Theater and opera houses
Town Theater in Columbia
The Town Theater in the city of Columbia is the oldest theater in South Carolina still in operation. The building dates from 1924. Here visitors can find performances of musicals and classic theater productions. The Town Theater is on the list of Historic Places.
| Contact | 1012 Sumter Street Columbia, South Carolina 29201 www.towntheatre.com |
Peace Center in Greenville
The Peace Center in the city of Greenville, in northwestern South Carolina, is an art center that opened in 1990. The Peace Center building houses the Peace Concert Hall with 2,100 seats and the Dorothy Hipp Gunter Theater with 400 seats. The Peace Center is the venue for the Greenville Symphony Orchestra, the Carolina Ballet Theater, the South Carolina Children’s Theater and the International Ballet. Accordingly, concerts, plays, Broadway productions as well as magic shows by David Copperfield take place here.
| Contact | 300 South Main Street Greenville, South Carolina 29601 www.peacecenter.org |
Koger Center for the Arts in Columbia
The Koger Center for the Arts in the city of Columbia is an art center that opened in 1988. The Koger Center for the Arts is located on the campus of the University of South Carolina. The Koger Center for the Arts has over 2,250 seats and is the venue for the South Carolina Philharmonic. However, other concerts and events, such as the South Carolina Body Building Championships, also take place here. The London Philharmonic Orchestra has also played at the Koger Center for the Arts.
- See Countryaah for a full list cities and towns in South Carolina. Also includes counties, airports, zip codes, and public holidays of South Carolina.
| Contact | 1051 Greene Street Columbia, South Carolina 29201 www.koger.sc.edu |
Newberry Opera House in Newberry
The Newberry Opera House in the city of Newberry is a performance venue for various artists. The Newberry Opera House is located in a historic building from the year 1882 in the style of the neo-gothic style, which used to serve as a fire station and prison. The building’s clock tower is 40 m high. The Newberry Opera House is the venue for the South Carolina Opera Company and the Asheville Lyric Opera. The Newberry Opera House has been on the list of Historic Places since 1969.
| Contact | 1201 McKibben Street Newberry, South Carolina 29108 www.newberryoperahouse.com |
Museums and exhibitions
Charleston Museum
The Charleston Museum is the first museum ever built in the United States. It was founded in 1773 and has been open to visitors since 1824. The museum exists partly as a natural history museum, but also depicts local history, for example through local art objects. Visitors to the museum will find historical furniture, silverware, textiles, weapons and Egyptian exhibits. The Charleston Museum also includes two other smaller museums, the Heyward-Washington House and the Joseph Manigault House.
| Contact | 360 Meeting Street Charleston, South Carolina 29403 www.charlestonmuseum.org/home |
South Carolina State Museum in Columbia
The South Carolina State Museum in the city of Columbia is the state museum of the state. The museum opened in 1988 and is located in the former Columbia Mills Building from 1893. This former textile factory started production in 1894 and was the first textile factory in the world to be operated electrically. The museum’s work relates to the four core areas of cultural history, art, science and technology. The South Carolina State Museum is the largest museum in the entire southeastern United States. Highlights of the museum’s collection include a replica of the “Best Friend of Charleston”, the first US locomotive from 1830, and the “HL Hunley”, the first submarine to sink an enemy ship in combat.
| Contact | 301 Gervais Street Columbia, South Carolina 29201 www.scmuseum.org |
Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston
The Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston is an art museum opened in 1905. It is housed in a historic Beaux-Arts building, which is itself worth seeing. The museum’s collection features many works of art by artists connected to the city of Charleston. For example, Henrietta Johnston, Jeremiah Theus and Mary Roberts.
| Contact | 135 Meeting Street Charleston, South Carolina 29401 www.gibbesmuseum.org |
Columbia Museum of Art in Columbia
The Columbia Museum of Art in the city of Columbia is an art museum from 1950. The museum’s collection focuses on European and American art from ancient to modern. Highlights include Greek ceramics, Roman portraits, paintings by old masters from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, as well as works by Monet and Matisse.
| Contact | 1515 Main Street Columbia, South Carolina 29201 www.columbiamuseum.org |
Chapman Cultural Center in Spartanburg
The Chapman Cultural Center in the city of Spartanburg is a cultural complex in the northern part of the city center. The Chapman Cultural Center was opened in 2007. The Chapman Cultural Center consists of 3 buildings and houses the Spartanburg Art Museum, Spartanburg County Regional History Museum, Ballet Spartanburg, Little Theater, Music Foundation and the Science Center. The Chapman Cultural Center is the first port of call for visitors interested in history, art, music, science, dance or theater.
