A Guide To Black-Owned Charleston

If you are looking for a tour experience that takes you beyond the run-of-the-mill sites and tour guide sound bites, this is for you. Gullah Geechee Africa Tours (GGAT) are led by historian and certified tour guide Godfrey Khill as he teaches of the Gullah experience. The tours include Gullah After Dark with Godfrey and the Gullah Geechee Tour with Godfrey, but we’d suggest the after-dark tour, a sunset experience that teaches the history of the Gullah Geechee people as Khill traces their steps through landmarks in town.

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Alt-Text: Godfrey Khill leads one of the highest rated Gullah tours in South Carolina

Franklin D. William of Frankly Charleston Tours invites you to come along to see what he calls “The Other Charleston.” This sightseeing walking/ride tour takes a look at the difficult truths of Charleston’s history as you walk through the Antebellum streets of downtown and learn pre- and post-Civil War stories. See historical sites like the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, founded in 1817. It is the oldest AME Church in the South. Franklin is known as a passionate, gifted, storyteller who takes you on a pilgrimage to the past and demonstrates its lingering effects on the present. 

The waters off the coast of Charleston are teeming with fresh seafood of all kinds. From the famous Carolina shrimp with its distinct sweet flavor to the blue crab, Charleston is a seafood lover’s delight. A great way to get up close and personal with these native crustaceans while enjoying the fresh sea air is with Charleston native Tia Clark, of Casual Crabbing with Tia. In this experience, you’ll learn how to cast the cage just right to catch a bounty of your own. From casting to baiting and pulling in your haul, you’ll get hands-on as you try to catch shrimp, crab, or fish, with Clark there to guide you every step of the way.

When Valinda Miller opened her bookstore in Summerville, SC, in 2014, she had no idea that she was the only Black-owned brick-and-mortar bookstore in the entire state. After moving the store to Goose Creek (about 45 minutes north of Charleston’s central historic district) in 2019, Turning Page Bookshop still holds that title. 

Her shop features books by African-American authors covering all genres, but she is quick to note that she sells books written by authors of diverse backgrounds in just about any genre you could imagine. Be sure to check the bookstore’s Instagram for info on book signings, community workshops, and more.

The International African American Museum (IAAM) is slated to open in early 2023, and is built on the site of Gadsden’s Wharf where countless Africans began their lives of enslavement in America. In fact, close to 80 percent of African Americans can potentially trace at least one descendant back to the port in Charleston, according to the IAAM Center for Family History, the museum’s research center that focuses on African American genealogy. Now, twenty years in the making, the museum—led by Dr. Tonya M. Matthews—will be dedicated to honoring the untold stories of the African American journey. 

Outside, the grounds of the African Ancestors Memorial Garden is designed as a place to reflect and experience site-specific installations like the infinity fountain that sits on the edge of the original wharf and a soundscape that explores diverse African languages. Inside, nine immersive, interactive installations will lead visitors through exhibits covering the disembarkation process, the slave trade, the Reconstruction era, and the Civil Rights movement. Safe to say, you’ll walk out with a greater sense of our nation’s history.