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Walter Edgar

Walter Edgar

Host

Dr. Walter Edgar has two programs on South Carolina Public Radio:Walter Edgar's Journal, and South Carolina from A to Z. Dr. Edgar received his B.A. degree from Davidson College in 1965 and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1969. After two years in the army (including a tour of duty in Vietnam), he returned to USC as a post-doctoral fellow of the National Archives, assigned to the Papers of Henry Laurens.

In 1972 he joined the faculty of the History Department and in 1980 was named director of the Institute for Southern Studies. Dr. Edgar is the Claude Henry Neuffer Professor of Southern Studies and the George Washington Distinguished Professor of History. He retired from USC in 2012.

He has written or edited numerous books about South Carolina and the American South, including South Carolina: A History, the first new history of the state in more than 60 years. With more than 37,000 copies in print and an audio edition, it has been a publishing phenomenon. Partisans & Redcoats: The Southern Conflict that Turned the Tide of the American Revolution is in its fourth printing. He is also the editor of the South Carolina Encyclopedia.

  • “C” is for Charleston County (919 square miles; 2020 population 417,981). About 1682, in the first blueprint for South Carolina as an English colony, there was no Charleston County.
  • “C” is for Charleston County (919 square miles; 2020 population 417,981). About 1682, in the first blueprint for South Carolina as an English colony, there was no Charleston County.
  • “C” is for Charleston, Siege of (1863-1865). Though a continuous enemy presence off Charleston was maintained by the United States from May 1861—when the U.S. Navy established its blockade, Charleston did not find itself under continuous attack until July 1863.
  • “C” is for Charleston, Siege of (1863-1865). Though a continuous enemy presence off Charleston was maintained by the United States from May 1861—when the U.S. Navy established its blockade, Charleston did not find itself under continuous attack until July 1863.
  • “F” is for Fuller, William Edward (1875-1958). Clergyman. Fuller became the new Colored Fire-Baptized Holiness Church's general overseer and its first bishop—a position he held until his death.
  • “B” is for Big Thursday. For more than six decades the story of the lively football competition between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Clemson Tigers was the story of “Big Thursday,” the culmination of State Fair week.
  • This week, we'll be talking with author Kevin Duffus about his book, The 1768 Charleston Lighthouse : Finding the Light in the Fog of History.Charleston’s first lighthouse was established on Middle Bay Island in 1768. The history of the lighthouse, however, has been lost in a fog of misinformation. Kevin Duffus conducted extensive research for his book and has been able to reconstruct the history of America’s seventh – and tallest at the time – lighthouse. Kevin will tell us about the structure's distinctive architecture inspired by Charleston's St. Michael's Church, the ingenious Irishman who designed and built it, its variety of lighting systems, its involvement in three wars, and is tragic end.
  • “B” is for Big Thursday. For more than six decades the story of the lively football competition between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Clemson Tigers was the story of “Big Thursday,” the culmination of State Fair week.
  • “W” is for Williams, David Rogerson (1776-1830). Congressman, governor.
  • “W” is for Williams, David Rogerson (1776-1830). Congressman, governor.