Charleston Living Magazine May-June 2023

Along this section of Broad Street, there
are some famous homes, including the Cooper
O’Connor House at 180 Broad Street,
where Union officers were confined by the
Confederacy, and The John Rutledge House
Inn at 116 Broad Street, the only home of a
signer of the United States Constitution that
now serves as both a living national historic
landmark as well as an inn.
Beloved neighborhood grocery store,
Burbage’s which located to 157 Broad Street
in 1961, still serves the close-knit neighborhood
today.
There’s greenspace along this stretch of
the street; man-made Colonial Lake was created
more than 150 years ago and a $5.9 million
revitalization by the Charleston Parks
Conservancy in 2016 made needed repairs
to the 140-year-old tabby seawall and added
significant gardens and benches for visitors
to enjoy.
On the Horizon
Nass said he’s eager to start transforming the
broadcast studio, further putting Broad Street
on the map. When he made the decision to
move to Charleston, he didn’t consider any
other area to live and work, bringing the postcard
image of Charleston to real life.
“I just think Broad Street, in some ways,
encapsulates everything Charleston has to
offer in the most powerful and meaningful
way,” Nass said. •
(Left): Burbage’s Grocery store on a quiet corner
serves food and deli sandwiches in the close-knit
neighborhood; (Below): Italian restaurant Sorelle is
a newcomer to Broad Street.
Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company, established
in 1865 at 58 Broad Street, was “a
visionary enterprise for the benefit of newly
freed slaves,” according to Eastman and
Stockton.
“The 1902 map reveals that the block
changed little and continued to reveal a
mixed neighborhood with commercial and
residential activities taking place next door
to each other,” according to Trinkley and
Hacker. “That included a tin shop, dentist,
hardware store, pharmacy, notary public,
printers and book binders.”
“Occasionally other businesses were
apparently rented space, such as Bernard d.
Schier, who in 1882 advertised cigars and
tobacco from this location,” Trinkley and
Hacker wrote. “At least one free person of
color was living on the block during the antebellum.
The 1831 residence of Gilbert Wall.”
The street was also rumored to have house
“Blind Tiger” pubs, underground bars that
popped up following an 1893 law that liquor
could only be purchased by the bottle and only
from a government-appointed dispenser.
“The blind tiger pub at 36 Broad Street
is a reminder of Charleston’s colorful history,”
writes Eastman and Stockton.
Beyond the Business Corridor
Broad Street’s beauty and history extends beyond
the commercial corridor, with a robust residential
area with wide porches closer to the Ashley River
on the Western end of Broad Street.
60 | CharlestonLivingMag.com