Fort Sumter

Fort Sumter (1842-1947) - A Third System masonry fort begun in 1829 and unfinished when the U.S. Civil War began. Became a National Historic Monument in 1948.

Fort Sumter History

Established as one of the forts protecting the entrance to Charleston Harbor along with Fort Moultrie.

Seventy thousand tons of granite were imported from New England to build up a sand bar in the entrance to Charleston harbor, which the site dominates; The fort was a five-sided brick structure, 170 to 190 feet long, with walls five feet thick, standing 50 feet over the low tide mark. It was designed to house 650 men and 135 guns in three tiers of gun emplacements, although it was never filled to capacity.

Fort Sumter was the site of the first shot fired in the U.S. Civil War, 12 Apr 1861, when Confederate batteries fired upon Fort Sumter at 4:30am. The shelling continued for 34 hours. The fort commander, Maj. Robert Anderson, surrendered on 13 Apr 1861 and the fort remained in Confederate hands until 22 Feb 1865. During the war the fort suffered considerable damage from Union bombardments.

After the U.S. Civil War the fort was reduced to a two tier structure and the first tier was restored with 100-pounder Parrott rifles. The fort was unmanned 1876-1897 but the Spanish American War saw the installation of an Endicott Period battery, Battery Huger, with 2 12" guns. The battery was manned during World War I by a small garrison. During World War II two 90mm antiaircraft were place in AMTB #1 as the only battery on the island.

Fort Sumter Endicott Period Batteries

Battery	No.	Caliber	Type Mount	Years
Huger	1	12"	Disappearing Carriage	1906-1943
Huger	1	12"	Barbette Carriage	1906-1943
Source: Coastal Defense Study Group

Fort Sumter World War II Batteries

Battery	No.	Caliber	Type Mount	Years
AMTB #1	2	90 mm	Fixed Pedestal	1943-1946
Source: Coastal Defense Study Group

Current Status

Fort Sumter became Fort Sumter National Historic Monument in 1948. Can be reached by a 30 minute boat ride from Charleston, South Carolina.

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Location: Charleston Harbor, South Carolina Maps & Images Lat: 32.751944 Long: -79.874722 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: '

Sources:

• Lewis, Emanuel Raymond, Seacoast Fortifications of the United States: An Introductory History, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis MD, 7th printing, 1993, ISBN 1-55750-502-0, page 51

Links:

• National Park Service
• Wikipedia

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