SCBPT
South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust
preserving South Carolina's Military Sites Since 1991.
Donations
28
A few of the
Grant funding
conservation easements
Sites preserved and managed
by the SCBPT throughout
South Carolina
HISTORICAL DOCUMENTATION
SURVEY
PRIMARY SOURCES
MAPS
DIARIES AND LETTERS
Research
SUSTAINABLE
MANAGEMENT
plan
ASSESS
record
LIDAR
gps
gIS
THREATS
LOCATION
EROSION
GROUND COVER
GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT
sITE MAINTENANCE
MONITOR PROGRESS
PRESERVATION TREATMENTS
IMPLEMENTATION
MANAGEMENT PLANNING
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
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digital content integration
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Featured Sites
A few of our protected sites
Fort Palmetto
Cole's Island, SC
Fort Palmetto, Cole's Island, 1861.
Plan of the fortifications on Cole's Island.
CSA Soldiers on Cole's Island, 1861.
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Fort Palmetto was a circular fortification of tabby construction believed constructed for the War of 1812. The fort was built on Coles Island, between Folly and Kiawah Islands, and designed to command the Stono Inlet and the entrance to the Folly and Stono Rivers.
In 1861, Confederate troops established seven batteries on Coles Island, oddly numbered Battery # 4 – Battery #9. Fort Palmetto was Battery #7. In a controversial move in March 1862, General Pemberton chose to abandon these batteries, moving their artillery pieces to more defensible positions further inland in the direction of Charleston and out of range of the guns of the Federal gunboats. Confederates removed sixteen pieces of heavy artillery from all batteries at Coles Island. Federal Troops soon occupied the Island and remained there until 1865.
Much of Coles Island was destroyed in the hurricane of 1911, leaving Fort Palmetto standing in the marsh just south of the remnants of the island. The tall tabby walls are still extant, though they have collapsed into the surrounding marsh. The Fort Palmetto site is preserved by the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust through a permit issued in 1992 by the South Carolina Coastal Council. The site is accessible only by boat at high tide. The remnants of the circular tabby wall are only visible at low tide.
Closed to Public
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Confederate Headquarters & Ammunition Depot
Adam's Run, SC
Adams Run was established as a summer village in the 1830’s for St. Paul’s Parish planters. The village was owned by three families (Wilkinson, Clements, and Barnwell) and village lots were rented for $15 per month. William Wilkinson was the first to build his summer home, which still stands today.
When Robert E. Lee assumed command of the Confederate forces in South Carolina in November 1861, he divided the South Carolina coast into six military districts, each with its own commander. Brigadier General Nathan George “Shanks” Evans was the commander of the Third Military District, headquartered in Adams Run. Evans chose the Adams Run summer residence of William Wilkinson to establish his headquarters and suggested that his wife Victoria join him there.
Several thousand troops arrived in Adams Run for training and constructing defenses. The Stono Scouts (John’s Islanders) and the Rebel Troop (Edisto Islanders) were headquartered in Adams Run, though they served as pickets on John’s, Wadmalaw, and Edisto Islands. In Adams Run, they served as guides and couriers for the commanding general’s staff.
In May 1862, Evan’s command at Adams Run was renamed the Second Military District. Later in July, Evans was ordered to a new command in Virginia and Colonel Johnson Hagood, a regimental commander on James Island, was promoted to general and placed in command of the Second Military District in Adams Run. Hagood continued to use the Wilkinson property as his headquarters. In November 1863, Hagood was transferred and replaced by Brigadier General Beverly H. Robertson for a short tenure.
View of the Wilkinson-Boineau House.
Brigadier General Nathan George “Shanks” Evans
Colonel Johnson Hagood
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Closed to Public
In December 1863, the districts were reorganized once again and Brigadier General Henry A. Wise of Virginia was placed in command of the newly established Sixth Military District headquartered at Adams Run. In May 1864, Wise was ordered to return to Virginia and Robertson was re-established as commander, a position he held until the end of the war.
On February 16, 1865, all Confederate forces in South Carolina were ordered to evacuate their positions and to retreat to North Carolina. Adams Run was evacuated the same day and the village was under Federal control on February 17, 1865.
Since the war, the property has been owned by only two families until it was purchased by the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust. The property was purchased with funds provided by a grant from the South Carolina Conservation Bank.
