The Old Sheldon Church

One of the nice things about only posting one picture a week is that I basically have an endless amount of content, as I’m always taking pictures. The downside though, is that I feel like I can’t just camp out on a subject because I get so behind. Ah Fripp Island, you were beautiful… but we must move on down the road!

Anyway, before heading home from South Carolina, Holly and I decided to go Charleston for a few days (have I mentioned how much I love my new job?). As it turns out, going from Fripp Island to Charleston, we passed a landmark I had wanted to see for some time, the Old Sheldon Church ruins.

Original construction of the church finished in 1753 and then the church was first burned in 1779 by the British, during the Revolutionary War. Yep, this is old stuff for America! Now, I say first burned, because it was actually burned twice! In 1826 the church was reconstructed to its former glory, only to be burned yet again in 1865 by General Sherman’s army!

Today all that stands of the Old Sheldon Church are the brick walls and pillars. Along with the ruins, the site is also home to some beautiful, moss-covered oak trees and is the final resting place of several Civil War era people. Both from a historical point of view, and an artistic one (the arches and lines had me busy for a while), it is well worth a visit if you find yourself in the area.

One quick tip, there is room for about two cars to park on the side of the street where the church is, but just across the street there is a nice sized gravel parking lot. If you’re like me though, you’ll be so focused on the two spots beside the site, that you’ll miss the parking lot just off the road!

–Dan Thompson

Old Sheldon Church