Location
The SCHS is housed in the Robert Mills Fireproof Building located at 100 Meeting Street in Charleston, South Carolina. South Carolinian Robert Mills designed the Fireproof Building in 1822 to protect public records. It is the first fireproof structure in the nation built specifically to protect documents. The building is in the Palladian style with Doric porticoes facing north and south. A central three-story oval stairwell with cantilevered stone stairs is lit by skylights located in the cupola.
Mills was the first professionally trained architect born in America. He was a federal architect under President Andrew Jackson and designer of many important buildings in Washington, D.C., including the Washington Monument. His Fireproof Building was named a National Historic Landmark in 1973, and major renovations were completed in 2002.
Read more about this topic: South Carolina Historical Society