1789 F1861
THE ANTEBELLUM PERIOD 1789 F 1861
Charleston saw tremendous growth during the Antebellum Period, inspiring a historic weeklong visit from President George Washington in 1791. The invention of the cotton gin in 1793 revolutionized cotton production and brought much prosperity to the area. Agriculture and business flourished culminating in elaborate hotel openings including The Planters Hotel, which began welcoming visitors and locals at its Church Street location. The Charleston City Market opened at its current location in 1804, and goods such as produce, seafood, and livestock were purchased on site. Charleston’s prosperity however, came at a heavy human cost, since much of its wealth was derived from the use of enslaved labor. Many of these men and women resisted this system. Denmark Vesey, a self-educated freedman, skilled carpenter, and a leader among African Americans living in Charleston, planned the most extensive slave revolt in U.S. history in 1822. As many as 9,000 slaves living in the city and on surrounding plantations were poised to attack arsenals, kill their enslavers, free the slaves and burn the city to the ground. Upon learning of the revolt Mayor James Hamilton organized a militia to halt the uprising. Some 130 people of color were arrested. Of these, 35, including Vesey, were hanged, and 32 were condemned to exile. The election of President Abraham Lincoln and the perceived threat to its economic system, which was founded upon slavery, caused South Carolina to secede from the Union on December 20, 1860. The following year, cadets from the South Carolina Military Academy (now The Citadel) fired shots against the American civilian steamship, Star of the West, which was attempting to get provisions to Fort Sumter. This was the first time shots were exchanged between North and South, and considered by some the opening salvo of the Civil War.
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