I anxiously watched the weather all week, trying to find the perfect day for a beach trip. But the weather predictions kept changing on me, promising rain one day, sunny skies the next. Though rain was predicted for Thursday afternoon, we decided to chance it and head to the beach on Thursday afternoon.
But first, we needed to knock off two more historic houses in the city. These homes were just two blocks apart from one another in the south of Broad section of town (the ritzy part). Our first stop was the Nathaniel Russell House which features a three story free standing spiral staircase which is very impressive and which no one is allowed to walk on.
It was built by wealthy shipping merchant Nathaniel Russell in 1808 and is one of America's most important Neoclassical homes.
It stayed in the family until 1857 when it was purchased by Robert Allston, a rice planter, who lived in the mansion while he was governor.
It was a boarding school from 1870 to 1905 and was in jeopardy of being parceled off or torn down in 1955 when it was saved by the Historic Charleston Foundation.
The house has been beautifully restored and is lavishly decorated and furnished. The docent was more than knowledgeable but the tour dragged a little between stops as he talked on and on. I loved the historical detail, but the kids were growing restless.
The Georgian double house was built in 1772 by Thomas Heyward Jr., one of the youngest signers of the Declaration though it was the third house to stand on the site. It was rented and used exclusively by George Washington during his 1791 tour of the United States where he stayed for 8 days.
Thomas Heyward sold the house in 1794 to John F. Grimke, a Revolutionary War officer and the father of Sarah and Angeline Grimke, who would become famous abolitionists and suffragettes.
It currently houses the priceless Holmes Bookcase, considered one of the finest and best preserved pieces of Colonial furniture.
After the Grimkes, the house was considerably changed when a baker purchased the house and put his shop on the ground floor. It was acquired by the Charleston Museum in 1929.
It also has a beautiful backyard garden and an 18th century kitchen and stable.
I attempted to take a family photo. It's pretty much impossible to achieve. After our two tours, we headed back to our AirBnB and ate lunch before heading further south to Folly Beach. The skies were still overcast but the promised rain never came. The temperature was still in the low 80s and the beach was sparsely populated and the water warm. We found a nice spot with a small pool where we attempted to build sandcastles.
We went for a walk along the beach and collected sea shells. The water slowly rose up the beach, reclaiming our sand structures and nearly soaking our blanket of stuff. (David valiantly saved it just in time.) We spent a lovely three hours there. I almost wish we had come to the beach earlier and maybe several times during our trip. The kids, of course, loved it and the weather was perfect and it was delightful to be there on a day when so few other people were crowding its shores. And I always forget how warm the Atlantic is compared to the Pacific Ocean where I grew up.
That night we finally got the foretold rain in the form of a very impressive thunderstorm. Of course, it came at 3am and woke up all the kids but I love a good Southern storm.
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