What locals are saying
The U.S. Custom House on East Bay Street is widely regarded as Charleston's most architecturally commanding public building — a Classical Revival monument of limestone, granite, and marble completed in 1879 after a construction saga interrupted by secession and war. The interior, centered on a two-story Business Room ringed by fourteen Corinthian columns, is largely off-limits to the public now, which frustrates those who make a point of seeking it out; you can peer through the bronze doors at the checkerboard floors and atrium, but that's typically as far as it goes. The forecourt and grand exterior staircase compensate handsomely — the steps host the Piccolo Spoleto 'Sunset Serenade' each spring, and the building serves as one of downtown's most reliable orientation landmarks.
