The National Park Service is co-sponsoring a Battery Gadsden Cultural Center event on “How the Spanish-American War Brought Sullivan’s Island Back to Life.”
Sullivan’s Island Historian Roy Williams will tell how this lesser-known war had a significant impact on Sullivan’s Island and spurred the development of prominent military structures that still define the island today, including Batteries Capron and Pierce Butler (also known as the “Mound” at Stith Park) and Battery Gadsden itself. Williams will include then-and-now photos of island structures built during the Spanish-American War. The “now” photos are taken by drone to duplicate the height and angle of original photos that were taken from the air when these structures were still in use.
Williams grew up on Sullivan’s Island, taught history at Wando High School, and authored the book “Images of America: Sullivan’s Island.”
The free, one-hour program will be at the Fort Moultrie Visitor Center on Thursday, Feb. 16, at 6 p.m.
The event is part of the ongoing Battery Gadsden Cultural Center Speaker Series. The Battery Gadsden Cultural Center is a nonprofit organization preserving the culture of art and history on Sullivan’s Island. For more information, visit batterygadsden.com.
Fort Moultrie is located at 1214 Middle St. on Sullivan’s Island. The site is administered by the National Park Service as a unit of Fort Sumter National Monument.