SC National Heritage Corridor

The Charleston Museum

Prior to the American Revolution, Charleston was one of the most prosperous cities in North America. As such, it was the target of a British siege and occupation. The Charleston Museum, the oldest museum in the country, has a significant Revolutionary War exhibit that includes objects related to Brigadier General Francis Marion, known as “the Swamp Fox.” It also includes artifacts from military engagements and encampments in the Charleston area. Among them are a rare Royal Artillery cartridge box and a 13" mortar shell from the Siege of Charleston.

The Museum also operates the Heyward-Washington House, home of Thomas Heyward, Jr., a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a Revolutionary War artillery officer.

Civil War
The City Under Siege, the Museum’s Civil War exhibition, provides a rich overview of events in and around Charleston from secession to 1865. Withstanding a Federal naval blockade, frequent bombardments, and five major Union attempts to capture the city, the war changed the lives of Charleston’s residents forever.   Their story—one of suffering, sacrifice, initiative and tenacity—is told with extensive images and artifacts from the Museum’s collections. These include a pike from John Brown’s Harpers Ferry raid, the table and chairs used to compose the Ordnance of Secession, uniforms, artillery shells, firearms, “gunboat china,” the watch of a fallen South Carolina soldier, and the prosthesis of Colonel Peter Gaillard, who lost his hand in action against Union forces on Morris Island.