Charles Town: Carolina’s First Enduring English Settlement
From 1670 settlement to the 1783 name change, Charleston anchored colonial South Carolina.
English colonists established a permanent settlement in 1670 that became Charles Town (later Charleston), the political and commercial heart of colonial South Carolina and state capital until 1790. Early records may use parish geography (e.g., St. Philip’s, St. Michael’s) alongside later county boundaries.
Core record groups include colonial land grants, parish registers, inventories, and merchant letterbooks. Always note whether a citation is pre-1769 district, parish, or post-formation Charleston County.