Charleston: The Antebellum Neighborhoods and Buildings Hardcover – November 1, 2020

Let me answer the question that many of you want to know: Is this book as good as Jonathan Poston's "Buildings of Charleston" published in 1997? Well, yes, yes it is.So this book is an architectural survey of important historic buildings. And while Poston's book has more entries, this book gives each entry more historical and architectural attention. The book is arranged by neighborhood. Then the buildings are presented as entries in an encyclopedic, AIA-style format. Each entry comes with a black and white photograph, most of which are new to the book, but some of which are archival. The text with each entry is rigorous in its historical and architectural detail. Dating of buildings is precise, based on the latest available data.There are introductory essays that place the city and each of its neighborhoods in historical context. This framing material is good, but it is the catalog of buildings that makes the book. It is very, very good. Much better than I expected. For the houses, each entry includes a biographical note of builders and owners. It's a fantastically thorough book.In some cases I have found that the author has omitted certain houses for which he, perhaps, was not able to locate conclusive provenance, such as 82 Anson St, 117 Broad St, 311 East Bay St, and 35 Meeting St. These are important buildings in the fabric of Charleston, and their inclusion would have been welcomed despite less-than-pristine historic records.The book is most certainly not a coffee table book of glossy color photographs. Don't buy expecting that. It is quite similar in style to the excellent Buildings of the United States series published by the Society of Architectural Historians, but better. If you love Charleston, and you love historic architecture, are an architectural historian, tour guide, practicing artisan in restoration, or an interested heritage tourist, this book is for you. Get it before it goes out of print.Also, the physical book itself is impressively large and massive, and is beautifully printed and bound with quality material.

What a treasure of historical research with 1,000 photos, so well organized. I could not put it down!This is truly a collector's item and a must for any serious house history lover of Charleston. I am gifting copies!

I guess it helps if you live in Charleston!

Beautiful, comprehensive and well organized architectural history of Charleston. Will not disappoint!