Today was one of the highlights of the holiday. A visit to Fort Sumter. A nice ride on a little cruise ship and an hour on the fort that saw the start of the Civil War in 1861. It was fascinating to hear, read and see the story of the fort, not just when Major Anderson was forced to surrrender the fort at the start of the war, but also how the confederates held the fort against the might of the Union navy for nearly two years, to keep the symbol of their struggle. What was easily gained, without a single fatality was not so easily kept. In the end the confederates abandoned the fort, in favour of more important objectives. So there never was a military victory for the Union, despite firing up to 10,000 rounds of canon and large rifle fire from three other forts and 9 ironclad vessels.
When we returned to Charleston we had a little walk to some of the very fine houses to the north of the old town walls. The pleasant weather made this a very nice day.
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