From the Archives - Museum Ruins

City Museum Ruins, Cannon Park, Charleston, SC  © Doug Hickok

Charleston may not be as old as Athens or Rome, or have as many ruins, but it is old enough to have been ruined a time or two. Wars, earthquakes, fires, they've all left their mark on Charleston over the years. These Corinthian columns are all that remain of the old city museum that burned about 100 years ago. They stand as a monument of sorts in Cannon Park, where people gather these days to play with their dogs. This image was made a few years ago, on slide film, at twilight. The unusual green glow is the way the daylight film recorded the color temperature of the mercury vapor street lamps, which illuminated the ruins from nearby.