A Qualitative Analysis of Graffiti Inscriptions at Ecclesiastical Sites in the South Carolina Lowcountry

The study of graffiti has become a multi-disciplinary study. Historical and modern forms of graffiti offer a unique perspective on the connection people have with religious sites over the span of three hundred years. Within South Carolina, the establishment of twenty-five churches throughout the Lowcountry from 1706 to 1775 offers an understanding of people’s connection to spaces from the beginning of South Carolina’s establishment to the present day. Their beliefs are reflected throughout the space of the building as congregations have left their imprint. In order to understand the relationship of people to the site over time, various methods were implemented, such as archival research, and a physical inspection of the site using field survey software to categorize and analyze the data. The data collected was characterized and analyzed geospatially to determine that inscriptions found at the ecclesiastical sites display a personal human attachment to a place that can give further insights into the evolution of architecture and religion in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. The findings present within this study reveal the human desire for object permanence through historical and modern versions of graffiti found throughout the sites assessed. The act of a person inscribing and expressing themselves in a space holds significance in the moment it is created and as time goes on. The inscriptions assessed in the following thesis demonstrate how graffiti attracts more graffiti from people, creating a continuum of human interaction with space and each other.