It is said that since the Battle of Rivers Bridge of 1865, every February from the 2nd to the 4th, you will experience continuous rain at the battleground site. Between these three days, there is a single night where the battle will start again, as if in a ghostly time loop. Nineteen different witnesses heard screaming, gunfire, and cannons firing on this mysterious night around 10:00 PM.
One would think Civil War reenactors are wrapping up some scenes late. However, this is not the case. Many of the witnesses include reenactors who hear the battle happening without them. The sounds of the ghostly fighting last for approximately ninety minutes. And then it stops just as fast as a shot in the dark.
The Historic Site is at 325 State Park Road in Ehrhardt, South Carolina. The battle was bloody, resulting in fifty-one casualties from both sides. Out of the fifty-one, only eight Confederate soldiers died during the fight, with the Union army losing forty-three and many others wounded.
With so many Union casualties, it was far from a debacle. The Illinois and the 32nd Wisconsin Infantry soldiers overwhelmed the Confederacy, causing them to retreat earlier in the fight. They gave up sixteen bridges across the Salkehatchie River, which destroyed any chance of victory for the Southern troops.
The battleground site has memorial grounds for the Confederate soldiers killed here, with a yearly memorial service for them since 1876.
Today, the battle for the valuable real estate wages into the afterlife. Who knows? If you visit, you may come face-to-face with a blast from the past.
Written By: Izzy
