St. Andrew's Parish Church was one of ten Anglican churches established in South Carolina by the Church Act of 1706. The church was built in 1706, expanded in 1723, and restored in 1764 after a fire. It is the only extant colonial cruciform church in South Carolina. Rev. John Grimké Drayton of Magnolia Plantation led the church from 1851 to 1891 and was its longest-serving rector. Col. William Izard Bull of Ashley Hall directed an extensive restoration in 1855. The parish engaged in an active ministry to enslaved people before the Civil War and to freed people after it. The church was badly damaged in the Charleston Earthquake of 1886. It was dormant from 1891 to 1948, when it reopened to serve the growing population of West Ashley. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, survived Hurricane Hugo in 1989, and was restored in 2004-05. St. Andrew's continues to have an active congregation.
