Battle of Port Royal - BCL/BHM 2:2

Lecture 2, Season 2 of the Beaufort County Library/Beaufort History Museum local history series revisits a key Civil War event on its 156th anniversary.   

The Battle of Port Royal Sound was one of the earliest naval operations of the  Civil War. On November 7, 1861, a massive U. S. Naval fleet and U. S. Army expeditionary force sailed into Port Royal Sound and captured Fort Walker on Hilton Head and Fort Beauregard on Bay Point/St. Helena Island, SC. It was the "largest fleet ever assembled by the United States" up to that date. Beaufort became among the first southern towns to fall into Union hands. The Federal occupation changed the course of Beaufort District history thenceforth - and began the most misunderstood period of American history, the Reconstruction Era. Coker will be happy to autograph and sell copies of his book,, Battle of Port Royal published by the History Press at the conclusion of the program.

Michael D. Coker, Author &
Executive Director Berkeley County Museum

Event Name: The Battle of Port Royal Sound, 1861

Short Description of Event: Berkeley County Museum and Heritage Center Executive Director Michael D. Coker shares his book about the pivotal turning point of the Civil War that occurred right here in our area. Co-sponsor: Beaufort History Museum Limited space.  Registration required: https://beauforthistorymuseum.wildapricot.org/event-2672851

Time and Date of Event: Tuesday, November 7, 2017 at 2:00 pm

Location of Event: Beaufort Branch Library, 311 Scott Street, Beaufort, SC 29902

Price of Event: Free, but a donation of $5.00 to the Beaufort History Museum is requested; Ages 12 - Adults

The Library has a list of materials and links to online information about the Battle of Port Royal Sound, 1861 in our BDCBCL Wordpress blog. Our local history sections have copies of Coker's Battle of Port Royal (call number: 973.77579 COK) as well as When Gun Shoot by Eva Verdier (call number: 398.2 VER) to borrow.  We also recommend the Beaufort Middle School student produced Nov. 7 1861: Crossroads in Beaufort history (call number: 373.75799 NOV) to understand the sea change caused by the results of the battle, for the enslaved as well as their former owners.