1961-1965. The first event of the national centennial was the reenactment of the firing on the federal ship, Star of the the West by Citadel cadets. Company R was designated to serve as the corps of 1861. They were outfitted in Civil War uniforms and authorized to grow and wear their hair to Civil War length. They carried period rifles, and had to learn the manual of arms of the time. The reenactment took place at White Point Gardens on the Battery rather than at Morris Island. It was estimated that 24,000 people saw the event. (Sources: D. D. Nicholson, A History of The Citadel: The Years of Summerall and Clark, pp. 312-316. U430 .C5 N53 1994; The Sphinx, 1961, pp. 47, 181, 251)
