Background note:

Brig. Gen. James Simons of the South Carolina Militia was given command of Morris Island early in 1861, as the nascent Confederate forces turned their attention to the federal garrison in Fort Sumter. With two brigades under his command, Morris presided over the reduction of Sumter and was later placed in command of the 4th Brigade, South Carolina Militia, stationed in and near Charleston.

Scope and contents:

The South Carolina Militia orderly book contains brigade-level orders issued under the command of Brig. Gen. James Simons, commander on Morris Island during the siege of Fort Sumter. The importance of the book lies only partly in documenting the build up and reduction of Sumter, but in the insight it provides into the formation of the earliest structures for organization and command in the Confederate army, and the taste it provides of the enthusiasm surrounding South Carolina's defiant entry into war.

Recat. 10/97 rsc

Link to subject index to the South Carolina Militia Orderly Book

Contents listing for the South Carolina Militia Orderly Book

Alphabetic index to the Schoff Civil War Collections

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