Charleston Animal Society

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The South Carolina Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was founded in Charleston, receiving a state charter in 1874 and in 1880 a group of citizens, including many distinguished men of their times, met for the purpose of forming a humane society.. Its immediate concerns were to combat the rampant cruelty to animals, neglect of work-animals, the inhumane shipping of cattle and to resolve the epidemic of stay dogs. The newly formed Society elected Professor N. Russell Middleton president succeeded by Dr. John Ancrum. In 1900, the Society received a portion of Dr. Ancrum’s estate with the condition that it adopt his name and officially became known as the John Ancrum Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in 1940. The original records of the Society were presented to the Charleston Historical Society in 1948 In 1947 a group of newcomers to Charleston, met to combine their talents in a vigorous effort to revive the Society. They raised funds, established a relationship with the media, and fought for better housing for the animals in the city’s care. The city pound at that time was constructed of slats with wire flooring, located over a marsh at the southwest tip of the city. Due to the diligent efforts of the society, the city fathers recognized the inadequacies of the pound and promised to improve conditions. In 1947 the Society documented its first cruelty conviction and in 1948 the Society raised enough funds to build its first shelter. The shelter was located on the property of Dr. Leon Willis at 667 Meeting Street, adjoining his animal hospital. It was approximately 10’x12” and contained 14 two tiered cages and an outdoor run. Dr. and Mrs. Willis managed the shelter and maintained the records at no charge to the Society. In a few years the number of stray dogs and cats awaiting adoption overcrowded this facility, and the Society was obliged to provide larger quarters. The second shelter was built on the premises of Dr. Ernest Horres at 188 St Andrew’s Boulevard, Dr. Horres also provided services without charge. As the needs of the society grew, this shelter also became inadequate to meet the needs of the Society, and in 1961 the shelter was relocated to 820 Dupont Road. The Society remained at this location until 1979, when once again space became inadequate to meet the ever increasing needs of the Society. The John Ancrum SPCA assumed residency at its current location on Leeds Avenue in 1981.The official opening on December 31, 1980 culminated the efforts of an entire decade to provide the community with a superior facility for unwanted and stray animals. This first-class facility reflected a long and cooperative partnership between the agency and Charleston County Council. The county also terminated its own animal pound and contracted with the SPCA to provide care for all of the animals collected by animal control officers. The John Ancrum SPCA officially changed its name to the Charleston Animal Society in December 2007. The new name better reflects our role in the community as a collection of individuals committed to helping animals through rescue efforts, adoptions, humane education, and fundraising. In the spring of 2008, we completed our move into a brand new state-of-the-art 31,000 square feet animal shelter on Remount Road. Through the use of this life-saving facility, we now have the ability to house and care for nearly three times the number of homeless, neglected, or abused animals than we were able to in the old Leeds Avenue facility. We have a state-of-the-art spay..neuter clinic on-site to accelerate our efforts to eliminate rampant animal overpopulation and encourage more adoptions in the pleasant and welcoming atmosphere of the new building.