As per usual, most notices about events or schedule changes in the past at the time of this entry have been selectively edited or deleted. I went for broke the first day of October by making 3 posts! - gmc
October 1 -
- October is always a very busy month for the BDC. I think of our overall theme for the next 31 days as 3 As and a G - for Archives, Archaeology, Ancestors and Gullah Culture. By their very nature, archival collections are always unique materials thus we are expanding the "Uniquely BDC" and "Finding Aid Fridays" posts to cover days beyond Mondays and Fridays during October. We offer 5 local history programs this month. Cassi and I have an outreach event; our staff has a continuing education / outreach opportunity with another history related organization on October 3; and the entire Beaufort County Library staff has its semi-annual Staff Development Day on October 13. As Sydney is wont to say "The BDC is booked and busy" gathering new knowledge to bring and share local history with our community.
- The BDC staff is hard at work switching out our seasonal decorations. 'Tis good to have an energetic team to help promote the Library's special local history collection and archives unit - though they might be having TOO much fun at work so far today.
- "Black History Note Wednesday in Archives Month:" A senior English class at Beaufort High School under the direction of teacher Ms. Lee P. Shaffer created 3 hand-made booklets in an effort to preserve fading aspects of Beaufort County’s cultural life in 1972. Most of the material was obtained through interviews of elderly Black citizens.
PM I hadn't realized just how long it had been since I last posted some photos of our programs. I was only 9 behind since July 1st. [I managed to get up photos from July 2, July 28, and August 7th. As of this writing on 3 November, I'm only 13 behind.]
October 4 - [Program reminder and some photos of "What The Heck Is it? 2025 edition]
October 5 - "This Week in the BDC" Late on Wednesday afternoon Cassandra will tell us about the fascinating backstories of our newest archival collections, from arsenic to red rot and everything in between. There might even be a mocktail or two afterwards... just sayin'.
October 6 - AM American Archives Month series: Because it's National Newspaper Week, I want to highlight an artificial collection of newspapers we have in the BDC archives. The term "artificial collection" is defined by the Society of American Archivists' Dictionary "as an intentionally assembled collection of archival resources with varying provenances."
PM It just so happens to be "Banned Books Week" 2025. The theme this year is drawn from one of my favorite books of all time: "1984."
According to the American Library Association: "George Orwell’s cautionary tale "1984" serves a prescient warning about the dangers of censorship. This year’s theme reminds us that the right to read belongs to all of us, that censorship has no place in contemporary society, and that we must defend our rights."
The SCLENDS consortium has well over 40 entries for this title, analyses of this title, editions of this title, formats of this title, etc. If you prefer e- or audio books, there are plenty of options inside Hoopla too, including "1984" in non-English languages.
October 7 - In honor of American Archives Month and National Newspaper Week, one of the items in yesterday's post about the Miscellaneous Archived Newspaper Collection, 1803-1998 just so happens to be the oldest original newspaper in the Research Room.
What his letter doesn't say is that Rutledge had been embroiled in a very public scandal since 1801 that forced his retirement. Near the end of his letter reprinted from the Charleston Courier, Rutledge encouraged adherence to the US Constitution in words that seem to ring true 222 years later. Just sayin': If you choose to attend "Tales from the Crypt" at the end of the month, you might hear more about another Rutledge, Jr. scandal.
PM You may be surprised by the well-known books that are or once were on a banned books list. The nonpartisan Freedom Forum posted "15 of the Most Famous 'Banned' Books in US History."
October 9 - AM Eliza Lucas Pinckney was held in such high regard that the President of the United States, George Washington, asked to be a pallbearer at her funeral in 1793. If you'd like to learn more about this important 18th century woman, we're hosting her as a time traveler in the guise of experienced historical interpreter Peggy Pickett at Bluffton Branch Library in two weeks!
