It’s not as poignantly ornate as Savannah’s Victorian cemeteries, Bonaventure [1] and Laurel Grove [2], but Beaufort National Cemetery (1601 Boundary St., daily 8 a.m.–sunset) is worth a stop, as you enter or leave Beaufort, for its history. Begun by order of Abraham Lincoln in 1863, this is one of the few cemeteries containing the graves of both Union and Confederate troops, mostly the former.
National Cemetery is where 19 soldiers of the all-black Massachusetts 54th and 55th Infantry were re-interred with full military honors after being found on Folly Island near Charleston [3].
Sergeant Joseph Simmons, “Buffalo Soldier” and veteran of both World Wars, is buried here, as is none other than the “Great Santini” himself, novelist Pat Conroy [4]’s father, Donald.
Links:
[1] http://www.moon.com/destinations/charleston-savannah/savannah/sights/eastside/bonaventure-cemetery
[2] http://www.moon.com/destinations/charleston-savannah/savannah/sights/westside/laurel-grove-cemetery
[3] http://www.moon.com/destinations/charleston-savannah/charleston/sights/folly-beach
[4] http://www.moon.com/destinations/south-carolina/beaufort-and-the-lowcountry/pat-conroy-s-lowcountry