Skip to SearchSkip to NavigationSkip to BodySkip to Footer
National Park Service LogoU.S. Department of the InteriorNational Park ServiceNational Park Service
National Park Service:  U.S. Department of the InteriorNational Park Service Arrowhead
Fort Sumter National MonumentFlags over Fort Sumter
view map
text size:largestlargernormal
printer friendly

Where The American Civil War Began

Decades of growing strife between North and South erupted in civil war on April 12, 1861, when Confederate artillery opened fire on this Federal fort in Charleston Harbor. Fort Sumter surrendered 34 hours later. Union forces would try for nearly four years to take it back.
 
Fort Moultrie, with a 32 pdr. seacoast cannon in the foreground.

Fort Moultrie

Fort Moultrie is a unit of Fort Sumter National Monument. The site is located on Sullivan's Island and is accessible by car. Learn about 171 years of American seacoast defenses.
more...
 
Accessibility logo

Limited accessibility to Fort Sumter

The ramping system for the Fort Sumter ferry departing from downtown Charleston is currently out of service. Disabled visitors should plan on a low tide departure using a manual wheelchair.
more...

 
 
 

Write to

1214 Middle Street
Sullivan's Island, SC 29482

E-mail Us

Phone

Visitor Information & Park Headquarters
(843) 883-3123

Fax

(843) 883-3910

Climate

Summers are generally hot and humid. Brief showers and thunderstorms are normal, especially in the afternoon. Spring and fall are temperate. Winters may be cool and damp with occasional periods below freezing. Snow is unlikely.
Skip to SearchSkip to NavigationSkip to BodySkip to Footer
Composite photos of Maj. Anderson (left) and Gen. Beauregard (right)  

Did You Know?
Union Maj. Robert Anderson, commanding Fort Sumter, and Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard, commanding Charleston's forces during the first battle of the Civil War, knew each other since the 1830s. Beauregard was a cadet at West Point and Anderson was his artillery instructor.

Last Updated: October 01, 2008 at 15:38 EST