On April 12, 1861, Confederate batteries opened fire on Fort Sumter, the federal installation in Charleston Harbor. After 34 hours of bombardment, Major Robert Anderson surrendered; the Civil War had begun. The first shots came from Charleston because Charleston was slavery's loudest defender - the city that made fortunes from human trafficking, that led secession sentiment, that could not imagine a world without bondage. Fort Sumter is now a national monument, accessible by ferry, the brick walls showing damage from the bombardment that followed when Union forces tried to retake it. The fort where the war began reminds visitors what the war was about.

Charleston was the center of the American slave trade. Nearly half of all enslaved Africans brought to what became the United States arrived through Charleston's harbor. The Old Slave Mart on Chalmers Street is now a museum, the only known building used as a slave auction gallery that survives in South Carolina. The wealth that built the grand houses came from rice and cotton, grown by enslaved labor. The preservation that tourists admire preserved buildings that witnessed horror. Charleston has begun telling this history more honestly in recent years - the International African American Museum opened in 2023 on the site where enslaved people first touched American soil. The beauty and the history can't be separated.

Charleston's architecture is distinctive - the 'single house' design with its narrow end to the street, the double piazza (porch) catching harbor breezes, the pastel stucco covering brick. The Rainbow Row on East Bay Street is the city's most photographed block. The houses survived the Civil War, the earthquake of 1886, Hurricane Hugo in 1989, and the development pressure that demolished historic buildings elsewhere. Charleston's preservation movement began in 1920, earlier than most American cities, creating the historic district that drives tourism. The architecture rewards slow exploration - the ironwork, the gardens glimpsed through gates, the details that reveal themselves to those who look.

Charleston became a food destination when chefs discovered Lowcountry cuisine - shrimp and grits, she-crab soup, Hoppin' John, the rice-based dishes that enslaved Africans created from their foodways and available ingredients. The chefs who relocated here in recent decades built on that foundation, creating one of America's best restaurant scenes. The Hominy Grill, Husk, FIG - the restaurant names became national recommendations. The food draws tourists who might not otherwise visit a small Southern city; the food provides reason to return. Charleston's culinary reputation is earned.

Charleston is served by Charleston International Airport (CHS). The historic district is walkable; start on the Battery and work north. Fort Sumter requires a ferry; book ahead. The Old Slave Mart Museum and the International African American Museum provide essential context. Carriage tours offer architecture overview. The Charleston Museum claims to be America's first museum, founded 1773. For food, reservations are essential for destination restaurants; casual Lowcountry food is available everywhere. The heat and humidity are extreme in summer; spring and fall are best. The history is heavy; engage with it.