Hundreds of Civil War relics were unearthed during a cleanup of the South Carolina River, where Union forces dumped Confederate military equipment in a demoralizing blow to rebel forces in the birthplace of the secession movement.
These artifacts were discovered as crews were removing tar-like material from the Congaree River, providing new concrete evidence toward the end of Union General William T. Sherman’s ruthless Southern Campaign. Ta. civil war. The remains are expected to be placed in a more secure location at the South Carolina Confederate Relics Room and Military Museum in the state capital of Columbia.
Historical finds include bullets, cannonballs, and even swords. CBS affiliate station WLTX report.
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They also found a wheel that experts believe belonged to a wagon that exploded during a two-day dump of supplies. Sean Norris said the odds of finding a wagon wheel were “extraordinary”.
“It’s an interesting story to tell,” said Norris, archeology program manager for an environmental consulting firm called TRC. “That’s a good thing. We were able to capture an actual piece of it, rather than just a record of what happened.”
An unexploded ordnance was “demilitarized” at Shaw Air Force Base. Norris said the remaining artifacts will not be on display for several more years. Corroded metal artifacts will need to undergo electrochemical treatment for preservation, as well as measurement and identification.
Dominion Energy crews are working to remove toxic tar, first discovered in 2010, from the riverbed, sometimes operating armored excavators as a safeguard against potential explosives. there were. State and local officials gathered Monday to celebrate the early completion of the $20 million project.
“We also removed 2.5 tons of other trash from the river,” said Dominion Energy President Keller Kissam. “You’re focusing on the coal tar, but we did treat the coal tar, but… There was also other trash,” he said. WLTX.
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South Carolina Republican Governor Henry McMaster said the preservation is necessary so current generations can learn from history.
“All of that is lost to us today. It just seems like a thing of the past,” McMaster said. “But when you read about them and see the artifacts and the things that people have touched, it reminds you how lucky we are to be where we are in this state and this country.”
Previously discovered war relics
Civil War artifacts have previously been discovered in South Carolina. In 2016, hurricane matthew Civil War Unearthed cannonball From the sand of Folly Beach.a similar findings This piece was created by a couple on the same beach three years after Hurricane Dorian.
Last year, in neighboring Georgia, 19 cannons were discovered The Savannah River is in “amazing condition.” Experts said the cannon likely came from a British ship that sank to the riverbed during the American Revolutionary War.
Wreckage of a Confederate warship in 2015 CSS Georgia It was raised to the surface of the Savannah River. The ship was sunk by General Sherman’s own crew to prevent him from capturing the massive gunship during the Union occupation of Savannah in December 1864.
