Upcoming Exhibitions

In September 2008 the museum will open a focus gallery exhibit on the Colin J. McRae Collection (learn more about the collection). McRae was the Confederacy's chief financial agent in Europe from 1863 to the end of the Civil War.  This focus gallery will highlight the Confederacy's lifeline to England and shed light on English goods reaching Confederate soldiers on the battlefield.  The exhibit will remain open through January 9, 2009.
 
The focus gallery opening this fall is merely a taste of great things to come!
 
The museum is fundraising to complete the purchase of this rare and important archival collection and create a large-scale exhibit that will open during the national Civil War Sesquicentennial Anniversary in April 2011.  This larger exhibit will feature much of the collection and a smaller version of it will eventually travel to other museums.  The main exhibit will explore Colin McRae's business dealings in Europe, George Alfred Trenholm's role in the war as the second Secretary of the Confederate Treasury, the drama of blockade running, and the impact of English goods on Confederate soldiers in the field.  Authentic weapons and equipment will be on display and visitors will learn the stories of South Carolinians connected to and impacted by the blockade and southern purchasing abroad.
 
The 2011 exhibit is in its early planning stages and it promises to bring to light the international intrigue of McRae collection collection and all those connected to it.