The Battery Charleston – Civil War Relics and Relaxing Pathways

The Battery Charleston (and Park) in  Charleston SC, also known as “White Point Gardens” is a peaceful park offering views of Fort Sumter and the Charleston Harbor.

The other side of the park offers views of some the magnificent mansions. Battery Charleston Park displays weapons and cannons used in the Civil War which the children are welcome to play on and around.  You’ll see a Columbiad used to shell Fort Sumter in 1861, two seacoast mortars, and more….

The park is adorned with massive oak trees which provide ample shade.  A large white gazebo stands in the center of the park, and is often used for weddings.  The park makes a great place to take a break during your downtown tour.

White Point Gardens is surrounded by “The Battery”.  The Battery is a wall that holds the Atlantic Ocean away from the peninsula that is Charleston SC.  The battery provides a great place for a stroll around the tip of the peninsula of Charleston offering a view of the city and of the harbor.

When I was a child living in Charleston, a Sunday afternoon trip to the battery was a great way to spend the day.  My sister, mother and I used to walk around the battery and spend time in the Park. It is a great place to rest your feet while on visiting the city.

Civil War Memorial

White Point Gardens and The Battery is a living monument to the Civil War.  There are cannons on the edges of the park.  There, you will find children of all ages climbing and posing for pictures.  The cannons in the park are replicas of those used to defend Charleston during the war.

During the summer and early fall, Battery Park is one of the coolest places in the downtown area….. be sure to visit there, and take a short break.

Fun Facts: The Battery Charleston & White Point Gardens

• The city of Charleston started to develop near the Battery, which is where passengers sailing into the harbor were welcomed. At the peninsula’s tip, local Indians discarded lots of white oyster shells, which is where the name White Point came from.
• Under the Battery’s shady oak trees is a stone monument that informs visitors that White Point used to be a location of many pirates’ executions. Long ago, over a five week period, about fifty pirates were hanged under the oak trees. One of those hanged was Stede Bonnet, the infamous “gentleman pirate” (he was a landowner before turning to a life of crime). He was buried in a marsh nearby.
• As the Civil War broke out, the Battery & White Point Gardens became a city fortification. Nowadays, there’s an impressive display of historic cannons and mortars from the Civil War used to defend and
  shell the city. There’s a Confederate monument at the corner of East Bay and Murray.
• Around 1770, stunning mansions were built, and the area’s ugly history is eclipsed by its beauty today. Many of the mansions are still around, and they draw in a lot of tourists.