St. Michael’s Church

Perhaps the most iconic landmark of Charleston is the towering white spire of the St. Michael’s Church. Built between 1751 and 1761 at the corner of Broad and Meeting streets on the site originally occupied by the wooden structure of St. Philip’s Church, St. Michael’s is the oldest existing religious structure in Charleston and the whole of the State of South Carolina. The church was originally affiliated with the Church of England, and then came under the custody of the congregation of the Episcopal Church. In 2012, St. Michaels was disaffiliated by the Episcopal Church and was returned to the Anglican Church. To this date, the congregation continues to worship following the Anglican rites.

Except for the addition of the sacristy in 1883, the building of the church has remained largely unchanged throughout the centuries.