With the upcoming semiquincentennial (250-year) anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of the American Colonies from Imperial British rule, I decided I should start a series of geocaches highlighting well known and lesser known parts of history regarding the American War of Independence.
Battle of Fort Sullivan
As the British evacuated Boston in March 1776 and regrouped along the coast, plans were made on what to do to curb the American rebellion. One such strategy was the possibility of sailing south, establishing a foothold in the southern colonies, and rallying loyalist support to retake the provincial governments. British leadership soon selected Charleston, South Carolina, since they believed its defenses outside the city were no match for the British Navy.
What was standing in the way of the British was the unfinished fort on Sullivan's Island and its commander, Colonel William Moultrie. Using palmetto trees, the Americans began building walls by placing two cut logs sixteen feet apart and filling the space with clay and sand.
Unlike other types, palmetto fiber absorbed impact like sponges, whereas other treed woods would splinter and shatter. The five-hundred-foot square fort with high, sixteen-foot-wide sides filled with sand and planked gun platforms, holding thirty-one assorted cannons, would be Charleston's first line of defense.
On June 28, 1776, after failing to land troops due to faulty intelligence stating the waters to be slow and shallow, the British turned to shore bombardment of Fort Sullivan from the arriving fleet, instead.
At 10:00 am, the fleet of warships with mounted mortars and cannon, anchored a mile from the fort and began to lob over 7,000 shells, striking about the fort.
Due to limited supplies of powder, Moultrie's men slowly and steadily replied, making each shot count. For every fifty British fleet shots fired, Fort Sullivan fired but one, most of which proved deadly accurate on their targets. In return, the British were not doing any real damage to the fort because the spongy palmetto logs absorbed the cannon balls.
Frustrated the mortars were doing so little damage, the British began overpacking with gun powder to give the shot more velocity. The result was the heavy mortars, held down by special wood planks, buckled the planks and began destroying the ship's deck.
To add insult to injury, three British ships attempted to sail past the fort to overwhelm it with firepower, but they ran aground on a sandbar unknown to them. After being dislodged, they fled with the rest of the British fleet to fight another day.
Moultrie County, Illinois - located between Decatur and Matoon - is named after William Moultrie. What is the county seat of Moultrie County?
- Bethany = N 41° 21.358′ W 88° 31.054′
- Lovington = N 41° 21.505′ W 88° 31.047′
- Sullivan = N 41° 21.789′ W 88° 31.063′