For all the beauty and mystique of Charleston' famed floral sites, there is nothing quite as simply sublime as the aura of White Point Garden. This 6.5 acre area offers an interesting contrast of statuesque oaks trees and banks of azaleas, mingled among an array of historic guns and military monuments. This southern tip of
Charleston's peninsula was mostly mud flat and sand bar in the colonial period, named for the oyster shells that bleached white at low tide. It was here that scores of pirates met an ignominious end on gallows meant to warn other offenders not to trouble Charleston from the sea, and fortifications were built to protect the city from incoming vessels. In 1834, the city dredged up harbor bottom to fill in the area as a public park, and a bath house was erected and bands played for a public eager to enjoy the cooling breezes and waters. In its early years, the park's soft grass and relaxing atmosphere were not for all to stretch their legs, however, and in 1853, turnstiles were erected and an ordinance issued prohibiting "cows, mules, horses and inebriates". Civil War turned the garden into a fortress again, with earthworks and guns replacing benches and flowers. So far from the blockading fleet outside the harbor, the White Point guns were sparsely used, and the most famous blast was from a cannon blown up by evacuating Confederates in 1865 that scattered one large piece into an East Battery Street attic where it lies today. Following the war, new trees were planted and the garden again became a popular gathering place, and after hurricanes damaged the bath house, it was removed and a central band stand built, where performers played regularly into the 1920's. Guns made a comeback too, but this time only for show. The accumulating arsenal included artillery from Fort Sumter, sea coast mortars, Revolutionary War guns, howitzers and rapid-fire guns, and the famous Keokuk gun, which had been retrieved from a sunken Union ironclad in 1863 and used by the Confederates. Nowadays, the big guns are irresistible to children who enjoy climbing, while parents wander the park reading inscriptions on eye-catching monuments dedicated to various defenders of the city from long ago. The old band stand has been fully restored and is now a popular location for outdoor weddings. From any of its benches or walking paths, people can view sailboats and ships passing in the harbor, getting a much more peaceful, pleasant reception in White Point Garden today.
