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Les Forceurs de blocus

From: Ian Thompson <ithompson~at~geog.gla.ac.uk>
Date: Fri, 20 Aug 2004 09:40:26 +0100
To: "Jules Verne Forum" <jvf~at~Gilead.org.il>

Having checked out Verne's description of Glasgow in les Forceurs de blocus,
I recently visited Charleston, South Carolina, to verify the "other end" of
the adventure i.e. Charleston Harbour. As usual, Verne's account of both the
physical and man-made features is totally accurate. Only in one respect
would Verne have to alter the plot if he were writing now. James Playfair
shakes off the pursuers of the Dolphin by heading towards the Morris Island
Channel (South of Fort Sumter) and then at the last minute diverted to the
Sullivan Island Channel to the North of Fort Sumter. This ruse could no
longer be employed. In order to improve access to Charleston Harbour for
military purposes during the First and Second World Wars, the Main Channel
was dredged and the sand deposited between Morris Island and Fort Sumter. As
a result, the Morris Island Channel no longer exists as a navigable route
and at low tide Fort Sumter is joined to Morris Island by a sand bar.
Most of the features included by Verne are still evident...the main
exception is that the Citadel in which Jonathan Halliburtt was imprisoned
was abandoned and repositioned further inland on the peninsula. Given the
accuracy of Verne's account of the setting of the novel it would be
fascinating to know what sources (almost certainly including maps) he
employed. At present I am constructing a map of Charleston as presented in
the novel drawing on materials from the 1860s. Incidentally,
as our American colleagues will know, Charleston is well worth a visit
irrespective of the Verne connection.
Ian Thompson.
Received on Fri 20 Aug 2004 - 12:30:03 IDT

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