October 10 - AM In honor of National Newspaper Week, the BDC provides you access to 19 local newspapers on microfilm from the time of the Civil War Federal occupation up to 2015. Please make an appointment to use our microfilm machine as we only have one - and some of our beloved BDC docents have to use it during their volunteer times. Contact us: bdc@bcgov.net or 843-255-6468.
PM George Washington wrote: “To encourage Literature & the Arts, is a duty which every good Citizen owes to his Country." Public libraries encourage literature and the arts through collections and programs throughout the land. Follow George's admonition: Be a good citizen. Use your library card often and well. And since this is Banned Book Week 2025, I would like to encourage you to at least occasionally read something others do not want you to read. BTW: There's a long list of Banned Books to pick from the American Library Association's website. Another way to celebrate your right to read is to check out the ALA's list of free online events during Banned Books Week featuring authors, librarians, and activists working to fight censorship!
October 12 - "This Week in the BDC" we get to go to the Library system's Staff Development Day on Monday. Accordingly all units of the Library will be closed on October 13. Later in the week Cassandra and I go to a community organization to discuss a potential donation of their historical records into the BDC's stewardship. "Inclusion" is an archives term that indicates something purposefully or inadvertently left between a book’s pages. Since this is "Archives Month," we asked our colleagues in Beaufort County Library about the weirdest inclusion they have found in a returned library book. [Some of the submissions were pretty gross.]
October 13 - [Reminder about Staff Development Day closure]
October 14 - AM Cassi has some tips for at home photographs preservation in our Connections blog.
October 15 - "Black History Note Wednesday in Archaeology Month" - "''Gone but not forgotten': African American cemeteries on the United States Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina" by archaeologist Chester B. DePratter (2016) is available inside our Research Room or online through the University of South Carolina's Scholar Commons.
October 15 - "Black History Note Wednesday in Archaeology Month" - "''Gone but not forgotten': African American cemeteries on the United States Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, South Carolina" by archaeologist Chester B. DePratter (2016) is available inside our Research Room or online through the University of South Carolina's Scholar Commons.
October 16 - AM - At 10:16 a.m. (local time) on 10/16, you can join millions of people across the world practicing earthquake safety. It's the Great Southeast Shakeout this morning. It's an earthquake drill: DROP. COVER. HOLD ON. You can join in by listening to this audio recording of instructions or practice with this sound effects audio file. As seismic events go, there are two South Carolina based earthquakes to know: the 1886 Charleston Earthquake and the 1913 Union Earthquake. Of these, the Charleston Earthquake was by far the most significant for Beaufort County. There's an article about the effects of the 1886 earthquake on Connections.
PM Cassi and I will spend part of our workday today explaining our donation process to the members of a woman's organization of very long standing. We're ready to answer any of the questions that the members might have about the BDC, the donation process and reasons why we think that the BDC is the best place for permanent retention and sharing of their historic records. All we can do is present our bona fides and await their decision in the coming months. The ultimate decision is theirs.
October 17 - [upcoming programs reminders]
October 18 - On this International Archaeology Day, I call to your attention the hundreds of local archaeology related titles we have in our Research Room. Duplicate my catalog search of the BDC's archaeology titles. Find something in our catalog that interests you? It's best to make an appointment so that BDC staff will be available. Contact us: bdc@bcgov.net ; 843-255-6468.
October 19 -"This week in the BDC:" On Thursday, we welcome one of South Carolina's most famous women of the 18th century, Eliza Lucas Pinckney (channeled by Peggy Pickett) to Bluffton Branch Library. Otherwise we're just doing our "regular work" collecting, preserving, and sharing Beaufort District's long and storied history with you. Because October 19 - 25 is National Friends of Libraries Week and the Friends of the Beaufort Library group is especially generous to the BDC on the regular, here's to Deb Chavis and her crew in the book sorting room who give us first dibs on the donated history titles they receive. Occasionally we even get an archival collection through them: The Presentation Copy ... of Mrs. Scheper, for example. The $25K towards the compact shelving array and the hurricane shutters are still appreciated, too. Thank you, BEA FOL. And don't forget that their Annual Fall Book Sale is being held November 7 - 9 where one will find bibliographic bargains galore!
