122 Logan Street

122 Logan Street is an excellent example of late 16th century masonry construction that has withstood the test of time and still stands today to serve the community of Charleston, South Carolina. This structure has lived many lives, experienced the lives of its previous tenants, and helped the living pass on when they died. The following information will walk us through the storied history of this property.

The land that 122 Logan Street sits on today was originally owned by Isaac Mazyck, Senior, on a road originally known as Mazyck Street, or Workhouse Lane. Upon his death, the land was split up among his children, and the land was then owned by his daughter, Mariann Mazyck Godin.

After passing through a few hands, the land came into the possession of Mathias Woolf. Mathias was a German immigrant, a butcher by trade, who leased to own the property from Mr. William Lennox and his wife, Judith, in 1791. The slot of land that Mr. Woolf received was 50 feet along Mazyck Street, and 213 feet in depth, which stays the consistent lot size until the 1940s. We can deduce from reading historic deeds that it was Mathias Woolf and his family that built the original structure that sits at the front of the property today.

Not long after the turn of the century, Mathias died and willed the house and the lot it sits on to his wife. She died not too much later, and the property was sold on her behalf to John M Happoldt.

After Claudia Bailey, the property was sold to a woman named Martha Stevenson, aka Mrs. M. Turner, aka Mattie Sherman. During her time at the property, the street number changed from 46 to 10, though this wouldn't happen until the 1900s.

Madame Mattie Sherman operated what was known as a "female boarding house" at the property located at 10 Mazyck Street after she purchased the property. Prior to the purchase, Mattie Sherman had been a renter and operated her business out of the house starting as early as 1898. Evidence of this is shown in a newspaper clipping from January of that year.

After Madame Mattie Sherman, the next notable property owner was a man named Vincent Chicco, who bought the property in 1919. He did not own the property for very long, but his story is one worth mentioning.

Vincent Chicco was born in Italy in 1851 and moved to America at a young age. He became a well known businessman in the Charleston area, opening restaurants and stores in the city. He sold alcohol in his stores and restaurants, however, this was illegal to do in the state of South Carolina at the time, which got Chicco into trouble with the law. Regardless, Chicco was still consistently elected to city council.

While he was a successful restauranteur and shop owner, he also invested in many properties. His ownership at what is now 122 Logan Street did not last longer than one month, and he sold the property in 1920 to a German immigrant and widower, Pauline Williams. While Pauline owned the house over the course of the next few years, it would act as a boarding house with many tenants through the years.

After Pauline Williams died in 1926, her daughters Hannah and Mary, as executors of her estate, sold the property to a gentleman named Julius P.L. Fielding. Born in 1886 to an African American family in Charleston, South Carolina, Fielding was persuaded to go to embalming school by his family. He did so, and was the sole black male graduate of the Renouard Training School for Embalmers out of New York City in 1912.

After graduation, Fielding moved back to Charleston and founded the Fielding Home for Funerals, located at 80 Queen Street, and later at 61 Logan Street. Fielding would go on to serve the African American community of Charleston and its surrounding communities.

Fielding relocated the family business to the family home at 122 Logan Street in 1928. In order to make the property a mixed use building, the family would live on the top two floors of the original three-story structure, as well as the top floor of the attached building in the back.

Fielding would often take the job that white undertakers would not want to take, which would often require him to commute to assist families off of the peninsula in areas like John's and James Island. The commute would require him to travel by row boat to conduct the embalming process on one day, and turn around the next day to conduct the service.

Fielding Home for Funerals is still in operation at 122 Logan Street and run by Fielding's children and grandchildren, a true testament to the operation of African American family funeral homes.

The next few sections will review how the property has evolved over the course of the last 200+ years.

While Charleston has faced its fair share of natural disasters, the structures at 122 Logan Street have remained fairly unscathed.

The earthquake of 1886 caused a great amount of damage to the city of Charleston in just one minute; approximately $23 million worth of damages (in 1978 cost estimates). 122 Logan Street was okay after the earthquake with minimal damages, only about $800 worth of damages (in 1886 rates). The walls on the north and south of the structure were in good condition, but the east and west walls were badly cracked and the tops of the chimneys fell down. The owner, L.B. Northrop, was recommended to anchor the east and west walls, repair the chimney tops, and rebuild the chimneys from the front foundation, however, no records were recorded of him taking advantage of work vouchers provided by the city.

Hurricane Hugo landed in Charleston in 1989 and barraged the peninsula and barrier islands with 120-138 mph winds, and flooding throughout. On the peninsula, many buildings received structural damages, and the roofs of many structures were torn off by the strong winds.

Where 122 Logan Street is concerned, there was minimal damage to the buildings on the property. A survey done on the property by Historic Charleston Foundation lists the shutters and the roof covering of the rear addition as the only components of the house with minor damage. Everything else on the house suffered no damage and remained in good condition.

Studying the history of properties throughout Charleston is an important task, providing insight into the lives of the everyday people who lived here and came before us. The history of 122 Logan Street is no different. From its humble beginnings as a family home, to playing a role in the red-light district in the early 20th century, to providing services to the African American community as a funeral home, studying 122 Logan Street has provided us with a glimpse into the always-evolving history of the city of Charleston.

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“Building Permits.” Evening Post (Charleston, SC). April 26, 1927, Page 15. Accessed from NewsBank, Inc.

Charleston County Public Library. “A Look Back at Hurricane Hugo.” Charleston County Public Library. Accessed from:  https://www.ccpl.org/hurricane-hugo 

Charleston County. “1886 Records of Earthquake Damage.” City of Charleston. Charleston County Library. Page 78.

Charleston County. Records of the Register of Mesne Conveyance. Deeds, Mortgages & Miscellaneous Records. 1719-present.

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City of Charleston. “Record of BAR Action for 122 Logan Street.” Charleston Planning Department, Charleston, SC.

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Fielding, Bernard R. “Charleston Living Legends: Fielding Home for Funerals,” by Randolph Miller, Live News 5, March 20, 2015. Accessed from:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2q-qK6hqNI&t=7s  

“Fielding’s Builds Memorial Chapel” Charleston News and Courier (Charleston, SC). October 3, 1948, Page 2. Accessed from NewsBank, Inc.

Greene, Harlan. “The Great Fire of 1861 Devastated the City, Driving People Away Before Union Troops Shelled the Streets During the Civil War.” Charleston Magazine. December 2021. Accessed from:  https://charlestonmag.com/features/the_great_fire_of_1861_devastated_the_city_driv ing_people_away_before_union_troops_shelled  

Greene, Harlan. “The Legendary Story of Vincent Chicco, a 19th Century Immigrant Restauranteur Who Faced Down the Governor Over Booze Laws and Won.” Charleston Magazine. August 2022. Accessed from: https://charlestonmag.com/features/the_legendary_story_of_vincent_chicco_a_19th_c entury_immigrant_restaurateur_who_faced_down

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“Legal Notice.” Evening Post (Charleston, SC). January 8, 1921, Page 10. Accessed from NewsBank, Inc.

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Mazyck, Isaac. Plat of 32 Lots North of Broad Street in Charleston. McCrady Plat Collection, Charleston, SC. Plat No. 0090. Charleston RMC.

“The New Chicco’s Delicatessen.” Evening Post (Charleston, SC). March 7, 1919, Page 15. Accessed from NewsBank, Inc.

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