| Contact | 200 East St John Street Spartanburg, South Carolina 29306 www.chapmanculturalcenter.org |
Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in Mount Pleasant
The Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in the town of Mount Pleasant, known colloquially simply as Patriots Point, is an important museum and a place of remembrance. Here visitors will find all sorts of disused weapons and weapon systems. Highlights include the museum’s three ships, the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, the destroyer USS Laffey and the submarine USS Clamagore.
| Contact | 40 Patriots Point Rd Mt Pleasant, South Carolina 29464 www.patriotspoint.org |
Monuments and memorials
Fort Sumter National Monument at Charleston
The Fort Sumter National Monument is located in the Bay of Charleston. The historic fort on the man-made island is the place where the first military conflict of the American Civil War occurred. On April 12, 1861 at 4:30 a.m., the Confederates (southern states) began shelling the strategically important Fort Sumter, thus opening the American Civil War. Fort Sumter was still used for military purposes until 1948 and since July 12, 1948 it has been a memorial of national rank which is administered by the National Park Service. Nowadays, the visitor center and a museum are located in the historic concrete structure. This also belongs to the Fort Sumter National MonumentFort Moultrie National Monument. Together with Fort Sumter and Fort Johnson, they served to seal off Charleston. The memorial can only be reached by boat from Charleston.
| Contact | www.nps.gov/fosu/index.htm |
Memorial Park in Columbia
The Memorial Park in the city of Columbia is located on the Congaree River and covers an area of 16,000 m². The park is dedicated to the memory of fallen soldiers from the wars in the USA. There are monuments for the USS Columbia, the China-Burma-India Theater Veterans, Pearl Harbor, for surviving Holocaust victims living in South Carolina and a monument for Vietnam War Veterans. The park was inaugurated in 1986 with the unveiling of the South Carolina Vietnam Monument. The Korean War Memorial has been located here since 2000.
Brookgreen Gardens at Murrells Inlet
The Brookgreen Gardens near the town of Murrells Inlet in southeastern South Carolina on the Atlantic coast are a mixture of a sculpture garden, nature reserve and zoo. The Brookgreen Gardens cover an area of approx. 37 km² and were opened in 1932. There used to be a rice plantation here, the Brookgreen Plantation, which gave the gardens their name. The sculpture garden shows a total of 1,444 sculptures and occupies approximately 2.23 km² of the total area. The sculpture garden has had the status of a National Historic Landmark since 1984.
| Contact | 1931 Brookgreen Drive Murrells Inlet, South Carolina 29576 www.brookgreen.org |
Cowpens National Battlefield at Gaffney
The Cowpens National Battlefield is located near the city of Gaffney in northern South Carolina, near the North Carolina border. A battle took place here in 1781 during the American War of Independence. This memorial has existed since 1929 and covers an area of approximately 3.4 km². In addition to hikes across the former battlefield, the attached museum is highly recommended.
| Contact | www.nps.gov/cowp |
Kings Mountain National Military Park near Blacksburg
The Kings Mountain National Military Park is located near the city of Blacksburg in northern South Carolina, near the North Carolina border. Kings Mountain National Military Park commemorates the Battle of Kings Mountain in 1780 during the Revolutionary War. This memorial has existed since 1931 and covers an area of approximately 16 km². It is the terminus of the Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail. In addition to hiking on the approximately 2.5 km long path across the former battlefield, a visit to the Kings Mountain Monument is highly recommended. The Kings Mountain State Park, which also offers overnight accommodation, is directly adjacent to the Kings Mountain National Military Park.
| Contact | Park Road Blacksburg, South Carolina 29702 www.nps.gov/kimo |
Ninety Six National Historic Site at Greenwood
The Ninety Six National Historic Site is located in northwest South Carolina, near the city of Greenwood. The Ninety Six National Historic Site commemorates Ninety Six and its history during the War of Independence. The first battle in the South Carolina area took place here in 1775. Overall, the Ninety Six National Historic Site covers an area of approximately 4.14 km². Ninety Six has been on the list of National Historic Landmarks since 1973 and the area has been a National Historic Site since 1976. In addition to the small museum, the hiking trail of the facility is recommended, for which there is an audio guide.
| Contact | 1103 Highway 248 Ninety Six, South Carolina 29666 www.nps.gov/nisi |
