The population was estimated to be 118,492 in 2007, making it the second most populous city in South Carolina closely behind the state capital Columbia. Current trends put Charleston as the fastest growing central city in South Carolina.
The city of Charleston is located just south of the mid-point of South Carolina's coastline, at the confluence of the Ashley and Cooper Rivers. Charleston's name is derived from Charles Towne, named after King Charles II of England.
America's most-published etiquette expert, Marjabelle Young Stewart, has recognized the city since 1995 as the "best-mannered" city in the U.S, a claim lent credibility by the fact that it has the first established Livability Court in the country.
The racial/Ethnic makeup of Charleston is 65.2% White Americans, 31.6% Black Americans, 1.6% Asian Americans, and 2.4% Hispanics or Latino (who may be of any race)
Charleston is served by Charleston International Airport (IATA: CHS, ICAO: KCHS), which is the busiest passenger airport in the state of South Carolina. The airport shares runways with the adjacent Charleston Air Force Base.
Interstate 26 enters the city from the north-northwest, and connects the city to its airport, Interstate 95, and Columbia, South Carolina. It ends at the Septima Clark Expressway downtown, which travels across two-thirds of the peninsula before merging into the Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge. The bridge and Septima Clark Expressway are part of U.S. Highway 17, which travels east-west through the cities of Charleston and Mount Pleasant. Interstate 526, or the Mark Clark Expressway, forms a half-circle around the city. U.S. Highway 52 is Meeting Street and its spur is Morrison Drive, which becomes East Bay Street after leaving the Eastside. This highway merges with King Street in the city's Neck area (Industrial District) to form Rivers Avenue. U.S. Highway 78 is King Street in the downtown area, eventually merging with Meeting Street to form Rivers Avenue.
The Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge across the Cooper River (South Carolina) opened on July 16, 2005, and is the largest cable-stayed bridge in the Americas. The bridge links Mount Pleasant with downtown Charleston, and has eight lanes and a 12-foot lane shared by pedestrians and bicycles. It replaced the Grace Memorial Bridge (built in 1929) and the Silas N. Pearman Bridge (built in 1966). They were considered two of the more dangerous bridges in America and were demolished after the Ravenel Bridge opened.
The city is also served by a bus system, operated by the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA). The majority of the urban area is served by regional fixed route buses which are also equipped with bike racks as part of the system's Rack & Ride program. CARTA offers connectivity to historic downtown attractions and accommodations with DASH (Downtown Area Shuttle) trolley buses, and it offers curbside pickup for disabled passengers with its Tel-A-Ride buses.
Rural parts of the city and metropolitan area are served by a different bus system, operated by Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Rural Transportation Management Association (BCD-RTMA).
The Port of Charleston consists of five terminals. Three are on the Harbor and the other two are on the Cooper River just north of Charleston's bustling harbor. The port is ranked number one in North America by Supply Chain Execs. Port activity, behind tourism, is the leading source of Charleston's revenue.
A new terminal is being built on the former Naval Station grounds to accommodate the growing needs of the port.
The city proper consists of six distinct areas: the Peninsula/Downtown, West Ashley, Johns Island, James Island, Daniel Island, and the Cainhoy Peninsula.
Charleston is located at 32°47′N 79°56′W/32.78°N 79.93°W/32.78; -79.93.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 347.5 square kilometers (134.2 sq mi). 251.2 km (97.0 sq mi) of it is land and 44.3 km (17.1 sq mi) (15%) of it is water. The old city is located on a peninsula at the point where, as Charlestonians say, "The Ashley and the Cooper Rivers come together to form the Atlantic Ocean." The entire peninsula is very low, some of it is landfill material, and as such, it frequently floods during heavy rains, storm surges and unusually high tides. The city limits have expanded across the Ashley River from the peninsula encompassing the majority of West Ashley as well as James Island and some of Johns Island. The city limits also have expanded across the Cooper River encompassing Daniel Island and the Cainhoy area. North Charleston blocks any expansion up the peninsula, and Mount Pleasant occupies the land directly east of the Cooper River.
The tidal rivers (Wando, Cooper, Stono, and Ashley) are evidence of a submergent or drowned coastline. In other words, the original rivers had a lower base line, but as the ocean rose or the land sank, the landform was changed. There is a submerged river delta off the mouth of the harbor, and the rivers are deep, affording a good location for a port. The rising of the ocean may be due to melting of glacial ice during the end of the ice age.
In recent decades, the urban area of the city has become elongated along Interstate 26, while being fairly short from east to west. Today areas with a population density of over 1,000 people per square mile extends continuously from the tip of the peninsula out to the Summerville area.
Charleston has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa), with mild winters, hot, humid summers, and significant rainfall all year long. Summer is the wettest season; almost half of the annual rainfall occurs during the summer months in the form of thundershowers. Fall remains relatively warm through November. Winter is short and mild, and is characterized by occasional rain. Snow flurries seldom occur. The highest temperature recorded (inside city limits at the Customs House on E. Bay St.) was 104 °F (40 °C), on June 2, 1985, and the lowest temperature recorded was 10 °F (−12 °C) on January 21, 1985. Hurricanes are a major threat to the area during the summer and early fall, with several severe hurricanes hitting the area - most notably Hurricane Hugo in 1989 (a Category 4 storm).
Charleston was hit by a large tornado in 1761, which temporarily emptied the Ashley River, and sank five offshore warships.
The Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of three counties: Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester. As of 2006, it was estimated that the metropolitan area had a total population of about 603,178 people. North Charleston is nearly as populated as the city of Charleston and ranks as the third largest city in the state; Mount Pleasant and Summerville are the next largest cities. These cities combined with other incorporated and unincorporated areas surrounding the city of Charleston form the Charleston-North Charleston Urban Area with a population of 423,410 as of 2000. This population is slightly larger than Columbia's urban area, making Charleston's urban area the largest in the state. The metropolitan area also includes a separate and much smaller urban area within Berkeley County, Moncks Corner (2000 pop.: 9,123).
The traditional parish system persisted until the Reconstruction, when counties were imposed. Nevertheless, traditional parishes still exist in various capacities, mainly as public service districts. The city of Charleston proper, which was originally defined by the limits of the Parish of St. Philip & St. Michael. It now also includes parts of St. James' Parish, St. George's Parish, St. Andrew's Parish, and St. John's Parish, although the last two are mostly still incorporated rural parishes.