Day 18

Our first stop this morning was the Angel Oak tree on John’s Island in Charleston. It is on the list Kati found as the most beautiful tree in America. And it is impressive. It’s limbs are so long and twisted, it looks like a cross between a tree and an octopus. Some limbs reach out and stretch to the heavens, others rest on the ground, providing obstacles for tourists. The tree is estimated to be more than 400 years old. It is 65.5 feet tall and the circumference of the trunk is 28 feet. A baby tree—four-years-old—is potted near the Angel’s trunk. It has grown from an acorn that fell from the big tree.

I like Charleston—America’s most beautiful city. I could live here, except for the minor inconvenience of it being in South Carolina—a state whose politics I don’t agree with. It has an old world charm: large colorful house with balconies. Its’s right on the water which for me is always a draw. The smell of salt permeates the air. The history, however, soils the beauty. The former wealth in Charleston was rooted in slavery. The city was build on the backs of the enslaved.

Mom said Dad had wanted to visit Charleston. He had talked about visiting on a mini vacation. But like so many other things, he never got the chance. COVID killed him, shattering so many dreams. Dad would have liked the city. It’s on the water, and like me, he loved all things connected to the sea.

G3 wanted to see John Calhoun’s house. He, along with Clay and Webster, was one of the most influential senators in the first half of the 1800s. His mansion is huge and gorgeous from the outside. We couldn’t go in. It is temporarily closed. We knew that, but G3 still wanted to go. We took a picture and moved on.

We parked near the ferry to Fort Sumter and then took a short walk through the city. We only got to explore a tiny bit of it. Part of our walk took us through the low income housing section of Charleston. The housing was cramped and severely run down with laundry lines strung through the courtyard. I didn’t see one white person outside. Slavery might no longer exist, but segregation and inequality still persist.

I have wanted to visit Fort Sumter for ages. I am very happy and excited that we had the opportunity to see it today. In order to get there, we had to take a ferry across the harbor. Bottle nosed dolphins live in the water. We didn’t see any on the way out to the fort, but on the way back we did. We only saw their fins and they were too far away to get a decent picture.

The War of 1812 and the British burning Washington taught the Americans a valuable lesson. They did not have a strong coastal defense. Madison decided to fix the problem. He called for the construction of more forts, one of which was Fort Sumter. When it was built, it was meant to defend Charleston from a foreign invasion. It wasn’t supposed to spark the bloodiest war on American soil.

The fort—no surprise here—was built by slaves. Enslaved people made the bricks off site. Their fingerprints can still be seen in some of the bricks. Some of those fingerprints belong to children as young as three or four. I guess it’s almost fitting that the war that would eventually free the slaves would begin at a fort they had built.

In 1860, Charleston was one of the wealthiest cities in the world. The wealth came from rice and indigo plantations which were worked by slaves. And South Carolina had more slaves than any other state. Without them, South Carolina would have been very different economically. That’s what concerned them most heading into the the election of 1860. They weren’t willing to give up their way of life. Their wealth. Money meant more to them than kindness and compassion and recognizing that everyone should be free.

Lincoln never called for the abolition of slavery, but he was opposed to it spreading further west. Still, that was enough for the south to fear his victory at the polls. The thought of Lincoln as president angered them so much they wouldn’t even put him on the ballot in nine states. It didn’t matter. Even without a single southern vote, he won. Less than two months later, on December 20, 1860, South Carolina seceded from the Union. They were the first state to do so.

Fort Sumter had reminded unoccupied for a long time. In December of 1860, American troops were stationed at nearby Fort Moultrie. They were the only Union troops in South Carolina. Six days after secession, the Confederacy was building up their militia and pressing in around Fort Moultrie. Under cover of darkness, Major Anderson moved his men across the harbor to Fort Sumter. Once there, he raised the American flag. South Carolina did not appreciate this.

General Beauregard was the first general to be appointed for the Confederacy. His first move was to take Fort Sumter. On April 12, 1861, Confederate troops stationed on Fort Johnson fired on Fort Sumter. They were the first shots of the Civil War. For 34 hours, Confederates fired on the fort. Major Anderson knew that if he continued to defend the fort, men would die. On April 13, he surrendered. In that first battle, no one died.

On April 14, Anderson withdrew his men. First, he insisted on full military honors—100 gun salute. Beauregard permitted it. However, the 47th gun backfired injuring one Union soldier and killing another. The first casualties of the war were an accident.

On April 9, 1865, Lee Surrendered to Grant at Appomattox. Five days later, in a ceremony on Fort Sumter, Anderson—now retired—raised the American flag once again over Fort Sumter. It was meant to be a celebration, but it’s not mentioned in the history textbooks. Several hours after the ceremony that was meant to usher in an era of healing and reconciliation, President Lincoln was shot. This is what we remember instead. (April 14 is an easy day for me to remember. It’s the day Dad died.)

When we arrived at Fort Sumter, it was drizzling. Lightning flashed in the distance and thunder clapped overhead. As a result, the observation deck was closed. That was disappointing. And it was frustrating that we only had an hour at the fort. Not nearly enough time to do everything. We listened to the Ranger talk which we always enjoy. They are always informative, so I wouldn’t have missed it. But that didn’t leave much time for the museum. We walked through it and saw both the American flag and Confederate flag which flew over the fort. We also walked the grounds and saw some of the slaves’ fingerprints and a few of the artillery shells that are embedded in the walls.

The visitor center for Fort Sumter is on Gadsden’s Wharf. In the years leading up to the Revolution, Gadsden rented an enslaved craftsman to build the wharf. In the years that followed, an estimated 30,000 African men, women, and children disembarked on the wharf. Their lives in America would be grim. And they were only a fraction of the 360,000 slaves who were sold in Charleston.

After the fort, G3 was hungry. One Ranger recommended Orlando Pizza so we headed there. It wasn’t bad, better than I expected. Kati really like the garlic knots. The waitress was nice. We had mentioned we were traveling through and so she gave us large to go cups filled with ice and water.

Our last stop in Charleston was Fort Moultrie. It’s on Sullivan Island which definitely has a beach town feel to it. The houses on and near the water are beautiful but I could never afford one. But I wouldn’t mind living on Sullivan Island—if it wasn’t in South Carolina. I think I could be happy just about anywhere provided I was near the ocean.

The original Fort Moultrie was built prior to the Revolutionary War. It was built with palmetto logs which could absorb the shock of cannons without splintering. It was the sight of one of the first victories in the Revolution. However, a few years later, Charleston did fall to Cornwallis.

The fort may have survived the British, but it didn’t survive the costal storms. In 1794, the US built their first system of forts, one of which was the second Fort Moultrie. It lasted six years and then a hurricane carried it away. A third fort was constructed in time for the War of 1812. The fort was active until 1947 when the army lowered the flag for the final time.

G3 liked Fort Moultrie more than Fort Sumter. He enjoyed exploring the underground rooms and tunnels. I preferred the history at Fort Sumter. Kati is looking forward to a winery.

G3 wanted to go the Fort Wagner, which is where the battle from the movie Glory took place. I asked a Ranger if it was a place we could visit and she said the water claimed it. Oh well, nature is definitely having it’s way along the coastline.

One day was not nearly enough time to see Charleston. We did everything we wanted to, we saw the highlights, but there is still so much to see and do. I would really like to go back again for at least a long weekend. I would love a day to do nothing but walk around the city. Maybe someday.

We are now driving north for the final leg of our trip. I’m not ready to go home. I am never ready to go home. I am always happiest on the road, traveling to new places, and having new experiences.