Sullivan's Is. victory to be celebrated

Wade Spees
The Post and Courier

Zack Pace of Lexington, a re-enactor with the 2nd South Carolina Infantry Regiment, gave a loud demonstration of his musket at Fort Moultrie on Carolina Day last year. Musicians from the regiment will provide music at this year's Carolina Day, on Saturday, at the fort on Sullivan's Island, which also will host many other activities.

Victory in the Battle of Sullivan's Island, which will be celebrated Saturday on Carolina Day, marked what long has been considered the first decisive win for the Patriots in the Revolutionary War.

It happened on June 28, 1776, six days before the final adoption of the Declaration of Independence and forestalled for several years the British efforts to take Charleston.

"More importantly to both South Carolina and the new nation, this daring feat against odds fired the imagination of its citizens," according to the South Carolina Historical Society. The Patriots, with 26 guns, humiliated a fleet of 20 British ships that included 270 guns.

"It was here, in a day-long battle, that a gallant and spirited band defeated in desperate conflict an overwhelming naval and military force, and having utterly whipped them, drove them from their shores," the Historical Society wrote.

The National Park Service will commemorate the 232nd anniversary of the Battle of Sullivan's Island at Fort Moultrie from 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free.

Park Service volunteers will demonstrate a Revolutionary War cannon, firing with a 6-pounder bronze cannon from the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park. Musicians from the 2nd South Carolina Infantry Regiment re-enactors will provide a 10-minute program of period music between the firings.

Sheila Ingle, author of "Courageous Kate: A Daughter of the American Revolution," will present a program in period costume on her fictional book for young adults at Fort Moultrie Visitor Center.

Ingle will be available to sign copies of the book, which is sold in the park's bookstore. Some of the programs will be outdoors, so families are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chairs.

The Powder Magazine, a National Historic Landmark (circa 1713) at 79 Cumberland St. in downtown Charleston will be free on Carolina Day. Families can participate in a self-guided "Patriot Walk" before the Carolina Day Parade, which begins at 11 a.m. at Washington Park and goes down Meeting Street to White Point Garden.

The Powder Magazine is one of the two surviving fortified structures of its kind in what were the original 13 Colonies.

It is the oldest public building in the Carolinas, if not in all the former British colonies, and is one of the few remaining surviving military structures associated with the siege and capture of Charleston by the British in 1780.

Reach Prentiss Findlay at 937-5711 or pfindlay@postandcourier.com.