“Escaping Slavery in Early South Carolina” is the topic for the History Forum on Dec. 9, 2016 at 3 p.m., when the Coastal Discovery Museum will host Nic Butler at the Palmetto Electric Cooperative Community Room. Tens of thousands of Africans were brought to early South Carolina to work as enslaved laborers, but a small percentage of that number managed to find a path to freedom long before the abolition of slavery in 1865. Historian, Dr. Nic Butler, examines the four principle paths out of bondage, ranging from the heroic to the perilous, and introduces examples of real individuals who gained freedom from an oppressive system.
Nic Butler is a public historian with a passion for talking about Charleston history. A native of Greenville County, South Carolina, Dr. Butler attended the University of South Carolina before completing a Ph.D. in musicology at Indiana University. He has worked as archivist of the South Carolina Historical Society, as an adjunct faculty member at the College of Charleston, and as an historical consultant for the City of Charleston.
The cost to non-members is $10 per person, basic members are $5 per person and supporting or higher members are no charge. Reservations are required and may be made by calling (843) 689-6767 ext. 224 or online at coastaldiscovery.org. The Palmetto Electric Cooperative Community Room is located at 111 Mathews Drive (rear of building) on Hilton Head Island.
