The second major amphibious operation of the Civil War was the capture of Port Royal Sound on November 7, 1861. Flag Officer Samuel Francis DuPont was the newly minted commander of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. He needed to capture Port Royal Sound, South Carolina, to use as a base for his squadron. DuPont entered the sound and then placed his ships on an elliptical course, thereby making his fleet a moving target, whereas forts Beauregard and Walker, defending the entrance to Port Royal Sound, were stationary. The forts soon surrendered and immediately began to support DuPont’s squadron blockade of cities like Charleston and Savannah. The Union occupation of the South Carolina Sea Islands so early in the war resulted in what became known as the Port Royal Experiment. Abolitionists toiled to make these formerly enslaved people literate and self-reliant wage earners. Once the Emancipation Proclamation was made law, this coastal region became a recruitment center for the enlistment of African American soldiers.

Image credit: Bombardment and Capture of Port Royal, South Carolina, 7 November 1861. Engraving. Harper’s Weekly, July-December 1861. Courtesy of Naval History and Heritage Command.


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