Historic Charleston Foundation - Charleston, SC - Protecting Historic Interiors

By Jonathan Poston
Director of Museums & Preservation Initiatives, 1982-2006
Historic Charleston Foundation

rchitectural historians note too often the ease with which they have been able to find pieces of 18th and early 19th century interiors cavalierly thrown onto Charleston's streets for sanitation pick up. One architectural historian from Colonial Williamsburg claims that "dumpster diving" in Charleston is one of his favorite hobbies because of the treasures he finds in construction discard bins.

With the onslaught of higher real estate values and one of the highest homeownership turnover rates in the country, the refitting of Charleston interiors has become an increasing problem.

Too often, historic interiors are wantonly
gutted and rebuilt to suit modern,
passing design fads.

While some houses have been or are being superbly restored - such as the Miles Brewton House at 27 King St.; William Gibbes House at 64 South Battery; Caspar Christian Schutt House at 51 East Bay; and the Simmons-Edwards House at 14 Legare St. - other interiors have been damaged, or in some cases lost entirely, due to the imposition of modern kitchen and bathroom floor plans on 18th century interiors.

The most conscientious local restoration architects have become adept at fitting such modern intrusions into floor plans, yet not all owners and their builders respect 18th century woodwork, flooring, plasterwork and room sizes. Owners of public and commercial structures are sometimes even less sensitive.

The future of protecting historic interiors is a major subject of debate among national preservationists. Some American cities recently have adopted policies like those in Europe, where buildings are subject to ratings that protect their interiors as well as their exteriors. Trustees and staff of Historic Charleston Foundation have long advocated that the City of Charleston adopt ordinances such as those in New York and Boston that would protect certain historic interiors, particularly in buildings that have a quasi-public function.

Foundation staff also has placed strong emphasis on encouraging interior easements along with fa�ade easements. When the Foundation sells a historic building, covenants protecting both the interior and exterior are retained by the Foundation.

Interior easements are the best preservation
tool to ensure that features such as fine
woodwork are kept intact.

The Foundation holds interior easements on about 30 properties, ranging from Mulberry Plantation and the William Gibbes House, both of which were formerly owned by the Foundation, to donated interior easements such as those on the George Eveleigh House at 39 Church St. (c. 1745) and the Kincaid Western Tenement at 4 Legare St. (c. 1770s).

Through interior easements the Foundation ensures that room sizes remain the same, features such as woodwork and flooring are kept intact, and original lathe and plaster is restored and not replaced by sheetrock. Some observers have criticized Charleston for increasingly becoming a "Disneyfied" city. Through its easement and advocacy programs, Historic Charleston Foundation seeks to ensure that Charleston will not become a city of facades, but a city of real historic buildings that are still an active part of the community.

The challenge is not only one of legal protection, but of education as well. For years, the Foundation's staff has provided technical advice about interior features as resources have allowed, yet the task of keeping pace becomes more difficult with the continued renovations of Charleston's historic buildings. For more information on protective covenants and easements, contact HCF's Manager of Easements and Technical Outreach, at 843-805-6731.