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C H A

C H A

(the city clean and healthy ; but are too narrow for
so large a place and so warm a climate. Their
general breadth is from 35 to 66 feet. The houses
which have been lately built are brick with tiled
roofs. The buildings in general are elegant, and
most of them are neat, airy, and well furnished.
The public buildings are, an exchange, a state-
bouse, an armoury, a poor-house, and an orphan’s
house. Here are several respectable academies.
Part of the old barracks has been handsomely fitted
lip, and converted into a college, and there are
a number of students ; but it can only be called as
yet a respectable academy. Here are two banks ;
a branch of the national bank, and the S. Carolina
bank, established in 1792. The houses for public
worship are, two Episcopal churches, two for In-
dependents, one for Scotch Presbyterians, one for
Baptists, one for German Lutherans, two for Me-
thodists, one for French Protestants, a meeting-
house for Quakers, a Roman Catholic chapel, and
a Jewish synagogue. Little attention is paid to
the public markets ; a great proportion of the most
wealthy inhabitants having plantations, from which
they receive supplies of almost every article of
living. The country abounds with poultry and
wild ducks. Their beef, mutton, and veal are not
generally of the best kind ; and few fish are found
in the market. In 1787 it was computed that there
were 1600 houses in this city, and 15,000 inhabi-
tants, including 5400 slaves ; and what evinces
the healthiness of the place, upwards of 200 of the
white inhabitants were above 60 years of age. In
1791 there were 16,359 inhabitants, of whom 7684
were slaves. This city has often suffered much
by fire ; the last and most destructive happened as
late as June 1796. Charleston was incorporated
in 1783, and divided into three wards, which choose
as many wardens, from among whom the citizens
elect an intendant of the city. The intendant and
wardens form the city-council, who have power to
make and enforce bye-laws for the regulation of
the city. The value of exports from this port, in
the year ending November 1787, amounted to
505,279/. 19^. 5d. sterling. The number of vessels
cleared from the custom-house the same year was
947, measuring 62,118 tons; 735 of these, mea-
suring 41,531 tons, were American ; theothers be-
longed to Great Britain, Ireland, Spain, France, and
the United Netherlands. In the year 1794 the value
of exports amounted to 3,846,392 dollars. It is 60
miles s. w. by s. of Georgetown, 150 e. by s. of
Augusta, 497 s. by w. of Richmond, 630 s. w. by
s. of Washington city ; 763 s. w. by s. of Philadel-
phia, and 1110 s. w. of Boston. Lat. 32° 48'.
Long. 80° 2' w. Knoxville, the capital of the state

of Tennessee, is much nearer to this than to any
sea-port town in the Atlantic ocean. A waggon
road of only 15 miles is wanted to open the com-
munication ; and the plan is about to be executed
by the state.)

Charleston, another capital city of the county
of Middlesex in New England; situate on the
bank of the river Charles. It is well peopled and
of a good construction, occupying the whole of the
space which lies between the aforesaid river and
that of Mystic, the former river dividing the city
from Boston, in the same manner as the Thames
divides London from Southwark. It has a raft for
the traffic of the river instead of a bridge, the fare
or produce of which belongs to the college of Nor-
wood in the city of Cambridge, which is close by :
this city is as it were the half of Boston, and its
situation, as being upon a peninsula, is very ad-
vantageous. At certain times it has fairs, and is
the meeting place for the assembly of the county.
It has a very large and handsome church, and a
marketplace, ornamentally and conveniently situate
on the river side, at which there are sold all kinds
of flesh, fish, and other necessaries ; it has two
large streets leading to it. The river is navigable,
and runs through the country for many leagues. Is
in Lat. 42° 24' n. Long. 71° 6' ay.

(CHARLESTOWN, the principal town in
Middlesex county, Massachusetts, called Misha-
wun by the aboriginal inhabitants, lies n. of Boston,
with which it is now connected by Charles river
bridge. The town, properly so called, is built on
a peninsula formed by Mystic river on the e. and
a bay setting up from Charles river on the w. It
is very advantageously situated for health, naviga-
tion, trade, and manufactures of almost all the va-
rious kinds. A dam across the mouth of the bay,
which sets up from Charles river, would afford a
great number of mill-seats for manufactures. Bun-
ker’s, Breed’s, and Cobble (now Barrell’s) hills,
are celebrated in the history of the American revo-
lution. The second hill has upon its summit a
monument erected to the memory of Major-general
W arren, near the spot where he fell, among the
first sacrifices to American liberty. The brow of
the hill begins to be ornamented with elegant
houses. All these hills afford elegant and delight-
ful prospects of Boston, and its charmingly varie-
gated harbour, of Cambridge and its colleges, and
of an extensive tract of highly cultivated country.
It contains within the neck or parish about 250
houses, and about 2000 inhabitants. The only
public buildings of consequence are, a handsome
Congregational church, with an elegant steeple
and clock, and an alms-house, very commodious