"Big Guns" Programs

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 and forever changed the trajectory of Beaufort's history.

The battle is sometimes referred to as "The Big Gun Shoot" though previous programs on the topic have tended to focus more on the general history of the event rather than on the weaponry and tactics used during the engagement. This program will rectify that oversight.

Dave Smoot's focus will be on the heavy artillery of the battle: What big guns are doing the shooting and why? Were the munitions equally effective? Why or why not? Why were some Confederate guns facing the wrong way? Was it a "fair" fight? The answers to these questions and more will be revealed within the lecture. 

About the speaker:
Dave Smoot has been doing history for most of his life. He recently retired from his position as the Museum Technician at Parris Island Museum working with Dr. Stephen Wise to curate the story of the Marines for a decade. He was a director of a Virginia Living History Museum before relocating to Beaufort. An active re-enactor, he's portrayed Civil War surgeon Dr. Tooms and Civil War doctor, Dr. Meade along with providing other informative and illuminating programs on "The Well Dressed Marine of 1915" and "The South Carolina Constitution of 1865" for the BDC in the past.

Preservation Week 2019

Do you have precious books, letters, diaries, photographs, prints and drawings, or objects like maps, paintings, quilts, baptismal gowns, ceramic vases, sets of china, silverware, or pieces of furniture that you hope others will love in 50 years as much as you do now? Multiply the number of items in your possession by the number of people in your neighborhood, this county, this state, etc.  The obvious conclusion is that an enormous number of culturally significant items held by individuals, families, and communities are in need of basic preservation. 

As the Library system’s special local history collection and archives, we preserve materials in the Beaufort District Collection (BDC) each and every day. Our highest priority is to be good stewards of the cultural heritage materials entrusted to us for the community. Part of being a good steward is sharing our knowledge about preservation practices. We want to empower you to better protect your own treasures.  The BDC promotes Preservation Week to highlight what we can do, individually and together, to preserve our personal and shared collections.

In other words, Preservation Week inspires actions to preserve personal, family, and community collections in addition to library, museum, and archive collections. It also raises awareness of the role libraries and other cultural institutions play in providing ongoing preservation education and information

Preservation can get complicated because different materials require different conditions and treatments. Nevertheless, some general principles can mitigate a host of potential problems. For example, if you're not comfortable sitting in your attic on a hot July afternoon, neither are your family treasures.  Never store items in environments where you would be too hot, too cold, or find too damp to hang out in for a day or two.

The unholy trinity of degradation, that is, heat, light, and humidity, must be closely monitored and managed to minimize natural decay of materials. A simple practice of keeping lights at the lowest level sufficient for the job at hand can actually slow down the rate of decay.  Humidity, always a concern in coastal South Carolina, must be controlled to prevent mold growth, corrosion, drying and cracking, warping, buckling and/or flaking of precious material.  Proper storage matters – a lot!  

Preservation Week lets us share some general principles of preservation that can mitigate a host of potential problems.  

• This year we are handing out packets of preservation information to anyone who comes to the Research Room and asks. 
• While you're in the Research Room, check out Kristi's display in our cabinet. 
• Check out our daily Facebook posts about preservation steps and webinars anyone can take to improve your knowledge about preservation of particular formats of materials.  
• Send your questions about basic preservation techniques to bdc@bcgov.net.

Military History Program on May 4th

Please mark your calendars: We are delighted that Dave Smoot has agreed to share his expertise regarding military history with us again. This time he's going to concentrate on the munitions used by the Union and Confederates during that fateful day in November 1861 that led to the Federal occupation of Beaufort and Hilton Head for the duration of the Civil War and into the Reconstruction Era. 

We recommend that you make it a Lecture and Luncheon kind of day.  Come to the lecture and get edification for your mind at 11 AM; afterwards wander over into the Waterfront Park for the "Taste of Beaufort Festival" or to one of the many eateries in downtown Beaufort to get some edification for your body.  What a wonderful way to spend a late Spring Saturday in Beautiful Beaufort By-the-Bay.

For more information about the Taste of Beaufort Festival call (843) 525-8525 or visit  www.beaufortchamber.org.

Library Limericks and Staff Development

Every year, the Library staff from all locations gathers together in the Spring to learn how to better serve you, our community. This Spring the staff will be meeting on Wednesday, April 17 at the St. Helena Branch Library. (It moves around between the largest branches).

Regular hours will resume on Thursday, April 18, 2019. 

