Both free and enslaved Africans helped shape Charleston�s economic and cultural life. Their agricultural knowledge is largely responsible for Charleston�s success. Ironwork, handmade sweetgrass baskets, she-crab soup and benne seed cookies are just a few of the well-known artistic and culinary contributions. Gullah, the Sea Island culture and language continues to survive today. This February, Charleston celebrates Black History Month by highlighting special events. The city�s history has been greatly influenced by the African American experience.

�All Americans should come to Charleston because they will learn so much about themselves and experience history first hand. The African-American experience begins in Charleston, SC and the Lowcountry. Those of us who live and work in the Lowcountry know that the area offers visitors a unique opportunity. It is the only place in the country where one can find a direct link between the African heritage of African Americans and the hybrid African-American culture that they developed in the United States. Indeed, one can argue that the roots of the African-American experience lie in Charleston and the Lowcountry of South Carolina.� - Dr. W. Marvin Dulaney, Executive Director, Avery Research Center

Avery Research Center For African American History And Culture Events:
Located at 125 Bull Street and established to collect, preserve, and make public the unique historical and cultural heritage of African Americans in South Carolina and the Lowcountry. Contact: Marvin Dulaney at 843.953.7609.

Carter G. Woodson Luncheon
On Saturday, February 5, the Charleston Branch of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History will host the Annual Carter G. Woodson Luncheon at the McKinley Washington Auditorium, at College of Charleston�s Avery Research Center, located at 125 Bull Street. The event will begin at 12 noon. Reservations are $10 a person and can be made by calling 843.953.7609 before February 1. Make plans now to be a part of this Charleston tradition.

Rededication Of Mckinley Washington Auditorium
The Rededication of McKinley Washington Auditorium will take place on Thursday, February 10. The Adande Drum and Dance Troupe will perform, and don�t miss a chance to hear original music by Dr. Trevor Weston of the College of Charleston Music Department. Admission is free. The event will be held at 125 Bull Street and will begin at 6pm.

Book Review And Discussion
�Real Men Read,� will focus on issues affecting the African American community. The featured speaker is John Walton, Vice Chairman of 100 Black Men of Charleston, Inc. Co-sponsored by 100 Black Men of Charleston; the ASALH, Charleston Branch; and the Avery Research Center, this afternoon event will be held on Saturday, February 19 at 3pm at 125 Bull Street. Admission is free.

Drayton Hall Plantation Events:
This National Trust historic site was built between 1738 and 1742. It is the oldest preserved plantation house in America open to the public. Contact: Jessica Kelley at 843.769.2600.

Connections: From Africa To America At Drayton Hall
Touch the Carolina Gold rice and glean a more in-depth understanding of American History. Offered at 11:15am and 2:15pm every day and included with gate admission, Connections: From Africa to America, is an interactive program about African-American life that traces the story of Africans from Africa to the Lowcountry and beyond. The program focuses on African-American history, contributions of African Americans to American culture, and specific individuals and historical events at Drayton Hall.

From Plantation To The City
Drayton Hall�s African-American history package, From Plantations to the City, provides groups with a comprehensive look at Lowcountry African-American history from the 17th century to the present. Tours begin on the Ashley River at Drayton Hall, where participants learn about African and African-American life while participating in Connections: From Africa to America. After learning about life on a rice plantation, groups travel to Charleston�s Historic District for an African American history walking tour.

Caw Caw Interpretive Center
This 654-acre site is just 25 minutes from downtown Charleston, Summerville and Walterboro. The Center, rich in natural, cultural, and historical resources, is comprised of several former rice plantations that operated during the 18th and most of the 19th century. Today, Interpretive Center staff manage the former rice fields and adjacent areas at the center as a wildlife sanctuary. Contact: Mandi Starnes 843.762-8089.

Every month is Black History Month at Caw Caw�
Here, as throughout the South Carolina Lowcountry, enslaved Africans were forced to apply their West and Central African agricultural experience, technology and skills to cultivate rice. Out of vast Lowcountry swamps, they successfully converted thousands of acres to rice fields. Fruits of their labor, such as earthen dikes, water control structures called rice trunks and canals, are still evident today.

Freedom Fighters Of The Stono
Near Caw Caw in 1739, African freedom fighters executed English colonists before being executed themselves by a colonial militia. Join the discussion of the bloodiest interaction in 18th century N. America between blacks and whites. Caw Caw Interpretive Center, February 12 from 10am-12pm.

The Charleston Museum
America�s first museum showcases a variety of cultural and natural history artifacts that tell the story of the South Carolina Lowcountry. Contact: Rachel Giesy at 843-722-2996.

