Concord Street, a

Concord Street, a

c. 1956-1957

11/21/2016 (date digital)

Bennett's Rice Mill

Back of photograph: "(c) Henry P. Staats / Bennet's Rice Mill / Chas. S.C. / Concord St." The Bennett Rice Mill is listed with many addresses, this quite possibly has to do with the time the photographs were taken. In the 1950s Bennett's Rice Mill probably was to be found on Concord Street, however depending upon the source material it can now also be listed as either behind 290 East Bay, which would now be considered on Washington Street. It is not so important, but clarification is often necessary if one wants to view the architecture for themselves. Bennett's Rice Mill was constructed in 1844 by Governor Thomas Bennett, who most likely served as the architect for the space as well. Although only the facade of the building can be seen today, Henry P. Staat's photographs do a tremendous job of illustrating the impressiveness of this once industrial space. It was interestingly smaller than some of the other mills on the peninsula. The large brick rice mill was designed in a Classical Revival style and was steam powered. By 1860 it was contributing to the nearly 300,000 pounds of rice the city was producing daily. This mill itself operated from 1845 until 1911 when it closed because a hurricane had all but destroyed the Lowcountry's rice crop. Upon closure the building deteriorated rapidly and although it was saved twice by preservationists from demolition, Hurricane Donna in 1960 took an extensive toll on it and only the western facade could be saved. This is the facade and the reminder of Charleston's industrial heritage that we have today peaking out from behind a grocery store. References: Poston, J. (1997). The buildings of Charleston: A guide to the city’s architecture. Columbia, University of South Carolina Press.

visible image 12 x 12 cm

Donated to CLS by Henry P. Staats.

Vories, Dylan (digital assistant)

This item is in copyright but can be used for educational purposes. Please contact Charleston Library Society for more information for any use not qualifying as educational use.

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Hinson Audio/Visual Collection

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