THE LEGACY KEEPERS

Editor in chief Steele Thomas Marcoux explores how Charleston preservationists are harnessing the city's vernacular to reinterpret the past and forge a richer future.

- Steele Thomas Marcoux

EVEN STORIES CARVED IN STONE can disappear if we're not careful," John LaVerne, founder of Bulldog Tours, observes while pointing out the barely readable markings in slate and marble tombstones in the Circular Congregational Church graveyard, one of Charleston, South Carolina's oldest. He shares the subtle yet significant admonition as he leads me on an architectural scavenger hunt of sorts, looking for the best examples of the city's design traditions. For exclusive access to bring guests here, LaVerne splits proceeds with the church to support its preservation. His sustainable tourism model, through which he has raised $6 million for historic landmarks in Charleston since founding the company in 2001, limits the number of people who can visit this prerevolutionary graveyard while supporting restoration of its 19th-, 18th-, and even 17th-century tombstones. (The oldest dates to the 1690s.)

These days, some of that work is carried out by students at the American College of the Building Arts (ACBA), a liberal arts school in Charleston with associate and bachelor of applied science degrees for which students specialize in one of six traditional crafts: architectural carpentry, blacksmithing, classical architecture & design, architectural stone carving, plaster, and timber framing. Our next stop is the campus, housed in Charleston's 19th-century trolley barn that was empty for decades until ACBA came along. LaVerne, who sits on the board, introduces me to President Colby Broadwater III, a retired lieutenant general with a passion for antiques and the decorative arts. Together, they take me through classrooms, workshops, and a world-class library including the Jefferson Collection of rare and historic architecture and design books.