Reverberations

Date: May 19, 2014
Contact: Bill Martin, [phone] x11
Contact: Dawn Davis, [phone] x23
Contact: Brent Everitt, [phone]

SULLIVAN'S ISLAND, SC – On May 24, 2014, the Fort Moultrie unit of Fort Sumter National Monument will present three programs, as part of the national Civil War sesquicentennial commemoration, called Reverberations.The national commemoration will centered around three national parks in Virginia: Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park, Richmond National Battlefield Park, and Petersburg National Battlefield.These national park sites preserve and commemorate among other battles, those of the Overland Campaign in 1864.

The national parks have partnered with 11 communities throughout the United States, from South Carolina to Maine and Michigan to Mississippi.This partnership will symbolize the devastating impact of Overland Campaign and the Civil War across the country.

The programs at Fort Moultrie will honor the 39 infantry, artillery, and cavalry units from South Carolina that fought in the Overland Campaign. From May to June 1864, the major battles include the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, North Anna, Yellow Tavern, Cold Harbor, to beginning of the Siege of Petersburg, plus other combat actions. Almost 100,000 Union and Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded, or captured in five weeks.

Evening programs will be free to the public and begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Fort Moultrie Visitor Center auditorium and then move to Fort Moultrie for the national candle light vigil. Program information:

6:30 p.m. "Ruin and Remembrance": A Southern woman's perspective on grief and loss during the American Civil War.

7:45 p.m. Citadel History Professor Kyle Sinisi will speak on South Carolina units in the Overland Campaign.

8:30 p.m. Ladies in Civil War era mourning dress will be joined by members of the 10^th South Carolina Infantry Regiment and place luminaries on the Fort Moultrie parade ground for each South Carolina unit that served in the Army of Northern Virginia during the Campaign.

9:00 p.m. National playing of Taps at all participating locations

The National Park Service interprets 171 years of US coastal defense history at Fort Moultrie from the site of the first major victory in the American Revolution on June 28, 1776 through the end of World War II. Fort Moultrie is located at 1214 Middle Street on Sullivan's Island. The site is open daily from 9:00–5:00 except for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Days. An entrance fee of $3 for adults, $1 for seniors or $5 for families is normally charged. For more information, please call [phone] or visit us online at www.nps.gov/fosu.