Robert Smalls​ escaped slavery in Charleston by commandeering a Confederate ship and became a top Union naval officer and South Carolina lawmaker.

Basil Watson calls it an honor to create a likeness of Smalls, the first Black person honored with a statue at the SC State House.

Artist Basil Watson is creating the first statue of an African American, Civil War hero Robert Smalls, to be placed on South Carolina's Statehouse grounds.

Before he was a South Carolina lawmaker recognized as a champion of civil rights, Robert Smalls escaped slavery in Charleston ...

Robert Smalls was born in Beaufort in 1839 to Lydia Polite, an enslaved woman. Smalls later purchased his childhood home, located at 511 Prince Street, from his former master.

A portrait of Robert Smalls from between 1870 and 1880. The unanimous passage of the bill to honor Smalls marks a significant shift in South Carolina’s recognition of its history.

A man named Robert Smalls escaped slavery, along with his family and other slaves, by stealing a Confederate ship and was later elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.