Old St. Andrew's Parish Church

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Old St. Andrew’s Parish Church is in Charleston, South Carolina, beside the Ashley River. Built in 1706, it is the oldest surviving church building south of Virginia, and its graveyard has roots going back to the church’s beginnings. In 1723 the church was expanded into a cross shape, making it the only remaining colonial cruciform church in South Carolina. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. Today, Old St. Andrew’s is an active Anglican church, part of the Anglican Diocese of South Carolina and the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).

What the church stood for and who built it
- The Church Act of 1706 set up the Church of England as the official religion in the Carolina colony, created a parish system, and designated ten Anglican churches to serve the colony’s people. St. Andrew’s Parish was created to serve residents along the Ashley River.
- The parish covered a large area, including what is now West Ashley and James Island, and it operated as a local government area until 1865.
- The church building from 1706 was modest: about 40 feet long, 25 feet wide, brick walls, a pine roof, two doors, and five small square windows. A larger door facing the river was used by the gentry; a smaller door faced west for commoners and clergy. It’s believed enslaved Africans helped build the church.
- The churchyard covered seven acres and has long been part of the site’s history.

Early leaders and life at St. Andrew’s
- The first rector was Rev. Alexander Wood (arrived 1708). He died two years later, and Rev. Ebenezer Taylor led from 1712 to 1717 during a time of disagreement within the church.
- Taylor clashed with the vestry, and even faced banishment. Rev. William Guy then served from 1718 to 1750, one of the longest tenures in the church’s history. He started the parish’s first church records and helped establish a chapel on James Island to make worship easier for residents.
- The parish grew rich as the rice economy prospered, and later the indigo trade added to its wealth. This wealth came with the heavy burden of enslaved labor, which was central to life in the parish.

The 1723 expansion and 1764 rebuild
- Beginning in 1723, the church was expanded into a cross shape, adding a chancel and transepts and increasing the space for worship. The walls were given a roughcast or stucco look to blend the old and new brick, and a western doorway for the gentry remained a visible feature.
- In the early 1760s a fire damaged the wooden parts of the church. It was rebuilt and reopened in 1764 with a grand interior, including the east-end reredos (altarpiece), a balcony, a new floor, and other refinements funded by parish subscriptions.

The Revolution, the Civil War, and later years
- The American Revolution affected the church and its community. In 1780 British and Hessian troops camped near the church, and after the war the church, parsonage, and a James Island chapel were damaged. The parish work of rebuilding began again, with a new rector, Rev. Thomas Mills, in 1787.
- By the mid-1800s, the church and its plantations relied heavily on enslaved people. Three plantation chapels were built to serve worship on plantations around the parish.
- John Grimké Drayton, a wealthy planter and priest, served from 1851 to 1891 and oversaw a long period of change, including major restorations in 1855. The Civil War left the church in ruins around 1865, and the parish’s postwar revival took years.
- The church reopened for worship in 1876, and the Magnolia area chapels continued to serve enslaved and free Black congregants for many years. The 1886 Charleston earthquake damaged the church, and Black and white members gradually rebuilt the church in the following decades.

The 20th century to today
- The church rested for many decades and came under the Diocese of South Carolina’s care in 1916. From 1923 to 1946, occasional services were held.
- Old St. Andrew’s reopened on Easter in 1948 after repairs, but termites and other problems caused a temporary closure. A major restoration followed, with new electric lighting and improvements to the interior.
- The parish grew again in the 1950s and 1960s, and in 1955 it regained parish status. Magee House (the education wing) was added in 1963, and the church hall received later updates.
- In 1973 Old St. Andrew’s was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the church celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 1948 reopening in 1973.
- The 1980s through 2000s saw growth and renewal, including stabilization after Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and a major restoration project from 2004 to 2005 to fix structural issues uncovered in a planning study. The church reopened in 2005 and celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2006.
- In 2012 the Diocese of South Carolina disaffiliated from the Episcopal Church. Old St. Andrew’s voted to align with the diocese and left the national church in 2013. In 2017 the diocese joined the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).
- A long legal journey over church property followed, but in May 2023 the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that Old St. Andrew’s owns its own property, not the Episcopal Church.

Today, Old St. Andrew’s Parish Church remains an active place of worship with deep roots in Charleston’s history, a legacy of architectural resilience, and a continuing role in the region’s religious life.