Carolina Day

Carolina Day is the day set aside to commemorate the first decisive victory of the American Revolutionary War.

History

On June 28, 1776, a small band of Palmetto State patriots defeated the mighty British navy in the Battle of Sullivan's Island. Patriots stationed at an unfinished palmetto log and sand fort near what is today Fort Moultrie defeated a British naval force of nine warships as it attempted to invade Charleston. The victory put off a British occupation for four years.

Holiday

The anniversary of the victory was celebrated locally starting in 1777 when it was known as Palmetto Day or Sergeant Jasper's Day. (The latter name was a reference to a colonial soldier who had rushed into the fight to save the fallen battle flag during the battle. [http://www.southcarolinahistoricalsociety.org/wire/RevWar/CarolinaDay/jasper.html] ) The anniversary became known as Carolina Day for the first time in 1875. The anniversary remained popular until the mid-20th century but eventually began to fall out of favor. Regardless, the day continued to be marked by the tradition of playing the tune of "Three Blind Mice" at noon at St. Michael's Episcopal Church (Charleston, South Carolina). In 1995, Charleston historical groups helped reinvigorate the celebration of Carolina Day to help raise awareness of South Carolina's and Charleston's role in the Revolutionary War. [cite news | first=David | last=Quick | title=Carolina Day spotlights state's role in Revolution | date=2002-06-28 | publisher= | url =http://archives.postandcourier.com/archive/arch02/0602/arc0628656368.shtml | work =Charleston Post and Courier | accessdate = 2008-06-30]

While the holiday has not regained the popularity it once enjoyed, it remains an official holiday in South Carolina although not marked by office closings. According to [http://www.scstatehouse.net/cgi-bin/query.exe?first=DOC&querytext=carolina%20day&category=Code&conid=3893264&result_pos=0&keyval=1055 South Carolina Code Ann. sec. 53-3-140] , "June twenty-eighth of each year, the anniversary of the Battle of Fort Sullivan in 1776, is declared to be 'Carolina Day' in South Carolina."

References