Mount Pleasant Magazine Sept/Oct 2021

47 www.MountPl easantPodcas t . com | www. ReadMPM. com | www. I LoveMountPl easant . com design work. Outside, landscape architects, designers and the very people who have tended these gardens for the past 30 years or so — and who, as Epstein said casually, “know what will make or break a garden”— reveal the hidden spaces that speak volumes about history. But it’s not just the front of the house — it’s often the inner workings in the back that hold the intrigue and that whisper of secrets yearning to be uncovered. Along the streets, local storytellers weave together themed tours to thrill the romantic, the history buff, the photographer or the gardener in all of us. “What incredible resources we have right here in our neighborhoods,” Epstein exclaimed. She is not only the manager of tours but a horticulturalist who happily customizes tours of picturesque Charleston throughout the year for locals and visitors alike. With the volume of people moving here every day, this fall series becomes not just an attraction but a necessary history lesson about the city that has welcomed us all. “We have a social responsibility to be informed about our history and invest in understanding,” she explained. “As a resident, the more you learn, the more you will want to stand up and defend the authentic version of what Charleston’s history really is.” The Preservation Society of Charleston’s Fall Tours gives us reason to not only celebrate each opened gate but to pause and reflect upon the care that goes into upkeep or updates of each home. Each slice of history is preserved and adapted because progress demands it. feature