East Side Oral History Project

The East Side of Charleston is a historic African American neighborhood located on the eastern side of the Charleston peninsula. Today's East Side was once three individual suburbs called Hampstead Village, Mazyckborough, and Wraggborough.

The area has experienced much change since it was was planned for development as a wealthy neighborhood in 1769 by Henry Laurens. The neighborhood was destroyed during the Revolutionary War and later rebuilt, but residents fled during the War of 1812 due to a fear that they would be attacked like northern ports and harbors were.

Following the War of 1812, the neighborhood experienced increased demographic change as it became home to more enslaved Charlestonians who were allowed to live away from their enslavers due to the adoption of the "hiring out" and "living out" systems of slavery. As the population changed, so did the East Side itself. The city viewed the area as undesirable and relocated the city's incinerator and dump to the neighborhood. As industry grew, it was increasingly placed in the East Side due to the neighborhood's proximity to the railways. This caused a transformation of the neighborhood as the Charleston Gas Company, J. M. Eason and Brother's "pioneer foundry", William S. Henerey's foundry and iron works, and Wharton and Petsch's car manufactory all became established on the East Side. A shuttered factory was also converted into an almshouse by the city for the white destitute population.

The East Side again saw population growth after the Civil War and the liberation of enslaved Charlestonians due to an increase of Black Charlestonians moving to urban areas and neighborhoods that had been homes for Black communities for decades. The rising number of African American Charlestonians settling in the East Side spurred the development of businesses, schools, and churches that served the African American community and created a rich cultural hub.

Gentrification is increasingly a threat to the East Side community. In her oral history interview, Frances Mack discusses the displacement of Black families caused by the development of the Municipal Auditorium. The danger of gentrification has only grown stronger in the intervening decades as it further isolates the economy and community of the East Side.

Sources:

Grimes, Kimberly, Dale Rosengarten, Martha Zierden, and Elizabeth Alston. Between the Tracks: The Heritage of Charleston’s East Side Community. Charleston, SC: The Charleston Museum, 1987.

Pennebaker, Mills. “East Side Neighborhood.” Discovering Our Past: College of Charleston Histories. Accessed September 24, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20250924182721/https://discovering.charleston.edu/items/show/30.

Lea, Diane E, and Robert M. Leary and Associates. East Side Design Guidelines : City of Charleston, South Carolina. Charleston, S.C: Robert M. Leary and Associates, 1986.