– Tourists visiting historic #Charleston enjoy sightseeing and visiting scenic places as well as hearing stories of unusual events. The building pictured was built as Chareston’s first bank in the 1790’s. Before then, wealth was stored in homes, and credit was issued through private brokers. The new building instantly attracted the attention of robbers, and in 1802, a man named Withers began to tunnel from a drain across the street to get to the vaults in the bank basement. Apparently he was able to work for weeks without being detected, and dug a small tunnel all the way under the street. Eventually, the build up of moved clay and sand became noticeable, and Withers was arrested. He became known as the “ground mole” of Charleston. There are so many stories like these that I enjoy telling to guests taking my walking tours.
