Snowden community nears historic district designation in Mount Pleasant

The Snowden community, a post-Civil War Gullah Geechee settlement in Mount Pleasant established by freed African Americans, is at the final step to receive Charleston County historic district designation, Live 5 WCSC reported.

If approved, the designation will protect more than a dozen cultural landmarks within Snowden and require additional review to ensure new architecture fits the community's character.

Michael Allen, historian of the settlement and architect of the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, emphasized the importance of recognizing Snowden as a place of history, culture, and legacy.

Community members have worked for years on the application, aiming also to include Snowden in a pending subdivision moratorium alongside neighboring historic districts to help preserve land, culture, and heritage dating back to the 1860s.

The moratorium would require site plan reviews and public notices to neighbors within 300 feet before zoning permits are issued, addressing concerns about development and gentrification pressures on historic settlement communities.