This image of Washington Square shows a much different look than the historic park today, and offers some clues as to the date of the picture. This perspective is looking west from the park with the 1820’s Fireproof Building looming to the right. The tall poles pictured indicate it was in the era of electricity, but looking at the one to the left standing over Meeting Street, there are no lines for trolleys, which were electrified in #Charleston in 1897. Also, the structure pictured across Meeting Street to the left of the Fireproof Buildings is one of the 18th century buildings that were remodeled into the Timrod Hotel in 1902. The statue of William Pitt behind the seated women was moved to the park in 1881, and the barely-discernible saplings in the picture are live oaks planted in 1882. Because there is no visible damage to any of the buildings, added to the fact that live oaks grow fairly quickly, I would place this image at roughly 1883 based on visual evidence. <img.src=”Charleston Parks” alt=”Washington Square”
