Sesquicentennial

Today is the 150th anniversary of the first shot fired in the American Civil War. Jeff and I watched the Ken Burns documentary series on the war last week on PBS. It is really such a huge piece of our history with so many facets. I came away with a much deeper appreciation for the way those four years really shaped the history of the South. I think many of the less than desirable aspects of the South (as I see them; attitudes, habits, education, poverty, etc.) all have roots directly or indirectly in that conflict. It will be a very interesting next four years as Civil War events all over the nation are reenacted and remembered.

Battle of Fort Sumter
April 12-14, 1861

On April 10, 1861, Brig. Gen. Beauregard, in command of the provisional Confederate forces at Charleston, South Carolina, demanded the surrender of the Union garrison of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. Garrison commander Anderson refused. On April 12, Confederate batteries opened fire on the fort, which was unable to reply effectively. At 2:30 pm, April 13, Major Anderson surrendered Fort Sumter, evacuating the garrison on the following day. The bombardment of Fort Sumter was the opening engagement of the American Civil War. Although there were no casualties during the bombardment, one Union artillerist was killed and three wounded (one mortally) when a cannon exploded prematurely while firing a salute during the evacuation on April 14.

Excerpt from www.civilwar.org