The South Carolina Historical Society

The South Carolina Historical Society More than a museum, library, or archives: a treasury of knowledge to be discovered.
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As the state's oldest historical society, our mission is to expand, preserve, and make accessible our invaluable collection, and to encourage interest in the rich history of our state.

Continuing our back to school series, today's image is a 1927 photograph showing a lively school day at Yorkville Graded...
08/25/2026

Continuing our back to school series, today's image is a 1927 photograph showing a lively school day at Yorkville Graded School.

Long before the building you see in this 1927 photo, this site was home to the Yorkville Female Collegiate Institute, a private school established in 1852. In 1889, the building became Yorkville's first public school. When fire destroyed it in 1900, a new school was built atop the original stone foundations, preserving the historic footprint.

The new building was completed in 1902, followed by a major expansion in 1922, giving us the Yorkville Graded School building that still stands today. It served as the town's white school until integration reached York's public schools in 1970, after which it operated as McCelvey Elementary until closing in 1987. Today it is the McCelvey Center.

This photograph is found in our Visual Materials Collection.

Continuing our back-to-school series, today's image is a photograph of children at the Brownfield School in Summerville,...
08/23/2026

Continuing our back-to-school series, today's image is a photograph of children at the Brownfield School in Summerville, SC, taken in 1884.

The Brownfield School (also referred to as Brownfield Academy) was a boarding school, opened in the late 19th century, housed in what was originally the residence of the Brownfield family.

This photograph is located within our Visual Materials Collection.

Yesterday, we had the pleasure of hosting a group of Charleston Southern University students, all majoring in Education,...
08/21/2026

Yesterday, we had the pleasure of hosting a group of Charleston Southern University students, all majoring in Education, at the SCHS Museum. The students were led on a tour of the building and learned about how they can implement our archives in their future classrooms by using our Traveling Archive Program.

We are excited to see future educators interested in sharing our state's history with the next generation!

Each year, the SCHS awards the Gignilliat Scholarship to support students of Huguenot descent who have demonstrated outs...
08/20/2026

Each year, the SCHS awards the Gignilliat Scholarship to support students of Huguenot descent who have demonstrated outstanding academic and extracurricular achievements in their pursuits of higher education. The Gignilliat Scholarship Fund was established in 1973 by Thomas M. Gignilliat, who stipulated that the recipients must descend from a Huguenot ancestor who settled in North America prior to November 28, 1787.

This year’s Gignilliat Scholarship recipients are Zain Sy and Hank Aeppli.
Zain Sy attended Saint Andrew’s Episcopal School in Potomac, Maryland, and is entering his sophomore year at the University of Southern California. He holds a Seal of Biliteracy (French and English) and is studying business and technology.
Hank Aeppli is a Mount Pleasant native and alumnus of Lucy Beckham High School entering his sophomore year at The Citadel. He competes as a student-athlete on the baseball team and is majoring in engineering.

Continuing our back-to-school series, today's image is a postcard of the Park School in Greenville, SC, postmarked 1911....
08/18/2026

Continuing our back-to-school series, today's image is a postcard of the Park School in Greenville, SC, postmarked 1911. Park School was one of the six public schools in Greenville at the time of this postcard. In 1940, the building, built in the Neo-Classical Revival style, transitioned to housing the Greenville County Public Library.

This postcard is found in our Visual Materials Collection.

In honor of back-to-school season, we're sharing school-themed images from our collections throughout the month of Augus...
08/16/2026

In honor of back-to-school season, we're sharing school-themed images from our collections throughout the month of August. 🏫🍎

Today's image is a postcard of the Port Royal School, found in our Visual Materials Collection.

Built in 1911, the Port Royal School is a Colonial Revival building, featuring solid concrete block construction. The school was designed by the respected South Carolina firm Wilson and Sompayrac.

Over the decades, the building has grown alongside its community. A 1954 addition brought a Modern style wing to the north, designed by William Harleston of the Charleston firm Halsey and Cummings. In 1997, the interiors and windows were updated to meet modern safety codes while preserving the building's original footprint. A 2002 addition in the Neo Craftsman style rounded out the complex we see today.

It is kinda chic to share your state's history!
08/13/2026

It is kinda chic to share your state's history!

Happy back-to-school season! 📚✏🍎This image, found in the Mikell Family Papers, features a group of school children and t...
08/12/2026

Happy back-to-school season! 📚✏🍎

This image, found in the Mikell Family Papers, features a group of school children and teachers.

08/12/2026

Never rush a museum lover.

The latest episode of From the Vault is live now!This month, we're stepping into the shoes of a schoolgirl in Charleston...
08/10/2026

The latest episode of From the Vault is live now!

This month, we're stepping into the shoes of a schoolgirl in Charleston during the last decade of the 19th century, thanks to a first-hand account of Frances Jervey's childhood held in our archives. The composition book was a school assignment from Misses Gibbes's School, and it includes topical essays, plus accounts of her Christmas holidays, summer trips to the mountains, and Charleston festivals, all written as letters to her teacher.

One of those festivals? The 1892 Gala Week, which Frances describes in her own words. We're sharing this poster from our archives for the event she wrote about.

Listen wherever you get your podcasts to learn what life was like for a girl in Charleston in the 1890s. If you're enjoying the podcast, please follow/subscribe and leave a review so other listeners can find us too!

Follow the link in our bio to listen! 🔗

Address

100 Meeting Street
Charleston, SC
29401

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+18437233225

Website

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