United States Post Office and Courthouse (Charleston, South Carolina)
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U.S. Post Office and Courthouse
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U.S. Post Office Building in May 2013
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| Location | 83 Broad Street Charleston, South Carolina |
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| Coordinates | 32°46′33″N 79°55′54″W / 32.77583°N 79.93167°WCoordinates: 32°46′33″N 79°55′54″W / 32.77583°N 79.93167°W |
| Area | 1.3 acres (0.53 ha) |
| Built | 1896 |
| Architect | John Henry Devereux |
| Architectural style | Renaissance Revival |
| NRHP Reference # | 74001835 |
| Added to NRHP | August 13, 1974 |
The U.S. Post Office and Courthouse is a historic post office and courthouse located at Charleston in Charleston County, South Carolina. The building and its annexes serve the federal court for the Charleston Division of the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
The building, completed in 1896 in the Renaissance Revival style, was designed by Charleston architect John Henry Devereux using gray granite from Winnsboro, South Carolina. The design includes a square tower, heavy balustraded balconies, rusticated base and quoins, great double doors, and high and broad steps meant to resemble an Italian Renaissance palace.
The U.S. Post Office and Courthouse in Charleston, South Carolina, is located on the southwest corner of Meeting and Broad Streets at the intersection known as the "Four Corners of Law." On the northwest corner, a 1792 courthouse represents the role of county government in Charleston. City Hall, built in 1802 on the northeast corner, symbolizes the presence of municipal government. Finally, St. Michael's Episcopal Church, built between 1752 and 1761, signifies divine law as a component in community life.
The Charleston Post Office is one of the oldest in the United States, having been established by George III in 1740, during the provisional governorship of William Bull. The site of today's U.S. Post Office and Courthouse was originally called Trott's wharf. A guardhouse and armory was built there the 1830s. Col. Isaac Hayne was incarcerated in the basement and executed by the British in this complex in 1781. The guardhouse was destroyed during the devastating 1886 Charleston earthquake. A decade later, the site was redeveloped.
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