French Quarter

Unlike the New Orleans version, Charleston [1]’s French Quarter is Protestant in origin and flavor. Though not actually given the name until a preservation effort in the 1970s, historically this area was indeed the main place of commerce for the city’s population of French Huguenots, primarily a merchant class who fled religious persecution in their native country.

Today the five-block area—roughly bounded by East Bay, Market Street, Meeting Street, and Broad Street—contains some of Charleston [1]’s most historic buildings, its most evocative old churches and graveyards, its most charming, narrow streets, and its most tasteful art galleries.