SOUTH CAROLINA: Group Seeks to Further Preserve Remains of Colonial-Era Fort
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) – Changes are soon coming to Marion Square in downtown Charleston, as officials are trying to preserve the remains of an old Revolutionary War fort that’s underground.
The Field Officers of the Fourth Brigade, who are descendants of Colonial-era soldiers and own Marion Square, said the fort once guarded the entrance to the city.
A portion on the King Street side of the square is all that is left of that historic fort above ground. It’s made out of tabby, which is a combination of local materials, like seashells and limestone.
When the fort, called the Horn Works, was demolished following the Revolutionary War, its foundation was left intact underground.
“It’s a substantial structure. There are actual walls down there,” Chairman Tom Weinzierl said. “There are parts of the wall down there, not just loose rocks or anything, because they just leveled everything to ground level, and whatever was the foundation, they just covered up.”
The brigade has mapped out where these remains are. They will soon install bronze markers on the outline of the old fort, add historical signage and use augmented reality to let people “walk” through the inside of the fort.
Weinzierl said they want to protect the remains from being damaged from events above ground while adding historical context.
The $200,000 project is being funded entirely by the South Carolina Battleground Trust.
“[It will] give people a historical perspective of the whole revolution, and Charleston played a very pivotal role in there, especially,” Weinzierl said. “The revolution really ended in Charleston when the British finally left in 1783. It didn’t just end in Yorktown.”
Officials said the bronze markers should be installed in December, with the signs and augmented reality portions installed next year.
–live5news.com