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Stono Ferry Battlefield
hollywood, SC
After a failed attempt to march on Charles Towne, British Major General Augustine Prevost retreated back to Savannah. He left a rear guard at Stono Ferry commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John Maitland. Maitland was entrenched in a strong defensive position on the north bank of the Stono River in an area known as Church Flats. Three artillery redoubts were constructed, circled by an abatis. Maitland’s 900 troops included Highlanders from the 71st Regiment of Foot, Hessians from the Regiment von Trumbach, and Loyalist troops from North and South Carolina.
Lincoln, with 1,200 troops, deployed after a night march of eight miles. They arrived at the Rantowles Road (Highway 162) at dawn on June 20, 1779. The Americans advanced in two wings and the battle began well for the Patriots as they advanced steadily in the first hour. In the midst of the battle, the British were reinforced by reserve troops brought across a bridge from John’s Island. Seeing these fresh troops, Lincoln ordered a retreat.
American casualties were 34 killed, 113 wounded, and 155 missing. Among the dead was Hugh Jackson, brother of future President Andrew Jackson, who died after suffering severe heat exhaustion. Also killed was Colonel Owen Roberts, commander of the South Carolina 4th Continental Regiment. His death was immortalized in a painting by artist Henry Benbridge (1743—1812). This painting is part of the collection of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
The British causalities were 26 killed, 93 wounded, and 1 missing. Most of the British dead and wounded were Highlanders and Hessians.
View of Stono River near the ferry crossing.
Plan of the battle of Stono Ferry on June 20, 1779.
The death of Col. Owen Roberts.
View of the the battlefield today.
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Closed to Public
This 1.38-acre property is the first portion of the Stono Ferry Battlefield to be preserved. The protected site contains a deep water cove depicted on period maps and past of one of the three British redoubts. The South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust purchased this battlefield property in 2014 with funds from a grant provided by the Charleston County Greenbelt Program.
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FORT PALMETTO
CSA HQ & DEPOT
STONO FERRY BATTLEFIELD
Cole's Island, SC
Adams Run, SC
Hollywood, SC
“To be ignorant of what occurred before you were born is to remain always a child. For what is the worth of human life, unless it is woven into the life of our ancestors by the records of history?”
Marcus Tullius Cicero
In the News
Read all about it
15
Once was lost, but now am found …
Mar
Ok, we borrowed the lyrics from Amazing Grace, but those words perfectly capture the emotion about a recent find by the SC Battleground Trust. You may be familiar with the story of the capture of the USS Isaac P. Smith on the Stono River in January 1863. If not, follow this link to brush up on your history.
The staff of the Battleground Trust is completing a two-year study of battles and fortifications in Charleston County. As part of that process, aerial LiDAR surveys were used to confirm the locations of extant earthwork batteries. This near infra-red light technology proves an excellent view of the raw topography of the land and is used by the Battleground Trust in battlefield reconnaissance.
In 1863, Lt. Colonel Joseph Yates located his four shoreline firing positions in a manner that placed the Isaac P. Smith in a box, vulnerable from all sides. The conventional wisdom from professional historians and hobbyists alike was that the three batteries that were constructed for this attack were all long since destroyed. The historic record confirms the placement of the lower battery on the western bank of the Stono River to be at Legare’s Point Place on John’s Island. However, in conversation with the Legare family, no one was aware of any extant battery on the property which is now Legare Farms.
Several months ago, however, an aerial LiDAR survey of the John’s Island shoreline on the Stono River revealed what looked to be an earthworks battery. Admittedly, even this aerial recon would take a trained technician to find it. Matt Luke, LiDAR technician with the Trust, excitedly thought, “Could this be one of the batteries that attacked the Isaac P. Smith?” He knew that experience has taught us that what looks to be a battery can often turn out to be a ditch line or a land dam, popular of John’s Island in the 19th century for marking property boundaries. Mike Yianopoulos, archaeology technician with the Battleground Trust, met with the Legare family and traveled to the site.
Our best hopes turned to reality. Mike and Thomas Legare were looking at a pair of small sunken batteries. Sunken batteries are easy to miss since the guns are placed in the hole and the parapet wall only needs to be a low-profile – perfect for avoiding detection by the Union lookouts while the battery was constructed. An archaeology survey of the site provided the necessary results to confirm the discovery.
