Beaufort History....continued.
As the Civil War (expanded section)
approached, Beaufort County was a focal point of secessionist sentiment, and the original Ordinance
of Secession was drawn up in Beaufort.Only seven months after the firing on Fort Sumter, a massive Federal armada steamed into Port Royal Sound and occupied the sea islands and port communities for the rest of the war. Because of this, much of Beaufort escaped the destruction of property --but the economy collapsed. Besides freedom for the plantation slaves, the Civil War in Beaufort provided an opportunity for their Gullah culture to flourish and saw the establishment of Penn Center, then Penn Normal School, the first school for freed slaves in the South. .........(continued) |