Serendipitously I came across a document from a Staff Development Day in 2008 recently.  There was a time when in addition to learning how to be better librarians, library workers and customer service providers, Staff Development Days incorporated elements of fun. That document, "Librarian Limericks: Information Ser-Verses" by Dennis [Adams, former Information Services head, now retired], is appropriate for sharing seeing as it is also "National Poetry Month." The limericks reminded me of former times. 

The BDC got two stanzas in his 16 stanza creation. Bear in mind that this was written several years before the BDC got our current quarters on the 2nd floor.

"In the BDC, there could be found

Only one single staffer around.

That was then, this is now --

You should really see how Amber got right to work with a bound." ...

"'Be aware of the value of space,'

Said the BDC librarian, Grace.

'I have run out of room

This is like King Tut's tomb:

Treasures scattered all over the place!'"

Of the people mentioned in the other 14 stanzas, 4 of the staff are still working in the Library, though not necessarily continuously since, with the same name, at the same location, or in the same position: Amanda Brewer; Bratton de Loach; Traci Cox; and Stacey Inman. Of the others, one person has died; 5 have retired; and 2 moved on to other job opportunities elsewhere.

A lot of things can change in the course of 11 years.The document has now joined other documents relating to the history of the Beaufort County Library in our archives.

Libraries = Strong Communities, National Library Week, April 7 - 13, 2019

I eagerly await National Library Week every year. Ironically, it's almost as old as I am. Since the American Library Association and Libraries Transform get to the heart of the matter better than I can, here's most of the landing page for National Library Week Press Kit:

National Library Week (April 7- 13, 2019) is a time to celebrate the contributions of our nation's libraries and library workers and to promote library use and support. From free access to books and online resources for families to library business centers that help support entrepreneurship and retraining, libraries offer opportunity to all. The theme for 2019 National Library Week is "Libraries = Strong Communities," and Gates Foundation Co-founder Melinda Gates will serve as 2019 National Library Week Honorary Chair.


First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and observed in libraries across the country each April. All types of libraries - school, public, academic and special - participate.

National Library Week events

April: School Library Month
Monday, April 8 The 2019 State of America's Libraries Report is released
Tuesday, April 9: National Library Workers Day
Wednesday, April 10: National Bookmobile Day
Thursday, April 11: Take Action for Libraries Day


Libraries = Strong Communities

This year's National Library Week theme mirrors an American Library Association (ALA) presidential effort entitled "Libraries = Strong Communities," a national advocacy campaign aimed at highlighting the value of academic, public, and school libraries. This public awareness campaign is supported by ALA President Loida Garcia-Febo (2018 - 2019) and recognized by communities across the country.

April Programs, Outreach, and Schedule

At the start of Fiscal Year 2019 (July 1, 2018 - June 30, 2019), I set a self-inflicted goal of increasing BDC program and outreach attendance by 15% over FY 2018. The figure I set for myself was 1000 customers. I fully expect that I will have reached that figure by Wed., April 10th.

On Monday, April 8th, the BDC takes "Tide of Death: The Hurricane of 1893" to The Cypress of Hilton Head Island. (We are booking for August 2019 and beyond for outreach in case one of the organizations to which you belong needs a speaker in the late summer or early Fall).

A presentation on Tuesday, April 9th, Neil Baxley of the Sheriff's Department and Ed Allen, Beaufort County Coroner about the history of law enforcement and select Beaufort County cases will conclude Season 3 of the Beaufort History Museum/Beaufort County Library Local History series. Registration is required. Sign up online at https://beauforthistorymuseum.wildapricot.org/event-3325659. Please note: Registration will close when room capacity of the First Presbyterian Church Fellowship Hall is reached but as of this writing there are about 25 seats left.

Our joint African American Genealogy series with the International African-American Museum's Center for Family History and the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission continues on Saturday, April 13th. All the seats for the morning session have been reserved. The afternoon session is first come, first served but please bear in mind that each session only has 20 seats available. The computer lab at St. Helena Branch Library is rather small but it's still the largest computer lab that the Beaufort County Library has. 

 

The month of April has several themes to highlight on our Facebook page. Visit us there to learn more about local poets, National Library Week, and watch for tips about how to take care of your personal treasures during Preservation Week, April 21 - April 28. 

There is a change to the Library's usual and customary operating schedule to pencil into your calendar: 

And since we get calls every year on Good Friday, all units of the Beaufort County government, including the Library system, will be open regular hours on Good Friday, April 19th and Holy Saturday, April 20th. None of our facilities are open on Sundays so of course, all units of the Library system will be closed on Easter Sunday.