The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-02-18
SEMT-CENTENARY OF THE EVACUATION
 OF CHARLESTON

One of the most heroic and stub born defenses ever made by bes1eged city was that of Charleston, S. C.. the proudest city of the Confectionery, in the American civil war. It was just half a century ago that the gallant defenders of the South Carolina metropolis were forced to give up the unequal contest and evacuate the city After eighteen months of almost con tinuaI bornbardment from land and sea-a period of famine, want and misery for the garrison and the c1t1- zens who had remained-the Stars and Bars were hauled down rom Fort Sumter on Feb IS, 1865. The ap- proach of Gen. Sherman with his vic torious army, which. had occupied Co., lumbia the previous day, made it nec- essary for the small body of Con federates to retire in order to escape certain defeat. Charleston had been reduced to a mass of smoking ruins by the bombardnent, and the work of destruction was completed by Gen Hardee before he abandoned the city
 The fall of Charleston was the oc- casion of great ju1bilation in the North. The South Carolina metropolis was looked upon as the source and foun- tain-head of the ideas for which the Confederacy stood. The civil war had opened at Charleston in April. 1881, when Major Anderson had been fore ed to evacuate Fort. Sumter. brick stronghold built on 9, shoa1 in Charles ton harbor, about three and 8 half miles from the cdty. Anderson, the Federal commandGE at Fort Sumter, attacked by Gen Beauregard. On April IA. 1861, the Confederate flag was raised over the fort, and there it remained until Feb. IS, 1865.
 Of all the cities of the South. Charleston was most hated by the IT- <~lc ,nxS1s- ed for its fall. In April, 1863, fleet of monitors was dispatched against the city, and on the seventh of that mont hthe battle Of Charleston liar bor was fought. It was a disaster for the fleet, flor the artillerists of Fort Sumter made every shot tell The Confederate gunners, according to European experts who witnessed the conflict, did the best work in the his tory of warfare, and Union officers afterward declared that the shots, rapid as the tickets of a watch never failed to hit the mark.
 In July the Union forces resumed the assault by land and sea- Batter ies were erected on Morris island, about 4, 900 yards from Fort Sumter, and in a week over 5000 projectiles, weighing from 100 to 500 pounds each, were hurled against the fort. The fort was demolished and it's guns sil-
 
 on amid the ruins Repeated assaults were made on Fort Wagner and Sum ter, but the blue lines were again and again hurled back with fearful s1augh- ter. In September the garrison beat o ffanother naval attack. In October a bombardrnent was commenced which continued forty days, and it was resumed in 1864. A veritable rain of shot and shell poured upon Charleston, and death and Restitution held high carnival in the stricken city.
 Gen. Gilmore, despairing of cap turing Fort Sumter by assault. laid siege to the city and it's defenses The sappers and miners gradually won l their way to the battery and another assault was to have been delivered on ! the day the Confederates, hearing of the approach of Sherman. abandoned the city and completed the work of destruction.
 The Confederate flag was hauled l down by the same men who had rais- | tered the city they found only smok- ing ruins on which to plant the ban | ner which had triumphed only after months of bombardment and the sac- | rifice of thousands of lives. The fall of Charleston virtually sounded the l death h-kneu of the Confectionery, and in the following April the surrender of Lee at Appomattox brought the
 long and bloody conflict to an end.