October 20 - The Beaufort County Historical Society was founded in 1939 with a mission to collect and disseminate accurate historical data with particular emphasis on Beaufort County and marking and preserving historic sites. The Society's records were stored in the Beaufort Township Library and Beaufort County Library by a gentleman's agreement for decades. But in light of evolving archival standards, the Society formally donated its inactive records into the BDC's safekeeping in 2019. We continue to receive accretions (a rather unsavory archival term for new deposits of records) from the Society every 2 - 5 years. The Finding Aid is online. We cooperate in other ways with the BCHS too. BDC staff recently were invited to participate in a partial day tour of Parris Island and Fort Frederick with the BCHS Board members. Our next Local History program on Thursday at Bluffton Branch is part of our joint BDC-BCHS "Historically Speaking" series. We've made it to Season 7 so far ... with no end in sight.
October 21 - Honoring American Archives Month: The BDC has more than 250 archival collections but only 9 have been fully or partially digitized through our long partnership with the Lowcountry Digital Library. One of the 9 is the R.L. Johnson Medical Record Book. This journal is significant because Johnson’s depictions give a firsthand view of medical practices during the Civil War and Reconstruction eras when prescribing whiskey, eggs, and opium were standard treatments. The medical cases and farm accounts during the Reconstruction period typically include the names of his African-American patients and farm labor force, and thus may be useful for genealogical purposes as well. You can read the Finding Aid online. Beloved BDC Docent Carol Holland did most of the transcription work way back when the BDC was on the first floor of the Library building. The journal was digitized as part of the Beaufort County Library's partnership with the Lowcountry Digital Library in 2018.
The QR code will take you to the digitized journal cover. Click on the cover and continue clicking each page that you'd like to see and read Carol's transcription.
October 22 - AM "Black History Note Wednesday in Archives Month:" The BDC has a small collection of correspondence relating to a bold resister to the South's peculiar institution. I am referring to the man with guts of steel Robert Smalls. As most of you know Smalls steamed the "Planter" into the Union's naval line under the nose of the Confederates in Charleston Harbor in 1862. Though the man and his feat were nationally famous during the Civil War and Reconstruction eras, Dorothy Sterling (1913 - 2008) was the first author in the 20th century to take note of the significance of the act and of the man. She wrote a book for young adults entitled Captain of the Planter: The Story of Robert Smalls (1958). We have letters between Sterling and Beaufort Township Library staff from 1955 to 1956 in the Research Room. Sterling was doing her due diligence trying to separate fact from fiction and reconcile conflicting accounts of some of the details of Smalls' life. Sterling's book was well received. The Research Room and a few other reference collections in the SCLENDS consortium have a copy of her published book. Her book has been reprinted at least twice so far. The Dorothy Sterling Letters Finding Aid is in the BDCBCL: Lists, Links and Finding Aids blog.
PM Librarians and archivists sometimes have to deal with "red rot." "What's red rot and what can be done about it?" you ask. Cassandra explains in Connections.
October 23 - The BDC is on the road again ... this time to Bluffton to greet our 18th Century Time Traveler, Eliza Lucas Pinckney! [with historical interpreter Peggy Pickett].
October 24 - The Miscellaneous Beaufort Photograph Collection is an artificial archival collection created by BDC staff to encompass photos and prints of unknown origin or those gifted to the BDC as individual photographic prints. We wrote the Finding Aid to make it easier for you to know what's in this collection. Here's a little archival terminology for you in honor of Archives Month: Another term for artificial collection is "assembled collection." Both terms are defined in the Society of American Archivists Dictionary as "an intentionally assembled collection of archival resources with varying provenances." Provenance is a fundamental principle of archives, referring to the individual, family, or organization that created or received the items in a collection. In other words, who or what was the source for the collection. Provenance can also mean "information regarding the origins, custody, and ownership of an item or collection." Perhaps you can think of it as a "chain of custody": who had it, when, and for how long. The collection contains photographs related to the Beaufort District or Beaufort County. The Finding Aid is posted online. If you'd like to visit the Research Room to review the collection's contents, contact us: bdc@bcgov.net ; 843-255-6468.
