233:"Thousands of black Charlestonians, most former slaves, remained in the city and conducted a series of commemorations to declare their sense of the meaning of the war. The largest of these events, and unknown until some extraordinary luck in my recent research, took place on May 1, 1865. During the final year of the war, the Confederates had converted the planters' horse track, the Washington Race Course and Jockey Club, into an outdoor prison. Union soldiers were kept in horrible conditions in the interior of the track; at least 257 died of exposure and disease and were hastily buried in a mass grave behind the grandstand. Some twenty-eight black workmen went to the site, re-buried the Union dead properly, and built a high fence around the cemetery. They whitewashed the fence and built an archway over an entrance on which they inscribed the words, 'Martyrs of the Race Course'.
243:"At 9 am on May 1, the procession stepped off led by three thousand black schoolchildren carrying arm loads of roses and singing 'John Brown's Body.' The children were followed by several hundred black women with baskets of flowers, wreaths and crosses. Then came black men marching in cadence, followed by contingents of Union infantry and other black and white citizens. As many as possible gathering in the cemetery enclosure; a children's choir sang 'We'll Rally around the Flag,' the 'Star-Spangled Banner,' and several spirituals before several black ministers read from scripture. No record survives of which biblical passages rung out in the warm spring air, but the spirit of Leviticus 25 was surely present at those burial rites: 'for it is the jubilee; it shall be holy unto you … in the year of this jubilee he shall return every man unto his own possession.'
246:"Following the solemn dedication the crowd dispersed into the infield and did what many of us do on Memorial Day: they enjoyed picnics, listened to speeches, and watched soldiers drill. Among the full brigade of Union infantry participating was the famous 54th Massachusetts and the 34th and 104th U.S. Colored Troops, who performed a special double-columned march around the gravesite. The war was over, and Decoration Day had been founded by African Americans in a ritual of remembrance and consecration. The war, they had boldly announced, had been all about the triumph of their emancipation over a slaveholders' republic, and not about state rights, defense of home, nor merely soldiers' valor and sacrifice."
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273:, Bellware and Gardiner take issue with Blight's characterization of this event as the first Memorial Day. While appealing in its inclusiveness, the event lacks the intention to begin an annual tradition. It was a cemetery dedication, not unlike the one at Gettysburg two years earlier. It was a celebration of the fall of Charleston done in conjunction with the floral-themed May Day holiday. This was a one-time event and not meant to reoccur. When asked by the
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236:"Then, black Charlestonians in cooperation with white missionaries and teachers, staged an unforgettable parade of 10,000 people on the slaveholders' race course. The symbolic power of the low-country planter aristocracy's horse track (where they had displayed their wealth, leisure, and influence) was not lost on the freedpeople. A
353:, designed a plan for a park following his first visit to Charleston in 1906. At least part of his plans for long parkways along the Ashley River were disrupted when the city sold the approximately 200 acres (0.81 km) along the Ashley River, the Rhett Farm tract, to The Citadel for the relocation and expansion of its campus.
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structure at 30 Mary Murray Blvd. and rework the neighboring stables as part of a special events venue. In a different phase of the master plan, the stand-alone snack stand was designated to again become an active food station. The renovation of the snack stand was completed in 2019. The snack stand
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The refurbished park reopened in June 1984 after a year of improvement work when the
Piccolo Spoleto finale was held at Hampton Park. The park is popular with walkers, joggers, and cyclists who use the 1-mile (1.6 km) perimeter road for exercise. In previous years, the park was the location for
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During the mid-20th century, the park included a zoo. It was opened in 1932, and an aviary was added about six years later. Most of the animals, including a lion, were donated to the zoo or bred at the zoo. By the mid-1960s, the zoo had become run-down. The zoo closed in 1975, and its contents
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and governor of South
Carolina. The bandstand from the trade exposition, once located in the center of the park, was saved and moved to its present location at the east edge of the park at the foot of Cleveland St. In addition, the building at 30 Mary Murray Blvd., which is currently used as the
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In 1835, part of Gibbes' plantation was acquired by the South
Carolina Jockey Club, a group that developed the Washington Race Course on the site. An annual horse race in February attracted thousands of spectators who could watch the races from an Italianate grandstand designed by Charles F.
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The city began a redevelopment of the park starting in the early 1980s. Following several years of decline in the park's condition, the city refocused landscaping efforts on the park, reduced crime, and installed a small snack stand designed by Sandy Logan.
230:"The city was largely abandoned by white residents by late February. Among the first troops to enter and march up Meeting Street singing liberation songs was the 21st U. S. Colored Infantry; their commander accepted the formal surrender of the city.
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By late April 1865, a white picket fence on which was written "The
Martyrs of the Race Course" had been erected. On May 1, 1865, thousands of people, mainly newly freed blacks, processed to the site, and members of the
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the finale of the
Piccolo Spoleto Festival and in present-day remains the site for the MOJA Festival in addition to many weddings and other special events. The Finale of the Spoleto Festival USA has been moved to
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After the Civil War, the Jockey Club was unable to resume the popular racing season, and the land was leased for farming. In 1899, the
Charleston Jockey Club disbanded, and its assets were given to the
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of 1901–1902 was held on a large tract of land, including the former race course. The exposition opened on
December 1, 1901, and attracted 674,086 attendees during its run. On April 9, 1902, President
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and the Ladies
Memorial Association of Columbus, Georgia as the true originators of the holiday as abundant contemporaneous evidence from across the nation exists to substantiate the claim.
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for proof of his assertion that it influenced
General John A. Logan's inauguration of the national holiday, Blight confessed he had none. Bellware and Gardiner credit
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The land constituting current-day
Hampton Park was, by 1769, part of a plantation owned by John Gibbes and known as The Grove or Orange Grove Plantation.
