COLUMBIA, SC — The South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum set another new record high for attendance in April. In February, the museum’s visitation was the highest experienced since reopening in the Columbia Mills Building in September 2002; April’s visitation substantially beat that record.
The recently expanded museum offers plenty for visitors to see, including a new exhibit open through June 28, “Civil War Photographs from the David L. Hack Collection.” This exhibit features some of the most iconic images of the Civil War. These images include Robert E. Lee in the uniform he wore while surrendering at Appomattox and Abraham Lincoln’s last formal photo session in the White House. Photographs of battlefield medicine tents at Gettysburg, a military band, and Confederate spy Rose Greenhow are among the unique scenes on display. Also included is one of the first examples of photo journalism in American history – Alexander Gardner’s photograph series of the Lincoln assassination conspirators’ execution.
“Forgotten Stories: SC Fights the Great War” is also on display, through December 6, 2009. This one-of-a-kind exhibit, which features interactive kiosks and a simulated trench area, chronicles forgotten South Carolina stories from WWI. Some of the highlighted stories include the African-American 371st Regiment, women in the American Red Cross, aviation pioneers, military bands, and advanced warfare techniques.
Founded in 1896, the SC Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum is the oldest museum in the Columbia area. The museum focuses on South Carolina’s military history from the Revolutionary War to the present War on Terror. For more information please contact Jai Cassidy Shaiman at (803) 737-8095 or jcassidy@crr.sc.gov.
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