Maymester history class takes Charleston field trip

John Navin reports that his Maymester history class took a field trip to Charleston for its special topics course, Crime and Punishment in Early America.

The class received a guided tour of Charleston’s Old Jail, the first section of which was built in 1802. Students also visited the Old Exchange and Provost’s Dungeon, the Old Slave Mart Museum, the Charleston County Courthouse, City Hal, and one of Charleston’s oldest cemeteries.

Navin reports: "Ironic aside: On the drive home from Charleston, two students were fined for not wearing seatbelts, and I was cited for an expired vehicle registration. Crime and punishment indeed!"

Shown is an illustration of the Charleston Jail (on the left) and the Workhouse from Civil War Harper's Weekly, February 18, 1865