The location of the cemetery had previously been a plantation known as Magnolia Umbra, the house of which was described as a newly built house with five rooms in 1820.[6] The cemetery was constructed during 1850, on plans laid out by Edward C. Jones, and included a Gothic chapel also designed by Jones which no longer exists.[7] The chapel, which was located near the central lake, remained under construction until early 1851.[8] Both the chapel and the porter's lodge sustained very heavy damage during the cemetery's occupation by federal forces during the Civil War.[9][10] The porter's lodge at the entrance was demolished in 1868, but the chapel continued to be used until at least 1876.[11][12]
According to a 1909 newspaper account, "There is a rule in Charleston that colored people shall not be allowed to parade through Magnolia cemetery, the principal burying place of the white citizens," and this exclusion policy was enforced regardless of social status, such as in the case of Dr. Crum being prohibited from driving through the cemetery.[13]
Notable interments
William Aiken, Jr. (1806–1887), US Congressman, South Carolina Governor
John Bennett (1865–1956), author and illustrator
William H. Brawley (1841–1916), U.S. Representative from South Carolina and United States federal judge
Sallie F. Chapin (1830–1896), organized the Charleston Woman's Christian Temperance Union in 1881, the first in the state and served as first State president in 1883
Langdon Cheves (1776–1857), American politician and a president of the Second Bank of the United States
^McNulty, Kappy; Nenie Dixon; Elias B. Bull (August 23, 1976). "Magnolia Cemetery"(PDF). National Register of Historic Places – Nomination and Inventory. Retrieved June 11, 2012.
^"The City of the Dead". News and Courier. May 9, 1876. p. 4.
^Mazyck, Arthur (1875). Guide to Charleston illustrated. Being a sketch of the history of Charleston, S. C. with some account of its present condition, with numerous engravings. Charleston, South Carolina: Walker, Evans & Cogswell. p. 118.
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