1732-Epidemic

Another yellow fever outbreak crippled the town. Business came to a halt. Most of the wealthy fled to their plantations. There were so many funerals that Dr. Alexander Gardner prohibited the tolling of bells because it would have been “constant.” The death toll was more than “one hundred and thirty whites besides a great many slaves” – about 7% of the population, including Thomas Whitmarsh, editor of the Gazette, and Eleazar Phillips, printer.

1755-Fortifications

Construction of the city’s fortifications began under the supervision of William De Braham. The biggest problem was the construction of a “grillage” (foundation) along the “boggy marshes” of Vanderhorst Creek (present-day Water Street). The grillage was built out of cedar posts, cypress planks and covered with layers of mud, lime and oyster shells. 

1773   

Edward Rutledge was called to the English bar, along with his Charlestown friend, Thomas Pinckney.

1780 – American Revolution

Governor John Rutledge arrived in Philadelphia and immediately began to urge Congress to send troops to support South Carolina.

1845

Macon Bolling Allen, a black, passed the Maine bar exam. He became one of the first blacks to practice law in America, first in Maine and then Massachusetts. He moved to Charleston after the War and established a law practice.