Its National Historic Landmark description states: "Built in 1836 (spire completed in 1850), this stuccoed brick church features an imposing tower designed in the Wren-Gibbs tradition.

Three Tuscan pedimented porticoes contribute to this design to make a building of the highest quality and sophistication.

[3][4] Established in 1680, St. Philip's is the oldest European-American religious congregation in South Carolina.

Thomas Frost, a fellow of Caius College, Cambridge,[8] who became rector of St. Philip's in 1785.

[9] Leading the church in the post-Revolutionary War period, he had to create a new role after Anglicanism was disestablished in the United States.

Mary Roberts, the first female American miniaturist, was connected to the church and buried here in 1761, as recorded in the register.