Edmondston-Alston House

The most noteworthy single attraction on the Battery [1] is undoubtedly the 1825 Edmondston-Alston House (21 E. Battery St., 843/722-7171, www.edmondstonalston.org [2], Tues.–Sat. 10 a.m.–4:30 p.m., Sun. 1:30–4:30 p.m., Mon. 1–4:30 p.m., $12 adults, $8 students), the only Battery home open to the public for tours.

The Edmondston-Alston House is one of the most unique and well-preserved historic homes in the United States, thanks to the ongoing efforts of the Alston family, who acquired the house from shipping merchant Charles Edmondston for $15,500 after the Panic of 1837, and still live on the third floor (tours only go to the first two stories).

Over 90 percent of the home’s furnishings are original items from the Alston era, a percentage that’s almost unheard of in the world of house museums. (Currently the Edmondston-Alston House is owned and administered by the Middleton Place Foundation, best known for its stewardship of Middleton Place [3] along the Ashley River.)

You can still see the original paper bag used to store the house’s deeds and mortgages. There’s also a copy of the Ordinance of Secession and some interesting memorabilia from the golden days of Race Week, that time in February when all of Charleston [4] society came out to bet on horses, carouse, and show off their finery.

The Edmondston-Alston House has withstood storm, fire, earthquake, and Yankee shelling, due in no small part to its sturdy construction; its masonry walls are two-bricks thick and it features both interior and exterior shutters. Originally built in the Federal style, second owner Charles Alston added several Greek Revival elements, notably the parapet, balcony, and piazza, where General Beauregard watched the attack on Fort Sumter [5].