Beautiful Ornamental Iron Gates of Charleston

                                                                                            

       The Beauty 
of the Iron Gates  of Charleston

Take a stroll through the streets of Charleston  -  catch a glimpse....

                                            Gates of  St. Michaels  Episcapal Church 
Decorative ironwork can be seen all around the city, in gates, balconies, railings, panels and finials. The oldest of these architectural treasures date back before the Revolutionary War. Balconies were forged by blacksmith as early as 1739 .

Sword Gate House

Sword Gate House  on Legare Street in Charleston.   Known for its elaborate gate. This home was built before 1810. The sword gate incorporates a sword and spear in the design.  This house was the home of an elite girls school in the 1820's.

The combination of wood and iron

Downtown  Charleston

St. Michaels Episcopal Church   Located on Broad Street and Meeting Street was  built in the 1750's.   President George Washington worshiped at this church on the afternoon of Sunday  May 8, 1791.  General Robert E. Lee worshiped on the same pew, No. 43, known as "The Governor's Pew" some 70 years later. 

   Lovely porches shaded by towering oak trees and  surrounded by beautiful iron fences.

 Block after block throughout the Charleston peninsula you have this feeling that you are walking the streets of history.  The beauty of moss-covered live oaks, horse drawn carriages, antebellum verandas, pre-Revolutionary courtyards, colonial churches and streets of cobblestone.  As you stroll down the streets of Charleston, you hope to catch a glimpse through one of these old iron gates to the secluded world beyond the busy streets.

    Intimate courtyard on Meeting Street, relax, sip a cup of coffee or a glass of iced tea.

The beauty of the scroll work

Take a glimpse of this intimate courtyard beyond the brick wall of privacy.

Chevaux-de-Frise  This is an example of an early security devise in Charleston. 

This fence projects wicked looking iron spikes to help

keep 

unwanted folks off your property.

Philip Simmons

photo by Claire Y. Greene

(1912 - 2009)

Philip Simmons  -  Blacksmith  Recognized  in All of America

Born on Daniel Island near Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

When he was 8 years old his grandparents sent him, by ferry, to Charleston to live to his mother.  Philip became intrigued and fascinated with ironwork as he walked to school.  He began visiting blacksmiths, pipe-fitters and other craftsmen in the area.

Philip Simmons became the most celebrated of Charleston iron workers of the 20Th Century.  He moved into the field of ornamental iron in 1938.  More than 500 decorative pieces of wrought iron gates, fences, balconies, and window grills in Charleston were decorated by Mr. Simmons's hands.

In 1987 the National Endowment for the Arts awarded him its National Heritage Fellowship - the highest honor the United States can bestow on a traditional artist.  Pieces of Mr. Simmons's work are in many museums around the country including the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC.       Mr. Philip Simmons  A True Charlestonian Legend

The Hibernian Hall  

          Iron  and columns provide limited entrance into a very private club for the Irish 

Secluded courtyards within the historic peninsula

Oaks draped in moss silhouette the walkway to this church 

Scrolls and circles adorn this open garden gate

 Rainbow Row    18 Century Georgian townhouses

Rainbow Row Balcony

    Rainbow Row   Iron gate leading to a private courtyard directly off the sidewalk on Meeting Street.

    Gates with  forged iron scroll motif, 

fleur-de-lis, leaf and flower patterns and circles are typical to Charleston.

Nicki Harris Williams is an award winning water colorist. She had an interest in the wrought-iron gates of the College of Charleston and produced a series of pen-and-ink drawings. 

