The Citadel Finds Its "Big Red"-- Part 1

From the Winter 2010 Hallowed Ground Magazine of the Civil War Preservation Trust.

On January 9, 1861, cadets from the South Carolina Military Academy, known today as The Citadel, fired what are considered the first shots of the war at the ship Star of the West which was attempting to resupply Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor.

Above their battery on James Island, they flew a red banner with a white palmetto tree and crescent moon that had been given to them by the family of local flag maker Hugh Vincent.

After the event, the flag was largely forgotten until 1992 when it was declared the Citadel's official Spirit Flag. The flag itself was gone to history.

Unfortunately, as the school learned later, one detail on the new flag was incorrect and that was which way the crescent was facing.

Then, came an interesting find.

That, Later. --Old B-Runner