Historical and Archeological Investigations at the United States Post Office/Courthouse Annex Site (38CH838), Charleston, South Carolina

摘要

The planned construction of a new annex to the present United States Post Office and Courthouse in Charleston, South Carolina and the relocation of the associated park necessitated historical research to detail the land use history of the construction site as a basis for archeological testing followed by data recovery to mitigate the adverse impact to significant historical archeological resources. The land use history revealed a pattern of changing use over time, with pre-Revolutionary War use primarily upper class residential and post-1800 use primarily commercial as rented offices and rented dwelling/craft shops, with the transition period between the war and the turn of the century one of mixed use. Archeological testing determined that the original historic land surface used from the time of settlement until just after the 1886 earthquake is present on the site under sealing layers of fill laid down in connection with the construction of the present Post Office.