Magnolia Cemetery (Charleston, South Carolina)

Magnolia Cemetery
Vanderhorst Mausoleum
Magnolia Cemetery (Charleston, South Carolina) is located in South Carolina
Magnolia Cemetery (Charleston, South Carolina)
Magnolia Cemetery (Charleston, South Carolina) is located in the United States
Magnolia Cemetery (Charleston, South Carolina)
Nearest cityCharleston, South Carolina
Coordinates32°49′6″N 79°56′32″W / 32.81833°N 79.94222°W / 32.81833; -79.94222
Area92 acres (37 ha)
Built1850
ArchitectEdward C. Jones
NRHP reference No.78002502[1]
Added to NRHPMarch 24, 1978

Magnolia Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina.[2][3] The first board for the cemetery was assembled in 1849. Edward C. Jones served as the architect.[4] It was dedicated in 1850; Charles Fraser delivered the dedication address.[5] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a Historic District in 1978.[1]

The location of the cemetery had previously been a plantation known as Magnolia Umbra, the house of which was described as a newly built house with five rooms in 1820.[6] The cemetery was constructed during 1850, on plans laid out by Edward C. Jones, and included a Gothic chapel also designed by Jones which no longer exists.[7] The chapel, which was located near the central lake, remained under construction until early 1851.[8] Both the chapel and the porter's lodge sustained very heavy damage during the cemetery's occupation by federal forces during the Civil War.[9][10] The porter's lodge at the entrance was demolished in 1868, but the chapel continued to be used until at least 1876.[11][12]

According to a 1909 newspaper account, "There is a rule in Charleston that colored people shall not be allowed to parade through Magnolia cemetery, the principal burying place of the white citizens," and this exclusion policy was enforced regardless of social status, such as in the case of Dr. Crum being prohibited from driving through the cemetery.[13]

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ McNulty, Kappy; Nenie Dixon; Elias B. Bull (August 23, 1976). "Magnolia Cemetery" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places – Nomination and Inventory. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  3. ^ "Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston County (off U.S. Hwy. 52, Charleston vicinity)". National Register Properties in South Carolina. South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
  4. ^ . Charleston, South Carolina: Charleston Courier. January 1, 1850. p. 2. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. ^ Alfred L. Brophy, "These Great and Beautiful Republics of the Dead": Public Constitutionalism and the Antebellum Cemetery
  6. ^ City Gazette. Charleston, South Carolina. April 12, 1820. p. 1. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ^ "Magnolia Cemetery". Charleston Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. July 20, 1850. p. 2.
  8. ^ "The Magnolia Cemetery". Charleston Courier. Charleston, South Carolina. January 18, 1851. p. 2.
  9. ^ "A Visit to Magnolia". Daily News. Charleston, South Carolina. November 12, 1866. p. 2.
  10. ^ Jacob N. Cardozo (1866). Reminiscences of Charleston. J. Walker.
  11. ^ "The City of the Dead". News and Courier. May 9, 1876. p. 4.
  12. ^ Mazyck, Arthur (1875). Guide to Charleston illustrated. Being a sketch of the history of Charleston, S. C. with some account of its present condition, with numerous engravings. Charleston, South Carolina: Walker, Evans & Cogswell. p. 118.
  13. ^ "One on Dr. Crum: All Coons Looked Alike to the Irish Gate Keeper at Magnolia". The County Record. March 18, 1909. p. 7. Retrieved August 6, 2023.