The Southern Campaign included the Battle Of Purysburg, 1779

The Revolutionary War in South Carolina had an enduring impact and involved a great deal of fighting  - more so than in any other British colony. Few people know that South Carolina had the most Revolutionary War military engagements. The textbooks imply that most of the fighting was concentrated in Virginia, around New York, and in Massachusetts and whatever happened in the Southern colonies was a little consequence. How wrong all those textbooks have been! Few people in the South were left untouched by the conflict.

(Beaufort District Collection Print #138)

There was no consensus in the American colonies that independence from Great Britain was the only or even the wisest course of action to remedy the defects of colonial rule by George III and his representatives. 700,000 American residents were not free to conduct their lives as they themselves saw fit in 1776 for there were at least that many enslaved people in the American colonies. Thus the tension between the ideologies of liberty and enslavement was present from the start of this nation and has consequences that we feel even today. For most of the Revolutionary War period, congressional authority rested only on a state's willingness to comply with directives. Particularly troublesome was the economic dislocation caused by the war and the continual fear of slave revolts and social disturbances.

During the war, some of the heaviest fighting took place here. The landscape was ruined. Dr. Lawrence Rowland states: "The Beaufort District was devastated by the Revolutionary War. Most of the major plantations on Hilton Head Island and the mainland of St. Luke's and Prince William parishes were partially or wholly destroyed." (Rowland et al., The History of Beaufort County South Carolina, volume 1: 1514 - 1861) And the war was costly. The war effort cost South Carolinians approximately $120 million. With a white population of less than 100,000 people, South Carolina was the only state to pay its full requisition to the Continental Congress in 1783 but by doing so, it removed specie from circulation and helped fuel inflation. 

The Rev. Archibald Simpson,  a Presbyterian minister from Scotland who once served in churches in Colleton and Beaufort Districts from 1754 - 1772 returned in 1783 to find: 

All ... was desolation ... every field, every plantation showed marks of ruin and devastation ... The British & the American armies having carried off all my fine breed of horses, and Several hundred head of cattle ... Was all day entertained with the account of the most horrid transactions of the British Army & the Loyalists, during the war.

One of the main reasons that the BDC is revisiting the Battle of Purysburg with Rita Elliott is to raise awareness of the impact of the Southern Campaign. She will show us a documentary film about this military action that was part of the British Southern Campaign. She will show us a documentary film about this military action that was part of the British Southern Campaign. She will answer questions about what was discovered during the LAMAR Institute’s investigations of the historic site. 

Space is limited. Registration is required. Masking is encouraged inside all Library buildings. Registration for this free lecture opens through the Beaufort History Museum’s website on February 25, 2022.

In case you are wondering why the BDC and BHM decided to offer this program at St. Helena Branch, there are three good reasons: 1) St. Helena Branch’s meeting room can hold more people than the one at Beaufort Branch; 2) St. Helena Branch’s screen is much bigger than what is available at Beaufort Branch - the better to view the documentary; and, 3) there are no parking kiosks at St. Helena Branch with which to cope! 

And speaking of the Revolutionary War…  Ms. Elliott’s lecture is just a prelude to a weekend of free Revolutionary fun from the BHM and BDC! 

Visit the Arsenal (713 Craven Street, Beaufort) on Saturday, March 12th, 10 AM to 4 PM to hear the cannons roar as period demonstrators “fire them off” at 30 minute intervals. Details are on the Beaufort History Museum’s website. 

While there, please be sure to drop by the BDC’s table to say “Hello!” and learn about some of the Library’s resources about the America’s fight for independence from Great Britain. I plan to be there from 10 AM to 2 PM to meet-and-greet-and-share local history with you.