Charleston, SC Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)

City Code § 2-196 sets out the city council's findings behind this division: the City of Charleston has a rich historical heritage which should be protected and preserved, and it is in the public interest that historical monuments, markers, and plaques be regulated under the police power of the City in order to maintain, protect and promote historical accuracy and preservation for the well-being and welfare of the citizens, residents and visitors of the city. Section 2-197 creates the thirteen-member Commission on History, appointed by the mayor with city council's advice and consent, including two sitting councilmembers, with preference given to professionals in history, preservation and historical curatorship.

Members serve one-year terms, a quorum is five members, and anyone who misses more than three consecutive meetings without an approved excuse is automatically removed. The commission's power under § 2-197(d) is advisory: it promotes the collection and preservation of historical data and the publicizing and commemorating of persons, deeds, events and things of historical interest, through publication, erection of monuments, markers and otherwise, can serve as a resource verifying information placed on city plaques, markers and monuments, and must report to city council at least annually on the condition of city statues and other monuments, recommending conservation measures.

The commission does not itself issue building or land-use permits for monuments; any monument sited within the Old and Historic District or a design-review overlay is separately subject to the Board of Architectural Review's approval under the zoning code, which this division does not replace.