Fort Sumter National Monument, via a Revolutionary War scene from Fort Moultrie, has been added to the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program/US Mint
Editor's note: This expands the initial article to reflect that the commemorative coin honors a period of the American Revolution.
Fort Sumter National Monument in South Carolina has been honored in the America the Beautiful Quarters Program. The coin’s reverse (tails) side depicts Sgt. William Jasper returning the regimental flag to the ramparts of Fort Moultrie while under attack from British ships during a battle of the American Revolution.
The battle took place on June 28, 1776, when British ships approached the fort with plans to land an army on Long Island, now known as Isle of Palms. The Colonials rebuffed the attack, saving the city of Charleston from the British.
As the fighting was going on, the residents of Charles Town started a battle tradition by climbing on rooftops of the homes on the Battery to watch the bombardment. At one point, the South Carolina flag – blue cloth with a white crescent moon in the corner- flying on the Southwest corner of the fort, was shot down. Sergeant William Jasper leapt down, out of the protection of the fort, to retrieve it and attached the flag to a sponge staff (a tool that was used to swab out the barrel of a cannon so that any remaining sparks or fire from the last shot would not prematurely detonate the new powder being placed into the barrel.). He then positioned the flag again in a place of prominence. The onlookers from Charles Town were relieved to see the flag once again flying.
“This new coin stands as a tribute to the bravery and self-sacrifice of those who believed our fledgling nation deserved a fighting chance,” said U.S. Mint Chief Counsel Jean Gentry.
Fort Moultrie was one of four forts built around Charleston Harbor, and today is part of the national monument. Today the most famous is Fort Sumter, which was shelled by Confederate artillery during the opening days of the American Civil War.
In April 1863, Federal iron-clads and shore batteries began a 20-month bombardment of Sumter and Moultrie, yet Charleston's defenses held. When the Confederate army evacuated the city in February 1865, Fort Sumter was little more than a pile of rubble and Fort Moultrie lay hidden under the band of sand that protected its walls from Federal shells. The new rifled cannon used during the Civil War had demolished the brick-walled fortifications.
The Mint is offering products featuring the Fort Moultrie (Fort Sumter National Monument) quarter for sale directly to the public. To place an order, visit the bureau’s online catalog at http://catalog.usmint.gov/coin-programs/america-the-beautiful-quarters-program or call 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468).
The Fort Moultrie quarter is the 35th release in the U.S. Mint's America the Beautiful Quarters Program, a 12-year initiative to honor 56 national parks and other national sites authorized by Public Law 110-456. Each year, the public sees five new national sites depicted on the tails side of the America the Beautiful Quarters. The Mint is issuing these quarters in the order in which the national sites were officially established.
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Comments
"...while under attack from British ships during the Civil War."
Something's not quite right here...
Nice catch, samwise. No great excuse, just one of those things. We've got it fixed now.
Wikipedia says Willam Jasper performed his heroic action in the Revolutionary War, while Fort Moultrie was under attack by British ships.
Wikipedia implies, and my recollection agrees, that the attack on Fort Sumter at the start of the Civil War was carried out by land-based guns and no ships were involved.