Americans alive today can trace their ancestral roots to West Africa through the Sullivan’s Island/Charleston gateway you are reminded of an ugly past that should not be easily forgotten.  The “African Passages” exhibit in the Fort Moultrie museum helps bring this neglected piece of history to life.

Follow this link to read how a visit to FortMoultrie impacted a friend of mine.

Check out the National Park Service website for a nice summary of Charleston preservation history.

What Charleston living history is on your list of favorites that needs to be visited, or do you prefer to live in the now?  I would love to hear your suggestions for L activities for the spring/summer in Charleston.