A lot of items about a broad range of topics have arrived in the Research Room since March. I also bought some titles in multiple copies in order for you to be able to check out a title through the Local History sections at the Branch libraries and from the bookmobiles. Most of the titles listed below came from donors though I have made a few purchases. The items relating to genealogy that the Heritage Library gave to the BDC are in a separate post. Other donors during this period were the ever reliable Friends of the Beaufort Library, Bill Engeman, Liz Alston, Scott Strawn, Maria Benac, Rick English and Mary Lou Brewton. As always, I appreciate the generosity of others when it comes to helping me improve the range of our holdings.
For the archives we added a photograph from the Beaufort Little Theater's production of "Annie Get Your Gun" and a photograph of the Dale School Library Branch from the early 1990s. We received additional deposits of archival materials from the Beaufort County Historical Society as well.
With COVID-19 causing so many community events to be cancelled or postponed, we only added 5 posters during this period. "Always a Bridesmaid" was supposed to happen in late March but the stage play was cancelled as was the Women's Wellness Weekend at the USC Center for the Arts. Both the "Hurray for Hollywood" concert and the "Race4Love" were held in February before the national COVID 19 shutdown. The 5th Annual Living History Encampment was held at the Arsenal on Saturday, March 14, 2020 - and has likely become the BDC's last in-person community event of 2020.
All the other items received in the Research Room from March through October are listed below in alphabetical order by title:
Above and Beyond by Charles Patrick Weiland (1997) is a memoir of a retired-to-Beaufort-County for a period of more than ten years resident about his experiences with the Marines during World War II.
Beaufort 1849 by Karen Lynn Allen (2011) is an historical novel that uses the Secession Movement and doubts about slavery as a backdrop to the protagonist's romantic difficulties.
Beaufort High School Yearbooks, 1941, 1947, 1963 join our growing collection of school yearbooks.
Beautiful Beaufort by the Sea Guidebook edited by George Graham Trask, 6th edition (2007) joins all the prior editions of this title from a local press.
Black Soldiers in Blue: African American Troops in the Civil War Era edited by John David Smith (2002) contains 14 original essays about the role of the United States Colored Troops in the conduct of the war but the main reason that I decided to accept this title was for Noah Andre Trudeau's article about Civil War colonels Thomas W. Higginson, James Montgomery and Robert Gould Shaw, each of whom was stationed in Beaufort District. Combahee Raid, anyone?
The Culture of Early Charleston by Frederick Patten Bowes (1942) is a classic. Because the upper echelons of Beaufort District's planters tended to reside in Charleston during the social season, the book provides excellent background to their communal life and times.
"Dawn of Freedom": The Freedmen's Town of Mitchelville by JoAnn L. Zeise (2012) was written as a Master's level thesis in Public History. She discusses the interplay of the former enslaved people's desire to exercise control over their lives and community with the goals of the military establishment occupying Hilton Head Island beginning in 1861.
Dear Wife: The Civil War Letters of a Private Soldier by Daniel B. White and Jack C. Davis [1992?] contains personal correspondence from Sergeant Simeon Anderson Tierce to his wife Sarah Jane that includes descriptions of his life as a member of the 144th New York Regiment while stationed on Hilton Head Island.
The Ethnic History of South Carolina: South Carolina's Contribution to American History by Elizabeth H. Alston (2020) gives an historical overview of the diverse peoples who have affected the state's and the nation's story.
The Escape of Robert Smalls: The Perilous Voyage out of Slavery by Jehan Jones-Radgowski, illustrated by Poppy Kang (2019) is a children's picture book about the exciting dash to freedom made by one of Beaufort District's most famous native sons.
Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery by Eric Foner (2010) explains how the issue of enslavement defined Lincoln's greatness. In some ways, General David Hunter's decision to emancipate the freedmen locally here in Beaufort District forced the President's hand. The book won the Pulitzer Prize for History in 2011.
Gardener's Guide for Charleston and the Lowcountry by the Garden Club of Charleston, revised edition (2000) offers advice about landscape plants best suited to grow in the local area.
