Washington Square is a park in downtown

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. It is located behind City Hall at the corner of Meeting Street and Broad Street in the

Charleston Historic District The Charleston Historic District, alternatively known as Charleston Old and Historic District, is a National Historic Landmark District in Charleston, South Carolina. The district, which covers most of the historic peninsular heart of the city, c ...

. The planting beds and red brick walks were installed in April 1881. It was known as City Hall Park until October 19, 1881 (the centennial of the Yorktown surrender), when it was renamed in honor of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

. The new name was painted over the gates in December 1881. The location of Washington Square once was the site of Corbett's Thatched Tavern. The city square was opened in 1818. Washington Square - 1800

Along the east wall of the park is a monument to Gen.

Pierre Beauregard Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard (May 28, 1818 - February 20, 1893) was a Confederate general officer of Louisiana Creole descent who started the American Civil War by leading the attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Today, he is commonly ...

, the Confederate general in charge of the city's defenses in 1862-1864. In 2004, the monument had repair work performed to correct a lean that had developed. In May 1901, a bust of Henry Timrod was unveiled in the park. In the center of the park is a memorial to the Washington Light Infantry. The memorial is made of Carolina gray granite and is a miniature version of the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C. The memorial is about forty-two feet high and is inscribed with the names of important military battles and the names of the unit's dead from the War Between the States. It was unveiled on February 23, 1891. A statue of

William Pitt the Elder William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, (15 November 170811 May 1778) was a British statesman of the Whig group who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768. Historians call him Chatham or William Pitt the Elder to distinguish ...

was once located in Washington Park. The statue was moved to Washington Park from the Charleston Orphan House on Calhoun Street in 1881 and placed on a new pedestal of Fairfield County granite. The statue suffered repeated damage, including a decapitation from a falling tree branch in November 1938, before being moved to the County Courthouse. A statue of George Washington was later installed on the base of the Pitt statue following some local controversy. Plans for the new work began in 1992. The Washington statue was going to be a twice-life-size sculpture by Felix de Weldon. Eventually, Jon Michel was chosen instead. The work, which cost $165,000, was unveiled on December 14, 1999.

References

{{reflist Parks in Charleston, South Carolina 1818 establishments in South Carolina Monuments and memorials to George Washington in the United States