Park Circle

Park Circle is the focus of the master plan for North Charleston, designed by W.B. Marquis in 1912. One of the first modern planned communities in S.C., this 1500-acre development was completed shortly before World War II and grew with the wartime activity at the Charleston Navy Yard. Its four major avenues – Buist, Dupont, Montague, and Rhett – radiate from within Park Circle and were named for the developers who acquired and planned the neighborhood.

Erected by the City of North Charleston and the North Charleston Heritage Corridor, 2002 (Front) This house, built ca. 1712, is believed to be one of the oldest houses in Charleston. It was built for William Rhett (1666-1723), a merchant, sea captain, militia officer, and speaker of the Commons House of Assembly famous for capturing the pirate Steed Bonnet.

In 1807 Christopher Fitzsimons (d. 1825), a merchant and planter, bought the house, renovating and enlarging it and adding its piazzas. (Reverse) The asymmetrical plan of the house includes a central hall with two large rooms on the western side and two slightly smaller rooms on the eastern side. With the relative decline of “Rhettsbury” in the early 20th century the house was a boarding house during the 1920s and 30s.

 Marker erroneously numbered 10-4. It should read 10-43. Its restoration by Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin R. Kittredge, Jr., who bought it in 1941, was one of the first in this part of Charleston. Erected by the Historic Charleston Foundation, 2002