On Thursday, February 29, 2024, the Preservation Society of Charleston (PSC) hosted the 70th Carolopolis Awards, presented by Carriage Properties and The Charleston Place. Through this year’s program, the PSC recognized a diverse group of 12 winning projects. The Carolopolis Awards ceremony and reception is the PSC’s marquee event, celebrating and honoring the very best of preservation work in Charleston and the Lowcountry.
“Carolopolis projects are rarely about any one individual, but how groups of those devoted to stewardship can collectively work together to tackle challenges that can appear insurmountable,” said Brian Turner, President & CEO of the Preservation Society.
This year, the PSC is celebrating 70 years of honoring exemplary preservation work across the Charleston area. Over that time, nearly 1,500 awards have recognized a variety of residential, commercial, and institutional projects.
“From the first Carolopolis Award in 1953, still mounted at 313 King St., to the new construction projects we recognized this year, the Carolopolis Awards represent a continuous devotion to quality preservation-minded work, and a reminder of the people and events that preceded us,” Turner said.
This year’s 12 Carolopolis-winning projects span the downtown peninsula, into North Charleston, and east of the Cooper River.
Carolopolis plaques are awarded annually across five categories: Exterior, Interior, New Construction, Resilience, and Pro Merito, which is presented to previous Carolopolis Award-winners that continue to showcase preservation excellence or have undergone a second exterior rehabilitation or restoration.
The awards were handed out Thursday, Feb. 29, before a sold-out crowd at The Charleston Place.
ABOUT THE CAROLOPOLIS AWARD:
The Carolopolis Award was created in 1953 to recognize outstanding achievement in historic preservation. The presentation of a Carolopolis Award honors extraordinary private and public efforts to maintain the historic character and authenticity of Charleston and the Lowcountry. To date, the PSC has presented nearly 1,500 awards in recognition of such achievement. In 2016, the PSC introduced new awards for the preservation of historic interiors as well as compatible new construction, and further expanded the program in 2023 with the presentation of the first Resilience Carolopolis Award.
High-resolution photographs of projects and Thursday’s ceremony are available via Dropbox. Please credit Preservation Society of Charleston.