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marched around the site. The graves were decorated, speeches were offered, and celebrants enjoyed picnics in the area. This has been cited as the first
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Reichardt. Today, Mary Murray Drive is a 1-mile (1.6 km) parkway that circles Hampton Park in almost the exact location of the race track.
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correspondent witnessed the event, describing 'a procession of friends and mourners as South Carolina and the United States never saw before.'
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Union soldiers were buried behind the old racetrack's stands near the present intersection of Tenth Avenue and Mary Murray Drive.
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The Civil War caused a steep loss in the number of thoroughbred horses, and the following economic decline during the
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attended the exposition. Nevertheless, the trade exposition was a financial failure, and it closed on May 31, 1902.
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The concession stand had been shuttered for many years but was renovated in 2019 and renamed the "Rose Pavilion."
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made horse racing less economically viable. The South Carolina Jockey Club eventually was disbanded in 1899.
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115:, United States. At 60 acres (240,000 m), it is the largest park on the peninsula. It is bordered by
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to the south, North Central to the east, and Wagener Terrace to the north. The park is named in honor of
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The city of Charleston acquired a part of the exposition land for a park. The park is named in honor of
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city's Parks Department offices, was retained from the exposition, where it served as a tea house.
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The city retained the services of Olmsted, Olmsted & Elliott, a landscaping firm from Boston.
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celebration. By 1871, the cemetery was suffering neglect, and the soldiers were reinterred at the
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J.C. Hemphill, A Short Story on the South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian Exposition,
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In an article titled "The First Decoration Day", David W. Blight of Yale has written:
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747:"Plan emerges to revitalize Hampton Park's fringe for weddings, wine, other uses"
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At the turn of the century, Charleston hosted a regional trade exposition. The
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unveiled a proposal to rework parts of the park. The plan would restore the
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who, at the time of the Civil War was one of the largest enslavers in the
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773:"Charleston Parks Conservancy Dedicates Rose Pavilion at Hampton Park"
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https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1903/04/20/101990487.pdf
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The grandstands at the racetrack were designed by Charles F. Reichart.
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Judith A. Hines, Layers of the Landscape at Hampton Park 10 (2006).
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City of Charleston, South Carolina, Year Book appx. at 163 (1902).
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Judith A. Hines, Layers of the Landscape at Hampton Park 5 (2006).
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in 1900. The remnants of the racing structures were removed, but
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547:. Columbus, GA: Columbus State University. pp. 116–125.
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Charleston (S.C.) News & Courier, Apr. 29, 1975, at 1-A.
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was given the gates to the course which he had installed at
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Charleston (S.C.) News & Courier, Dec. 4, 1965 at 1-B.
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Charleston (S.C.) News & Courier, Dec. 1, 1938 at 16.
333:. After the Civil War, Hampton became a proponent of the
143:. After the Civil War, Hampton became a proponent of the
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New York Times, April 20, 1903 (retrieved May 27, 2009).
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Robert N. Rosen, A Short History of Charleston (1982).
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South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian Exposition
720:"Hampton Park Nearly Ready to Open Up with New Look"
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became the Rose Pavilion, a public gathering place.
545:The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America
271:The Genesis of the Memorial Day Holiday in America
631:"Unusual Variety Awaits Visitors to Hampton Park"
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212:soldiers died in the camp and were buried in a
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610:1919 S.C. Acts No. 216 (approval of transfer).
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543:Bellware, Daniel; Gardiner, Richard (2014).
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809:Buildings and structures completed in 1906
135:, owned one of the largest collections of
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450:Layers of the Landscape at Hampton Park,
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533:Charleston (S.C.) Courier, May 2, 1865.
392:In May 2015, a non-profit known as the
111:is a public park located in peninsular
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511:, "The First Decoration Day", for the
814:1906 establishments in South Carolina
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252:54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry
804:Parks in Charleston, South Carolina
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629:Howard H. Lindsey (Feb 14, 1964).
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724:Charleston News & Courier
663:Charleston News & Courier
635:Charleston News & Courier
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753:. Charleston, South Carolina
472:"History of SC Horse Racing"
394:Charleston Parks Conservancy
357:were largely transferred to
264:Florence National Cemeteries
208:camp. More than two hundred
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659:"Zoo Demolition Is Started"
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476:Steeplechase of Charleston
388:Charleston, South Carolina
287:Charleston Library Society
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153:governor of South Carolina
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204:, the area was used as a
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79:60 acres (24 ha)
60:32.80000°N 79.95611°W
361:, a new state park.
347:John Charles Olmsted
121:Hampton Park Terrace
269:In their 2014 book
65:32.80000; -79.95611
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513:Newark Star Ledger
503:2012-08-14 at the
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311:Theodore Roosevelt
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202:American Civil War
190:Reconstruction Era
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554:978-0-692-29225-9
448:Judith A. Hines,
279:Mary Ann Williams
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401: 1901
323:Confederate
172:Race course
125:Confederate
117:The Citadel
63: /
38:Coordinates
798:Categories
783:2019-10-05
695:2009-05-27
482:2020-11-09
408:References
339:Red Shirts
335:Lost Cause
214:mass grave
149:Red Shirts
145:Lost Cause
51:79°57′22″W
133:Civil War
48:32°48′0″N
501:Archived
325:General
260:Beaufort
127:General
757:May 23,
730:Jan 26,
669:Jan 26,
159:History
139:in the
99:Parking
89: (
84:Created
551:
137:slaves
331:South
210:Union
141:South
759:2015
732:2013
671:2013
549:ISBN
436:2018
317:Park
262:and
151:and
91:1906
87:1906
76:Area
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
