South Carolina State Museum marks America 250 with free admission, new exhibit

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WACH) — The South Carolina State Museum opened its doors Saturday for a day of free admission, live entertainment and hands-on activities as it marked America’s 250th anniversary and unveiled a new exhibit focused on the Palmetto State’s role in the Revolutionary War.

The event, billed as “Salute to 250 Day,” included the grand opening of “American Battleground: South Carolina’s Revolution,” an exhibition exploring South Carolina’s role in the fight for independence.

“When we think of the revolution, of course we think about Bunker Hill, and George Washington, and crossing the Delaware, and in Yorktown and the battles up there,” said Christopher Graham, curator of the Revolution exhibit.

But on two occasions, the British attempted to invade the southern colonies. The first occasion, 1776, South Carolina drove off the attempt and British returned in 1780 and captured Charlestown, and moved into the backcountry attempting to reestablish rural control. That’s when the backcountry militia rose up and begin fighting the British without much government support, and eventually driving the British out of South Carolina into North Carolina and toward their fate at Yorktown.

Organizers said the exhibit is intended to help visitors learn about the Revolutionary War in the South, with artifacts meant to connect people of all ages with the state’s history.

Among the items on display is what Graham described as a significant South Carolina artifact.

“There is an iconic South Carolina artifact in here. It’s the flag of the second South Carolina regiment that was given to the regiment just a couple days after the battle of Sullivans Island, and carried for several year,” Graham said. “It was captured at the siege of Savannah carried back to Britain, where lived for 200 years, and now it’s back and it’s on exhibit.”

Chandler Mack, PR manager for the South Carolina State Museum, said the exhibit is part of a broader effort to begin a year of commemorating America’s 250th anniversary.

“we played a very pivotal role in our nations quest for independence during the revolutionary war. So that’s why we wanted to open ‘American Battleground: South Carolina’s Revolution’ to tell that story and tell the story of what life was like for every South Carolinian,” Mack said.