SOUTH CAROLINA: Carolina Day marks 249th anniversary of triumph on Sullivan’s Island
SULLIVAN’S ISLAND, S.C. — Saturday is Carolina Day, marking the 249th anniversary of the Battle of Sullivan’s Island during the Revolutionary War.
The battle was the first decisive victory over the British Royal Navy in the war and safeguarded Charleston at a critical time early in the revolution.
To mark the events of June 28, 1776, groups like the SC 250 Commission, Representatives of the Catawba Nation, the Charleston Museum, and more came together Saturday to bring history to life.
Activities at Fort Moultrie National Historic Park included cannon and musket firing demonstrations, cloth dyeing demonstrations, and fee-waived tours of the site.
READ MORE | “South Carolina gears up for Carolina Day 2025 with historic celebrations and family events“
What is Carolina Day?
In June 1776, South Carolinians and enslaved Africans began building a palmetto-log fort on Sullivan’s Island where the Fort Moultrie National Historic Park now stands, named after Colonel William Moultrie who led the small colonial force. On June 28, four British ships began sailing towards the fort after arriving off the coast of Charleston earlier in the month and Moultrie summoned the garrison to their battle posts. The British opened the attack with cannon fire from their ships but the unfinished fort held strong with the sturdy palmetto trunk and sand entrenchment proving too pliable for cannonballs to pierce, which helped inspire the palmetto tree’s inclusion on South Carolina’s state flag as a symbol of resilience and resistance.
By the end of the battle, every man on the quarterdeck of the British frigate Bristol was dead or wounded. Commodore Sir Peter Parker, whose breeches were damaged in the battle exposing his buttocks, ordered his squadron to withdraw, leaving behind the marooned Actaeon that was stranded on the shoal that would later house Fort Sumter and declared damaged beyond salvage. Over 200 British sailors were killed, while Moultrie only lost 12 men.
Of Moultrie’s victory, General George Washington wrote:
This glorious Example of our Troops, under the like Circumstances with us, The General hopes will animate every officer, and soldier, to imitate, and even out do them, when the enemy shall make the same attempt on us: With such a bright example before us, of what can be done by brave and spirited men, fighting in defence of their Country; we shall be loaded with a double share of Shame, and Infamy, if we do not acquit ourselves with Courage, or a determined Resolution to conquer or die: With this hope and confidence, and that this Army will have its equal share of Honour, and Success….With such preparation, and a suitable Spirit, there can be no doubt, but by the blessing of Heaven, we shall repel our cruel Invaders; preserve our Country, and gain the greatest Honor.
The information in this article was sourced from the National Parks Service. Read more here.
–wach.com