Celebrating African Americans Second Saturday
Why wait until February to celebrate African-American history? Celebrate now at The Charleston Museum with sweet grass basket weavers, performers, storytellers and more. Second Saturday is a monthly program that is dedicated to providing an educational and exciting experience for the entire family. January 8 from 10am�12pm at the Charleston Museum.

Gullah Traditions � Home School History Day
Students will learn about the significant impact African-Americans have had on the Lowcountry by using artifact, documents, and replicas to understand the African-American experience from their lives in Western Africa to the plantations of South Carolina to life after the Civil War. This event will include an opportunity for families to pound and winnow rice, observe a basket weaver, participate in a paper weaving craft and more. February 8 from 10am-12pm at the Charleston Museum.

The Children�s Museum Of The Lowcountry
The Children�s Museum of the Lowcountry (CML) offers hands-on exhibits and environments for children, ages 3 months to twelve years, and their families to experience. Contact: Margeaux Boyer at 843.853.8962.

Storytelling
Bring the kids to listen as Dorothy Montgomery, a Storyteller and quilt maker that weaves her words into tales that will utterly delight the whole family. The program, on February 8 at 1pm, is free with admission.

South African Play
The CML Theatre Troupe will perform A South African Play at 2:30pm on February 20. This performance is free with admission and is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Dancing And Drumming Performance
This year, a West African dance and drumming company from North Charleston will perform for CML members and guests on February 12 at 11am. This amazing group of children ranging in ages from 5 to 19 will dazzle everyone with their talents. The program is recommended for all ages and is free with admission.

Middleton Place
Just off Highway 61, this carefully preserved plantation with 65 acres of America�s oldest landscaped gardens offers craft demonstrations, exploration of slave life, horse back riding, hiking, biking, kayaking and on site dining. Contact: Tanya Emerson at 843.556.6020.

African American Focus Tours
This tour provides insight into the lives of African Americans at Middleton Place and other Lowcountry rice plantations. Trained interpreters discuss the domestic life at Eliza�s House (a freedman�s cabin), rice cultivation at the Rice Mill and Demonstration Field where Carolina Gold rice is growing for its third successful year, and learn about religion and spirituality at the Plantation Chapel and Slave Cemetery. Included in the regular admission fee, this tour is offered daily at 11am and 1pm.

Tour Charleston, LLC
Gain insight into Charleston�s storied past with this tour company owned by locally renowned authors, storytellers, and historians - Edward Macy and Julian Buxton. Contact: Brook Lee at 843.723.1670.

Walking Tours
Beginning February 1, Tour Charleston will offer a walking tour focused on a comprehensive look at Lowcountry African American history from the 17th century to the present. Participants will have an opportunity to see and learn about such sites as the Old Slave Mart Museum, Phillip Simmons� gates, and The National Freedman�s Bank. This tour will also focus on the indefatigable Gullah culture. Call for tour times.

Other Charleston Area Sites:

Old Slave Mart And Museum
This is the last remaining South Carolina slave market in existence. Run your hand over the rough wood of a real auctioning platform, or peek inside a slave-interviewing booth. Africans were gathered here for sale to plantations or private homes. Closed temporarily for renovations, but you can stop by the historic building and see its original architecture. The Old Slave Mart and Museum is located at 6 Chalmers Street. Call 843.724.7395 for more information.

Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church
Originally established in 1816, the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church is the oldest black congregation south of Baltimore and its� congregation has survived numerous hardships and continues the legacy of those first members. Here you can listen for remnants of hymns sung long ago where blacks sought refuge and independent expression. Take a seat in one of the original pews and look at Ronald Jones� famous sculpture of black children, based on the stereograph, �South Carolina Cherubs.� Open to the public, 110 Calhoun Street.

Charles Pinckney National Historic Site
This historic site was established to interpret Charles Pinckney�s plantation Snee Farm, his role in the development of the United States Constitution, and the transition of the United States from a group of colonies to a young nation. Interpretive exhibits highlight these areas as well as the influences of African-Americans in the development of Snee Farm. Contact: Michael Allen at 843.881.5516.

To learn more about the Charleston area, please contact the Charleston Area Convention & Visitors Bureau at 843�853�8000 or 800�868�8118. Also, be sure to visit our website at www.charlestoncvb.com.
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�The mission of the Charleston Area Convention & Visitors Bureau is to unify and lead the local travel industry in marketing the Charleston area as an individual, meeting, incentive and group destination to both the domestic and international markets.�

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www.charlestoncvb.com
Visitor | Media | Meeting Professionals | Tour Professionals | Travel Council
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Phone/Contacts: 843�853�8000
Chris Nobles, Media Relations Director
Katie Chapman, Media Relations Manager
|Liz Scarborough, Media Relations Assistant|