On Friday, February 20th at 11:00 AM in the Beaufort Branch Library Meeting Room, NPS Historian Eric J. Ellis will lead a thought-provoking program on Reconstruction-era politics entitled A Party Divided: Political Divisions of the Beaufort Republican Party During Reconstruction. During the beginning of the Reconstruction period in Beaufort, SC, a division in the Republican party grew. This political division pitted William C. Morrison and Robert Smalls, heroes of the Planter, against each other. This division in the Republican party was heated and even violent at times and involved some big names in Beaufort history. Hear how this division began, how it played out, and how it impacted the Republican Party of Beaufort’s Reconstruction period at "A Party Divided: Political Divisions of the Beaufort Republican Party During Reconstruction."
Originally from Jacksonville, Eric joined the US Navy after high school serving in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. After the Navy, Eric attended school at New Mexico State University, in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Eric earned his Bachelor of Arts in History and his Master of Arts in Public History and 19th c. US History. After graduation Eric took a position with New Mexico Historic Sites as an Interpretive Ranger. In 2023, Eric accepted a position as a historian for the National Park Service at the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park. In his time with the Park Service, Eric focused his research on Black Landownership during the Reconstruction period and completed research on a variety of topics on the Reconstruction period for the park and park partners.
This program is part of the "Historically Speaking" local history series brought to you by the Beaufort District Collection and the Beaufort County Historical Society.
Reminder: The Library system will be closed on Monday, February 16, 2026 in honor of Presidents Day.
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