Goody, Goodie: A Gullah/Geechee Tale by Queen Quet Marquetta L. Goodwine, illustrated by Quadré Stuckey (2020) shows how Bruh Rooster outfoxes Bruh Fox in this charming rhyming tale for children.
Healin' fa de Soul: Inspirational Readings from De Nyew Testament, the Gullah Bible (5 sound cds, 2011) has 24 Gullah speakers render comforting passages from the Good Book.
Juan Pardo Expeditions: Explorations of the Carolinas and Tennessee, 1566-1568 by Charles M. Hudson and Paul E. Hoffman (2005) describes what happened when Santa Elena's Governor Pedro Menendez de Aviles ordered Captain Pardo to find a land route to the silver mines of Mexico.
The Land was Ours: How Black Beaches Became White Wealth in the Coastal South by Andrew W. Kahrl (2016) documents the interrelationship between coastal economic development beginning in the mid-20th century and the dispossession of traditional African American landowners along the southeast and Gulf coasts.
Letters and Diary of Laura M. Towne edited by Rupert Sargent Holland, illustrated by Nathaniel Glover, Reconstruction Era Edition (2019) documents Towne's experiences as a teacher to the freedmen at Penn School from 1862 until her death in 1901.
Mattie Sams Diary: Recollections of a Florida Pioneer Life by Mattie Sams LaRoche (2020) is a personal memoir of the permanent relocation of a Beaufort District family to Brevard County Florida in 1875.
Numismatics of South Carolina, volume 1: Merchant Trade Tokens by Anthony Chibbaro (2020) does indeed provide "a complete history of private coinage issued within the state," including some by Beaufort District merchants. I must say that I found Chibbaro's research prodigious and the narrative fascinating. I learned things. I expect that others who come to the Research Room to explore the massive tome will too.
River of Words, 2017: Musings on Port Royal Sound through Poetry & Art by the Beaufort County School District (SC) and Port Royal Sound Foundation (2017) is an annual student showcase celebrating local marine ecology and estuary. The Research Room also holds volumes for 2013 and 2018.
The Sandman's Daughter by Robin M. Carter with Queen Quet; illustrated by Al Hawkins (2019) . intertwines education about the threatened life cycle of the sea turtle with exposure to Gullah culture.
The Shell Builders: Tabby Architecture of Beaufort, South Carolina, and the Sea Islands by Colin Brooker (2020) is the long-awaited master work of one of the world's foremost authorities on tabby construction. Once COVID-19 gets out of the way, Colin has promised to come do a program at the Library for the BDC and Beaufort County Historical Society. Copies are available through the Local History sections, too.
State of Grace: The History of the Diocese of Charleston by Pamela Smith (2020) outlines the course of Roman Catholicism in South Carolina from the first prayer uttered by Spanish priests at Santa Elena in the 16th century through the present day.
They Served: Stories of the United States Colored Troops from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina compiled and edited by Nancy Burke, Patricia Burke and Susie Marquis (2017) is based on military pension record applications of Black soldiers in the Union Army during the Civil War. Copies are available through the Local History sections, too.
The Story of Sea Island Cotton by Richard D. Porcher and Sarah Fick (2010) is both a botanical and land genealogy of an agricultural product unique to this local area. Copies are available through the Local History sections as well.
A Treasury of Carolina Tales by Webb Garrison (1988) offers little known vignettes about North and South Carolina history that sometimes include events relating to residents or visitors to Beaufort District.
Waking Up Dead: A Loose Collection of Anecdotes from Life as the Son of a Funeral Director and Coroner, Among Other Things by Ryan Copeland (2020) is a romp of a read by a Beaufort born librarian, author, photographer and former local newspaper columnist. Copies are available through the Local History sections also.
Wars of Reconstruction: The Brief, Violent History of America's Most Progressive Era by Douglas R. Egerton (2014) explores the dramatic course of local and state politics during the 1870s.
In summary, I hope that your take away is that even in times of pestilence, Beaufort County Library's special collection and archives unit and staff continues to serve its community - and be supported by its community - as together we all muddle through 2020 as best we can.
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