“Hart” of West Ashley

Roy Hart. This name evokes food memories like no other. If you ask the question: “Do you remember Roy Hart’s?” A discussion will ensue about barbecue, or ham salad sandwiches, or grilled pimento cheese sandwiches, or chili, or milkshakes, or first dates, or gathering after football games or Virginia, or the red star, or sharing a Coke with two straws. Each is a delicious memory and one that is carved into the memories of everyone who grew up in the 1950s and 60s in St. Andrew’s Parish.
It seems everyone knew Roy Hart, or worked for Roy Hart, or has a story about being at Roy Hart’s and yet in over eight years of asking this question: “Do you remember Roy Hart’s?” only one picture of Roy Hart emerged and no photographs of any of his establishments have surfaced. But before Roy Hart was West Ashley, he was the “Talk of the Town” in Charleston. Listings in the Charleston City Directory and ads published in the Evening Post and the News & Courier have Hart initially operating soda shops downtown.
Long before the concept of “Byrnes Downs”, there were conversations with neighbors about the history of Byrnes Downs and the surrounding area.
One particular neighbor, Rutledge Corvette, was a marvelous storyteller. He may have been my first introduction to Roy Hart. Corvette’s tale begins when he was about twelve years old and was employed by Hart to wash dishes at the Berkeley Soda Shop. Although, Corvette’s real desire was to mix a soda fountain drink. Every now and then he was allowed to make a Coke, which was done by mixing syrup and carbonated water in just the right portions.
The Shop was located in the basement of the Berkeley Court Apartments. Corvette’s verbal tour of Roy Hart’s various establishments was detailed, fascinating and peppered with side bar comments, but every place seemed to only be known as “Roy Harts” even though the establishments had “official” names. It became important to know the period of time in which each individual’s story was told to have the correct location of the particular “Roy Hart’s”. Depending on the storyteller, you could be downtown, in St. Andrew’s Parish on either side of Savannah Highway, in South Windermere Shopping Center, or on Folly Beach. The title “Talk of the Town” was well deserved.
This is only the beginning with Roy Hart. Almost everyone’s story has one or two lines about Roy Hart. I would love to hear yours. Contact Donna at westashleybook@gmail.com.