Calhoun Street Gate 

Green Street Gate

Esther Pearlstine Gate    

                    Porters Lodge Gate

 Tower Gate          







  St. Philip Street Gate


Charleston has been shaped by its history.  It is a city that has had periods of great wealth and prosperity followed by generations of great poverty. The "Holy City" has endured two major wars, the occupation of invading armies, pirates and Indians, catastrophic fires  devastating entire blocks of the city in a day, numerous hurricanes and the largest earthquake ever to rock the east coast of the United States.
                                                      
                          Queen Street, a shady alley  by Joan Perry

 

                                                                

                                                                
                      Charleston, with its quaint streets and beautiful iron gates, 
                               evoke a gracious lifestyle and rich history 
                                            for all those who enter.
                                            

                                                            
                                  my "Belles Choses"       my  Beautiful Things
                                           
















                                                

Old Things Made Beautiful Again

     We have "things" in our lives that we can't let go of. We don't exactly know what to do with them or where to put them. We don't feel we are in a place, in our lives, to let go.  As with my Grandmother's chair, I moved this chair around for 20 years. I stored it in a garage,then the cat used it as a scratching post, it was then covered for years until its final resting place was collecting dust in my South Carolina garage. Now this old memory has been upholstered in a gorgeous
                                           Belgium linen. How beautiful.

     Objects, like this chair, allow us to relive an experience. We mentally connect and collect "things." When I look at this chair,I don't see a worn chair, I see a beautiful light green velvet chair in my grandmother's bedroom. I see this chair through the eyes of a child. It is something that has sentimental value, the memory of a past event. If I let it go, I feared losing my past completely.  In reality, this is not true.  Our memories are within us. We can hold onto our memories without holding onto "things."  Holding onto things can weigh us down mentally and emotionally. Letting go is freeing.  We will begin to make new memories without holding on to old stuff.
     It is beautiful to keep an object that is important to us. One, two, or three things, not storage sheds, stacked boxes, room of things that don't relate to our every day life. When we begin to accumulate alot of things, these things begin to create barriers in our lives. 
     Our lives are touched by people and sometimes a few of their "things."  It is important not to clutter our lives and memories with things.  Our memories continue to live within us. my "Belles Choses"  ...my Beautiful Memories 

The Beautiful Art of Weaving the Sweetgrass Basket

Sweetgrass basket making has been a part of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina for almost 400 years. Brought here by slaves from West Africa, basket making has been a tradition passed on generation to generation. Today it is one of the oldest art forms of African origin in the United States.
The Gullah culture is kept alive through story telling. Their dialect  appears to be a combination of a variety of African languages and English. Plantation owners would not allow African slaves to speak in their native language so they developed this dialect out of necessity.  
They remembered their past and preserved part of their culture by the crafting of sweetgrass basket weaving, boat building, and quilting.


The Gullah-Geechee is a unique cultural tradition that is part of this heritage. A rambling roadway, Highway 17 includes the region that has become known as Gullah/Geechee country. This is home to one of the oldest living cultures in the United States. It is a culture of unique speech, cuisine and crafts blending African, Caribbean and European elements.

Elizabeth's Roadside Stand

Highway 17, Sweetgrass Basket Makers Highway, has many roadside stands where you can observe the ladies, and some gentlemen, weaving their sweetgrass baskets by hand. It is truly an art to watch. A typical basket can cost one hundred to several hundred dollars, depending on the size and the intricate details.

Charleston sweetgrass is tall, thin and has a distinctive sweet smell. These woven baskets were originally used for collecting rice and cotton in the plantation fields.

Sweetgrass basketry is protected under the South Carolina law and is widely respected as a distinctive art form.  It can be found in residences of royalty and highly distinguished art museams like the Smithsonian Institute.

Benjamin Dawson picks sweetgrass 

                                                                               Sweetgrass Carrier  by Jonathan Green, a world renowned artist who has returned to his Lowcountry roots.

Flower Ladies of Charleston  by Virginia Fouche' Bolton
Sweetgrass baskets can be seen in the foreground of this painting.

Laughing Ladies of Broad Street  by Virginia Fouche' Bolton was a beloved local artist in Charleston.

Roadside stands along Highway 17

Vera Manigualt sews and weaves sweetgrass baskets

The absolute beauty of the craft.

I watched as Elijah Ford, a very kind gentleman, used his fingers and years of practiced talent to finish my sweetgrass basket. Mr. Ford has been making baskets for over 65 years. His mother, Florence Ford, taught him as a child. I think this basket is so beautiful. I appreciate all the time and labor that went into gathering the sweetgrass, drying it, and then weaving this piece of art.  I will cherish it always.     My "Belles Choses" ...my Beautiful Things