Hurricane Hugo Damage Assessment Survey

Name/Title

Entry/Object ID

HUGO.001

Scope and Content

Hurricane Hugo made landfall just north of Charleston around midnight September 22, 1989, as a Category 4 storm. It produced tremendous wind and storm surge damage along the coast and even produced hurricane force wind gusts all the way into western North Carolina. At the time, Hurricane Hugo was the strongest storm to strike the United States in the previous 20-year period. The hurricane was also the nation's costliest in terms of monetary losses with damage estimates standing at $7 billion. Most buildings in downtown Charleston sustained significant damage, but the worst destruction occurred in beach towns north of Charleston such as Sullivan's Island and the Isle of Palms where the majority of homes were rendered uninhabitable due to the fact that this area received the strongest winds and highest storm surge. Fortunately, Hugo made landfall just north of Charleston as a track slightly farther south along the coast would have produced tremendous flooding in downtown Charleston. In addition, the relatively fast motion of Hugo diminished the amount of erosion along the coast. (Source: NOAA, http://www.erh.noaa.gov/chs/events/hugo.shtml) HCF was very involved in post-Hugo recovery, playing a large role in a city-wide (and vicinity) assessment of the damage done by the storm and in fundraising efforts for disaster relief. Areas covered by the damage assessment include: Charleston historic district and East Side, Adam's Run, Ashley River Road, Edisto Island, James Island, Johns Island, Kiawah Island, McClellanville, Rockville, Mount Pleasant, and Sullivans Island. The collection consists of: Damage Assessment: Building-by-building damage survey forms and corresponding photographs News articles Photographs and slides Documentation relating to the Historic Charleston Foundation Preservation Disaster Fund, including "The Impact of Hurricane Hugo on Historic Resources" by Preservation Consultants, 1990 Historic site inventories (19 vols.) Miscellaneous correspondence and other documentation related to the media, roofing, and the Red Cross

Collection

Hurricane Hugo Collection

Acquisition

Accession

HUGO

Source or Donor

Hurricane Hugo Collections

Acquisition Method

Collected by Staff

Lexicon

Search Terms

Hurricane Hugo, 1989, Hurricanes--South Carolina--Charleston County, Hurricane damage--South Carolina--Charleston County, Historic buildings--South Carolina--Charleston County--Conservation and restoration, Surveys

Legacy Lexicon

Object Name

Collection

Archive Details

Date(s) of Creation

1989 - 1990

Archive Size/Extent

~103 lin.ft. (document boxes) 19 spiralbound reports

Archive Notes

Date(s) Created: 1989-1990 Date(s): 1989-1990 Level of Description: Collection

Other Names and Numbers

Other Numbers

Number Type

Old Number

Other Number

2013.001.10

Location

Shelf

Shelf G

Room

Margaretta P. Childs Archives

Building

Missroon House

Date

February 7, 2023

Relationships

Related Entries

Notes

2008.011.1, 2008.011.2, 2008.011.3, 2009.002.056, 2009.003.013 Related Units of Description: HABS photographs

Related Publications

Notes

Search for subject Hurricane Hugo, 1989, for publications, videorecordings, and miscellaneous photographs. Charleston Magazine article "Remembering Hugo: 25 Years Later" (Sept. 2014) on Media tab

General Notes

Note

Notes: Collection located on shelves G1-6.

Created By

admin@catalogit.app

Create Date

July 9, 2013

Updated By

admin@catalogit.app

Update Date

February 17, 2023