Civil War sesquicentennial kicks off in South Carolina

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Civil War sesquicentennial kicks off in South Carolina
April 12, 2011
By Bob Bauder
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- At 4:43 this morning, a single shaft of light piercing the heavens from Fort Sumter split into two, signifying a divided nation and the beginning of America’s Civil War.

On April 12, 1861, Charleston residents cheered the cannonading of the fort at the mouth of Charleston Harbor. A century and a half later, they observed the anniversary solemnly to the woeful strains of “When Jesus Wept,” the American classic written by William Billings around 1736.

The first cannon shot from a Confederate battery at Fort Johnson actually went off at 4:30 a.m., which was the time scheduled for the symbolic light splitting of the nation. The National Park Service was about 13 minutes late, but spokeswoman Linda Friar could provide no explanation.

“What did you expect from the federal government?” asked a cynic in the crowd of people watching from White Point Garden.

People lined a harbor promenade known as the Battery as they did in 1861, but this time they hailed from Missouri, Kansas, Alabama, Illinois and Pennsylvania.

Among them was Janet Arone, a living historian from Homer City. Arone and friend Carol Polkinghorne of Fairfax, Va., are members of the re-enactment group Dixie Rose Relief Society and portray Southern women who provided nursing and other aid to Confederate Soldiers.

“This is big. This is Sumter,” Arone said. “This was the beginning. We’re very connected to the Civil War, and this is very emotional for us. It was the start of the Civil War and it’s a very emotional occasion.”

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