| The Columbia Gazetteer of North America. 2000. |
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| Fort Sumter |
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| Fort Sumter, fortification and historic site, on a shoal at the entrance to the harbor of Charleston, S.C., built 1829–1860, and named for Gen. Thomas Sumter. Scene of the opening engagement of the Civil War. Upon passing the Ordinance of Secession (Dec. 1860), S.C. demanded all Federal property within the state, particularly the forts of Charleston harbor—Fort Sumter, Fort Moultrie, and Castle Pinckney. On Dec. 26, 1860, Major Robert Anderson removed his U.S. army command of about 100 men from Fort Moultrie to Fort Sumter, a stronger defensive site. Gov. F. W. Pickens of S.C. had the other 2 forts, along with the Charleston arsenal, seized, and upon the refusal of President James Buchanan to order Anderson’s evacuation, had guns trained on Fort Sumter. In Feb. 1861, the newly organized Confederate govt. assumed the state’s part in the controversy, sending Gen. P. G. T. Beauregard to command Charleston. On April 8, 1861, Pickens received President Lincoln’s notice that a naval expedition would be sent to provision the beleaguered garrison. After a 34-hour Confederate bombardment, begun at 4:30 A.M. on April 12, Anderson accepted terms, and on April 14 the garrison departed with the honors of war. Although no one was killed, the action made manifest the belligerent spirit in both the North and the South. In 1863, Union naval attacks on the fort were thoroughly repulsed. After Sherman forced the evacuation of Charleston, the U.S. flag was again raised over the fort by Anderson on April 14, 1865. Fort Sumter became a natl. monument in 1948; Fort Moultrie is part of the monument. |
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| | | The Columbia Gazetteer of North America. Copyright © 2000 Columbia University Press. |
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