1. In 1776, the South Carolina Provincial Congress authorized the removal of all royal authority from the state, effectively declaring South Carolina's independence from Great Britain.

2. On March 26, 1865, the Battle of Bentonville, the last major Confederate offensive of the Civil War, began in North Carolina. The battle involved troops from both North and South Carolina, as well as Union forces.

3. In 1936, the first federal, low-income housing project in South Carolina was opened in Columbia. The housing development, known as Gonzales Gardens, was built as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal program.

4. On March 26, 1979, the largest soundboard ever constructed for a pipe organ was completed by the Flentrop Orgelbouw company in the Netherlands. The 9,749-pipe instrument was destined for the Memorial Chapel at the University of South Carolina.

5. In 1986, the South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball team made it to the NCAA Final Four for the first time in school history. Led by Head Coach Bill Foster, the Gamecocks beat several higher-ranked teams along the way to reach the national semifinals before losing to the eventual champions, the Louisville Cardinals.