The Historic Charleston Mills House

by Norma Brandsberg

Title

The Historic Charleston Mills House

Artist

Norma Brandsberg

Medium

Photograph - Photograph

Description

I love to walk in historic old cities. Why? Because I get to discover magical scenes like this historic Charleston courtyard. Charleston and Savannah are depositories of hidden spaces, tiny gardens, alleys, historic cemeteries...perfect for me to discover. I had to tiptoe into this space and quickly set up to capture the wonderful lighting surrounding this charming old copper fountain in it's midst. I love this scene...a gift to my senses. I hope you like it too. It exemplifies just one of those wonderful spaces I was discussing earlier.

After taking this photo, I had to learn more about this historic space.

The Mills House Hotel was built by local grain merchant Otis Mills and opened in 1853. The 180-room hotel was designed by architect John E. Earle and cost $200,000. The hotel survived the destruction of much of the city in the Civil War and was later renamed the St. John Hotel at the turn of the twentieth century. When President Theodore Roosevelt visited the South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian Exposition in 1902, he stayed at the hotel. It gradually declined as newer hotels opened, and was finally sold at auction in 1968 to Charleston Associates (Richard H. Jenrette, Charles D. Ravenel, and Charles H. P. Duell).

The new owners intended to restore the historic hotel, but found that the structure was unsalvageable. They demolished it in late 1968 (but saved the ironwork and cornices to reinstall) and built a 217-room replica with a largely faithful facade, only increased from five to seven stories. A three-story, brick building to the south (111 Meeting Street) was also razed to make way for a side entrance to the new hotel and a garden area pictured here.

Construction of the new hotel began on April 3, 1969. The hotel was designed by the New York-based firm of Curtis and Davis, with the Ruscon Construction Company as the general contractor, and local architects Simons, Lapham, Mitchell and Small consulting on exterior design and historic details. The original 79-foot iron balcony across the front was replaced with a 75-foot version, and some changes were made to the window cornices (the cornices on the first two floors were cast from originals, but upper floors received different cornices that the original). The chandelier in the Meeting Street lobby was acquired from Belle Meade Plantation, a Nashville, Tennessee house that was designed by William Strickland.

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Uploaded

November 14th, 2019

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