"S" is for South Carolina Historical Society

"S" is for South Carolina Historical Society. Located in Charleston, the South Carolina Historical Society is the state’s oldest historical society and one of South Carolina’s largest private manuscript archives. Founded in 1855, the society’s mission is “to collect information respecting every portion of our State, to preserve it, and when deemed advisable to publish it.” To this end the organization’s founders established a noncirculating research library. In 1900 the society began publication of the South Carolina Historical Magazine. Over the years, the society’s collections have been housed in the Fireproof Building, the Charleston Library Society, and the College of Charleston. Today, the organization’s manuscript collections are housed in the College of Charleston’s Addlestone Library. In 1980, Charleston County deeded the Fireproof Building to the South Carolina Historical Society —and the building remains its headquarters today.