Saint Mary of the Annunciation
Saint Mary of the Annunciation
Saint Mary of the AnnunciationSaint Mary of the Annunciation
Charleston, SC 29401
Hours: Open to the public
Monday - Friday: 9:30a - 3:30p.
The congregation of St. Mary's was the first Roman Catholic Church in the Carolinas and Georgia. The purchase of land at Hasell Street was around 1789 and construction of the church was in 1802. The Charleston fire of 1838 burned much of the surrounding neighborhood and destroyed most of the Catholic Church. The present church was built in 1839 in the Classical Revival style.
In 1960 the interior of the church was restored. The painting that hangs over the altar was originally painted in 1814, and hung in the earlier brick church. Salvaged after the 1838 fire, the original artist, John S. Cogdell, was able to restore the painting. The paintings on the walls and ceiling are copies of old masters and were painted in Rome before being installed in the church in 1896.