October 25 - [Reminder about our upcoming visits to the Civil War Encampment and the Fort Fremont Fall Festival].
October 26 - "This Week in the BDC" is a busy one. Tomorrow evening I present "Tales from the Crypt" at Beaufort Branch. On Friday we co-host Tom Vaselopulos with the Beaufort History Museum for his talk about the Gen. Isaac Stevens and the 79th New York Highlanders. On Saturday, Cassandra and I will showcase some of the BDC's Civil War materials as part of the Encampment in the Arsenal. Next Sunday, Sydney and I will be time-traveling back to 1898 at the Friends of Fort Fremont's Fall Festival.
October 27 - [Uniquely BDC Materials Monday] - In honor of the BDC's program this evening at Beaufort Branch and American Archives Month, I draw your attention to a drawing of Mrs. Potter's Memorial Monument in the Beaufort National Cemetery. I'll share a bit of the backstory with folks who attend my "Tales from the Crypt" presentation tonight but in case you can't make it, read the Finding Aid. When you get to the Provenance statement towards the end of the online Finding Aid, click on "Probable Purchase" to follow me through a research rabbit hole about Mrs. Potter and how her monument ended up in the National Cemetery.
PM - Wonder what's recently arrived in our Research Room?
October 29 - "Black History Note in Archaeology Month:" You can download a copy of "Expressions of African American Culture" poster from 2009 published by the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (otherwise known as "SCIAA."). The verso has solid information even if it's in really tiny print. It includes information about Gullah/Geechee cultural heritage, too. [Download a copy from the University of South Carolina's Scholar Commons]
October 30 - The BDC staff shifts focus to the Civil War for the final days of Archives Month. One of the Civil War and Reconstruction Era archival collections we have is the Reeves Collection of Stuart Family Papers, 1823 - 1912. It contains 349 items, mostly letters between Claudia Smith Stuart and her children composed primarily during the Civil War and Reconstruction eras. Three antebellum original manuscripts were discovered during processing. You can read the Finding Aid online. Our Connections blog has an article about the donation process and some of the content in the letters.
October 31 - AM - Hello, all you Boo-tiful supporters of local history. (Yes, I can hear the moans and groans over my terrible pun). Today's going to be a fun day for the BDC. 2nd floor staff is dressing as characters in the Harry Potter series. We'll post photos later. The BDC is hosting Tom Vaselopulos at a program co-sponsored by the Beaufort History Museum at 2 PM at Beaufort Branch.And as it's the final day in Archives Month, I want to remind you of the L.A. Hall Civil War Stereoscope Collection. It is one of the 2 stereoscope photograph collections we have hosted online by the Lowcountry Digital Library. Read the Finding Aid to the collection. (In case you're wondering: What precisely is a stereoscope? This article from JSTOR explains.) And don't forget to check out the "Ghost Stories" on the BDC's WordPress blog :Have a safe Samhain everyone!
PM - The BDC Crew as Harry Potter characters. Who is who?
Answer: Grace is Molly Weasley, mother of 7 and self-appointed foster mother to Harry Potter; Sydney is a Slytherin House student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; and Cassandra is the ghost called Moaning Myrtle who helps Harry Potter unravel the mystery of Voldemort's horcruxes.
Most of the occupants on the 2nd floor participated in the Hogsmeade Halloween hoodoo holiday festivities. 
Heads up: The Library will be closed on Tuesday, November 11, 2025 for Veterans Day.
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