Fort Sumter Research Paper

Words: 1009
Pages: 5

Fort Sumter is an island fort in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort was constructed in 1829 as a coastal military post where troops resided. Fort Sumter is known for having the first shots of the Civil War. The fort was named for Revolutionary War general and South Carolina native Thomas Sumter. Fort Sumter was one of nearly 50 forts built as part of the so-called Third System, a coastal defense program by Congress in 1817. The three-tiered, five-sided fort’s coastal placement was designed to allow it to control access to the vital Charleston Harbor since the Island itself was only 2.4 acres in size, the fort was built to accommodate a large number of troops and artillery. On a manmade island built from thousands of tons of granite. …show more content…
After a 34 hour fight, Anderson and about 90 soldiers surrendered the fort on April 13. After, Confederate troops resided in Fort Sumter for four years, resisting several attacks by Union forces before finally leaving the fort. After the Civil War, Fort Sumter was restored by the U.S. military and manned during the Spanish-American War, World War I & …show more content…
By Saturday, April 13, cannon fire had broken through the fortress’s five-foot-thick brick walls, causing fires inside the post. With his stores of ammunition depleted, Anderson was forced to surrender the fort shortly after 2 p.m. in the afternoon. No Union troops had been killed during the bombardment, but two men died the following day in an explosion that occurred during an artillery salute held before the U.S. evacuation. The bombardment of Fort Sumter would play a major part in triggering the Civil War. In the days following the assault, Lincoln made a call for Union volunteers to quash the rebellion, while more Southern states including Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee cast their lot with the