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From VOA Learning English, welcome to This isAmerica. I'm Steve Ember. Today, Shirley Griffith and Itake you to one of the most beautiful and historic citiesin the United States – Charleston, South Carolina. TheCivil War began at its waterfront.

Come along with us!

Charleston sits on a piece of land in the southeasternUnited States that points like a finger to the AtlanticOcean. Rivers flow by either side of the city. They are the Ashley and the Cooper Rivers.

The people of Charleston will smile and tell you theAshley and the Cooper join to form the Atlantic Ocean. They know this is not true, but they like to tell the storyanyway. It shows how proud the people of Charlestonare of their city.

Charleston has a very rich history. It is the only city in the United States that can claim to have defended itselffrom American Indians, fierce pirates, Spanish ships,French soldiers, and British forces. It was first in manythings.

Along Charleston's Waterfront (ZeljkaBrannigan/VOA)

[Sound of old steam-powered train]

Charleston had the first continual train service in theUnited States.

It built the first museum and the first public flower garden in America. And thefirst battle of the American Civil War took place on a very small but importantisland in its port.

Charleston has some of the most beautiful and unusual homes in America. One travel writer has called Charleston the most friendly city in the UnitedStates. Charleston is all of these things and much more.

Plan your visit to Charleston for early spring, lateautumn or the winter months. The citizens ofCharleston will tell you their lovely city is not fun in thesummer. It is extremely hot. The summer heat isimportant to the history of Charleston.

Early settlers owned huge farms called plantations. In the 1700s, these farms produced a plant called indigowhich is used to make cloth the color blue.

Many plantation owners forced slaves to do the workneeded to grow indigo in the extreme heat. Slaverybecame important to the economy of Charleston. Theplantations, indigo and slavery are part of the history of the city.

At least three Indian tribes were living in the area thatbecame Charleston when Spanish explorers arrived in 1521. The Spanish explorers, and later, Frenchexplorers tried to establish settlements near that areabut none lasted.

English settlers first came to the area in 1670. Theyestablished a town. They called it Charles Town in honor of the English King,Charles II. The people of the city changed its name to Charleston in 1783.

The Pink House, oldest stone building inCharleston

Many people came to live in Charleston because it produced indigo and had agood port. The people who settled the area were hard working andindependent. They considered themselves citizens of England.

Still, they did not like some of the laws declared by the English government. The colonists successfully defended their city many times in the early 1700s. They defended it against both French and Spanish forces, and against raidsby Yamasee Indians and by pirates.

In 1719, the citizens of Charleston rebelled against the group of English menwho controlled their colony. They wanted more self-government. Britain'sKing George agreed. This change gave the people of Charleston a feeling ofindependence.

Charleston is still proud of its part in the war for independence. The cityprovided several political and military leaders during the American Revolution.

British forces attacked it two times, but were defeated by the people ofCharleston. The third time, the British captured the city and held it for morethan a year.

Charleston continued to grow after the American colonists had won theirindependence from England. The new federal government knew that the citywas important.

Workers began building a strong base to guard Charleston in 1828. This basewas on a small island in Charleston Harbor. It was named Fort Sumter. It was designed to guard the city from any future enemy.

There were no thoughts of war or future enemies while Fort Sumter was beingbuilt. The plantations near Charleston had begun to plant new crops like riceand cotton.

With the help of slave labor, cotton became extremely important to theeconomy of Charleston and much of the South. Many people in the northernUnited States began to think that slavery was very wrong, however.

A Residential Garden in Charleston, SouthCarolina

Slave owners in the South wanted things to remain as they had always been. They believed the federal government had no right to tell them what they couldor could not do.

A national crisis began when Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860. The people of South Carolina believed he would try to end slavery by force. They voted to leave the United States. They were quickly followed by othersouthern states. These southern states soon created the government of theConfederate States of America.

Federal troops controlled Fort Sumter when South Carolina voted to leave theUnion. The people of Charleston demanded the federal troops leave. TheUnion commander refused.

[Cannon shot]

On the morning of April 12, 1861, a cannon was fired at Fort Sumter. It was the first shot of America's long Civil War.

Charleston suffered a lot of damage during the Civil War. Several majorbattles were fought there. Late in the war another battle for control of FortSumter continued for almost two years. Much of Charleston had beendestroyed by the time the war ended. Rebuilding the city was a long and slowprocess.

The people of Charleston tried to save the historic buildings from the 1700s. They wanted to keep those buildings they felt were an important part of theircity.

The huge plantations near Charleston were also in need of rebuilding. Manyowners failed in their efforts because they could no longer use slave labor. Their farms became much smaller.

The historic buildings of Charleston were affected by weather as well aswars. Through the years, ocean storms have severely damaged the city. Amajor storm struck Charleston in September 1989. It killed 18 people andcaused more than three billion dollars in damage.

The huge storm had winds of more than 217 kilometers an hour. It causedhigh waves that severely flooded city streets.

The federal, state and city governments and individual citizens have spentmillions of dollars to rebuild and repair historic areas. So in some places,Charleston looks a lot like it has for several hundred years.

In the center of the city are stores in small 100-year-old buildings. The samefamily has owned one of the stores for almost 150 years. Fine eating placesthroughout the city serve southern food.

The people of Charleston will tell you they have some of the best eating places in the United States. Manyvisitors agree.

Fort Sumter, Charleston Harbor

Beautiful, old buildings are a major reason thousands ofpeople visit Charleston each year. One of the famousbuildings is the Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon. It was built in the early 1700s. It was a jail that held thefamous English pirate Stede Bonnet and his crewbefore they were hanged.

Several of the old plantation farms near Charleston alsoare open to visitors. One is called Boone HallPlantation. It is still a working farm. Boone Hall Plantation looks much like itdid before the American Civil War. It has been used as the setting for anumber of movies and television programs about the American South and theCivil War.

From almost anywhere along the waterfront inCharleston, you can see a large American flag flyingover the small island that still holds Fort Sumter. Mostvisitors go to the historic fort during their time inCharleston. Several companies provide boat rides to the fort.

Much of the fort was destroyed during the Civil War. But what remains of Fort Sumter is protected by theNational Park Service. Park workers meet each boatand explain about the battles that took place.

Charleston has many interesting places to visit. However, the people who livein the city really make it special. They are extremely friendly in a way that ispart of the culture of the American south. The people of Charleston continueto keep their city beautiful using modern technology to protect their historicpast.

Our program was written by Paul Thompson. Internet users can read andlisten to more stories on our website: learningenglish.voanews.com.com.With Shirley Griffith, I'm Steve Ember. Join us again next week for anotherThis is America from VOA Learning English.