The twin sunken batteries are positioned for their role in firing up-river to where the Union ship habitually anchored. Each battery is sized for one gun.
The Legare’s Point Place battery, commanded by Major J. Welsman Brown, “once was lost, but now am found.”
Linda Legare Berry, one of the three owners of Legare Farms, noted: "We were excited when the SC Battleground Trust approached us about locating the battery. Family stories had always said that troops on our property were instrumental in the capture of the Isaac P Smith. It was fabulous to have those stories validated. We accompanied the archeologist to the site and the battery was still there and intact. We look forward to working with the SC Battleground Trust to protect the site for the future."
The Legare family has been farming on John’s Island since 1725. Today, Legare Farms, owned by Linda Legare Berry, Helen Legare Floyd and Thomas Legare, raises beef cattle, pigs, and laying hens. They also offer a community supported agriculture program (CSA) allowing people to buy a subscription to their vegetable crops. They also operate Legare Farms Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2003, to educate the people of the Lowcountry about the food sources and the importance of agriculture in our lives. The foundation has an agri-tourism program that offers school field trips, summer camps, farm themed birthday parties, and a large pumpkin patch and maze each fall.
For more information about the work of the SC Battleground Trust call 843-743-8281 or email dbostick@scbattlegroundtrust.org. For more information about Legare Farms all 843-559-0788.
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The Civil War in
Mount Pleasant
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Featured Historic Maps and Documents
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PLAN OF SURVEYS FOR NAVAL coal DEPOT AT BAY POINT, pORT rOYAL, sc
Plan of Surveys for Naval Coal Depot at Bay Point, Port Royal Bay, SC [By] E. Willenbutcher 1862.
Image from NOAA's Office of Coast Survey Historical Map & Chart Collection
Available at:
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Battery Gregg Cummings POINT, 1863
Charleston, sc
Battery Gregg. Cummings Pt. Charleston SC, 1863.
By: Alfred Rudolph Waud
Library of Congress, Morgan collection of Civil War drawings.
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Carte de Port Royal et des environs, 186?
Carte de Port Royal et des environs : avec un plan de la côte du sud, depuis
By: G. Woolworth Colton
Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C.
Library of Congress Catalog Number
79695129
Available at:
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Sketch of Bull's Bay, 186?
Showing Earthorks at the Lighthouse
Sketch of Bull's Bay, 186?
Showing and earthwork fortification at the lighthouse .
By: Unknown
NOAA's Office of Coast Survey Historical Map & Chart Collection
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Upper PART OF BROAD RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES
COOSAWHATCHIE, SC, 1864.
SHOWING uNION EARTHWORKS FROM THE BATTLES OF dEVEAUX'S nECK AND HONEY HILL
Upper Part of Broad River and Tributaries, 1864
Shows the Union earthworks built during the Battle of Deveaux's Neck and Honey Hill near Coosawhatchie, SC
By: U.S. Coast Survey
NOAA's Office of Coast Survey Historical Map & Chart Collection
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The Attack of the Fort on Sullivan's Island
28 June 1776.
The attack of the fort on Sulivan's Island the 28 June 1776.
By: Henry Gray
From the Library of Congress
Available at:
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A SKETCH OF THE OPERATIONS BEFORE CHARLESTOWN, THE CAPITOL OF sOUTH CAROLINA. 1780
A sketch of the operations before Charlestown, the capital of South Carolina. [By] I. F. W. Des Barres, London, 1780.
From the Library of Congress.
LC Maps of North America, 1750-1789,
1554 g3914c ar155401
Available at:
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.gmd/g3914c.ar155401
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PLANS AND VIEWS OF REBEL DEFENSES, COAST OF SC, 1862.
Plans and Views of Rebel Defenses, Coast of South Carolina, by E. Willenbutcher, 1862.
Image from
NOAA's Office of Coast Survey Historical Map & Chart Collection
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FORT JOHNSON AND BATTERY GREGG
Fort Johnson and Battery Gregg, by Hofman, etween 1861-1865
From the Library of Congress
Available at:
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PLAN OF THE BATTLE FOUGHT NEAR CAMDEN, AUGUST 16, 1780
Plan of the battle fought near Camden, August 16th, 1780.
[By] William Faden, London, 1787.
From the Library of Congress.
Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C.
g3914c ar156400
Available at:
http://lccn.loc.gov/gm71000641
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