Margaretta Childs Archive Collection

Caden Chapman, a College of Charleston graduate with a BA in English now pursuing his master's degree, interned in the Archives with Shannon Duffy at Historic Charleston Foundation this summer. His research uncovered unforgettable stories woven into Charleston's history, including a hidden dairy farm once located on Vanderhorst Street, an alligator named Wishy-Washy who lived on the grounds now home to Ashley Hall, and the tale of bootlegger Frank "Rumpty Rattles" Hogan, who was murdered by a rival on Market Street. Chapman calls the experience a privilege and an honor.

Before shrimp and grits became synonymous with Charleston cuisine, a free Black entrepreneur named Charles C. Leslie was reshaping the city's entire seafood industry. Born poor in present-day Mt. Pleasant in the mid-1800s, Leslie built a wholesale seafood empire, championed species once dismissed as “trash fish,” and became one of Charleston's wealthiest Black businessmen — leaving a legacy written into the city's food culture, its historic architecture, and the scientific record. This is his story.