Visit the Frontlines of Freedom Exhibit

When exploring the site of Camp Saxton, stop by Pinckney-Porter’s Chapel to visit the “Frontlines of Freedom” exhibit. The exhibit reviews the history and legacy of Camp Saxton and the 1st South Carolina Volunteers through text, photos, and objects. Created by the park staff, the exhibit opened to the public early in 2025. Follow the panels from the back of the building to learn about the start of the 1st South Carolina Volunteers and the Emancipation Proclamation reading at Camp Saxton. Flip through information files on Susie King Taylor and several 1st South Carolina Volunteers in a book created in partnership with the University of South Carolina Beaufort’s Institute for the Study of the Reconstruction Era. Continue through the exhibit to read about the refugee community of Camp Saxton, and the brave men and women who followed in the 1st South Carolina Volunteers footsteps. In the center of the chapel two exhibit cases hold reproductions of objects, including reproductions of objects from the Elizabeth Hyde Botume collection. Botume came to Beaufort during the Civil War and taught for decades at the Whitney School in Camp Saxton. Included in the cases is information about the Grand Army of the Republic and the Women’s Relief Corp, two organizations founded after the Civil War to help veterans through comradery and support. “Frontlines of Freedom” is open when Pinckney-Porter’s Chapel is open. For more information visit our Operating Hours and Season page.