Massachusetts 54th

CHARLESTON - They pitched simple canvass pup tents Friday morning just off Sol Legare Road, where Confederate and Union forces battled 147 years ago -- a prelude to their larger clash on Morris Island a few days later.

Re-enactors with the Massachusetts 54th regiment talked with dozens of people who turned out to celebrate a special chapter of black history that played out several miles from downtown Charleston.

The July 16, 1863, Battle of Sol Legare Island was one of the first conflicts involving the all-black 54th Massachusetts regiment. Fourteen were killed, with 29 more wounded or missing.

The unit is best known for leading the attack on Confederate Battery Wagner on Morris Island just two days later, when they suffered heavy losses but proved themselves as brave as other Union troops. That fight is the conclusion of the movie "Glory," Hollywood's retelling of the 54th regiment's history.

About 10 re-enactors, some of whom came from other states, boarded a boat for Morris Island on Friday afternoon, where they laid a wreath to remember the soldiers killed there.

The gathering also was a celebration of the work on the Seashore Farmers Lodge No. 767, which has been restored and soon will have a new life as a museum.

Joseph McGill, a re-enactor who works with the National Trust for Historic Places, said the group hopes to build on these re-enactments in the upcoming years in preparation for the 150th anniversary in 2013.

"We will not be relegated to the back pages of history," McGill said. "We will not be a footnote."

The site of Battery Wagner is now underwater, but the neighboring part of Morris Island recently was saved from development. Its new owner, the city of Charleston, is figuring how to interpret the site to the public.

Reach Robert Behre at 937-5771 or at rbehre@postandcourier.com.