January 23, 1861 - Castle Pinckney, Charleston's Forgotten Fort

Castle Pinckney from the Air

January 23, 1861

As South Carolina troops moved to prepare for war in Charleston Harbor, one of the key installations they occupied was Castle Pinckney.

Built in 1809-1811 on the site of an earlier work that was destroyed in the Hurricane of 1804, Castle Pinckney was a horse-shoe shaped masonry work located on the southern tip of Shutes Folley Island about one mile off the Battery at Charleston. At the time of its completion, it was considered the strongest of Charleston's forts and due to its location in the inner harbor, it was the city's final line of defense against an attacking warships.

Castle Pinckney Interior in 1861

The old fort was placed in inactive status after the War of 1812, but played a role in the "Nullification Crisis" of the 1830s. By the time South Carolina seceded from the Union in 1860, however, Castle Pinckney was considered much weaker than nearby Fort Sumter and Major Robert Anderson opted to consolidated his available force in the latter installation. State troops quickly occupied the work and began the task of mounting guns and repairing the fort.

By January 24, 1861, the work on Castle Pinckney had progressed well and, along with Fort Moultrie and Fort Johnson, it provided state forces with a good ability to defend the harbor from an attack by the U.S. Navy, despite the fact that Federal troops still held Fort Sumter.

Charleston Zouaves at Castle Pinckney

Unlike the other primary forts of Charleston Harbor, Castle Pinckney is difficult to see today. There is no bridge connecting Shutes Folly with the mainland and special permission is required to even land on the island. The fort itself is badly deteriorated, although there have been some recent efforts to at least protect it "as is." Oddly enough, it was a National Monument from 1933-1956, but  the status with withdrawn and the fort left the care of the National Park Service. It is now owned by the South Carolina State Ports Authority.

The fort can be seen from the tour boats that cruise Charleston Harbor and is usually pointed out on the voyage out to Fort Sumter. Its unique semi-circular or "horseshoe" design was common in forts of its day. Two similar forts can be seen in New York Harbor, where Castle William survives at Governor's Island National Monument and Castle Clinton National Monument can be visited in Battery Park at the tip of Manhattan.

If you would like to read more about the fort, I recommend this excellent summary of its history:
http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2009/10/pruning-parks-castle-pinckney-national-monument-1933-19564731

January 22, 1861 -

Fort Sumter (NPS Photo)

The following appeared in the Macon (Georgia) Telegraph 150 years ago today. It details the mission of Colonel Isaac W. Hayne, who was sent as a representative of South Carolina to demand the surrender of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor from President Franklin Buchanan.

The report provides a good example of how editors and newspaper readers in the South often learned of events affecting their communities and states from Northern newspaper writers:

It was mentioned yesterday, among the rumors from Washington, that the mission of Mr. Hayne to that city from South Carolina, was to demand the immediate surrender of Fort Sumter, as the only means of preventing war and all its long train of calamities. A letter to the New York Herald adds:

Fort Sumter in 1861

“He is authorized to negotiate for the purchase of the public property in South Carolina, and is willing to pay the Government its fully value for the same, but if the President refuses to enter into negotiation and declines to give it up to the State, then they are determined to take it, let what will come. This course has been fully decided upon by South Carolina. They hold that, of right, it belongs to them, and they do not mean that the United States shall hold possession of it much longer. The flag which waves over Fort Sumter must come down - `peaceably if they can, forcibly if they must.”

Col. Hayne has not yet, it is stated, had an interview with the President. The president is said to be anxious, as is Major Anderson, to avoid bloodshed, and will do everything in his power, except surrendering up the Fort, to prevent such a calamity.- Macon Telegraph, January 22, 1861, p. 3.

You can read more about historic Fort Sumter at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortsumter.
 

January 16, 1861 - The Growing Focus on Two Forts

January 16, 1861

Fort Sumter (NPS Photo)

As the middle of January passed, it became obvious that the military attention of both North and South was beginning to focus on two key forts: Fort Sumter in South Carolina and Fort Pickens in Florida.

The two fortifications had much in common. Both stood on islands that commanded the entrances to key Southern harbors, both were held by Union forces while state militia troops had occupied surrounding works and both were named for famous South Carolinians.

Fort Sumter, named for General Thomas Sumter of the American Revolution, stood on a man-made island inside the entrance to Charleston Harbor. Designed for multiple tiers of cannon, the fort controlled a long stretch of the channel that led into the harbor. With Fort Moultrie, Castle Pinckney and Fort Johnson, it was part of a harbor defense system that was designed to prevent an attacking navy from reaching Charleston. As long as it remained in U.S. hands, however, it bottled up the harbor and had the potential to prevent Southern commerce and warships from moving in and out of Charleston. It was incomplete in 1861, although construction had been underway since 1827. To learn more about Fort Sumter, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortsumter.

Fort Pickens

Fort Pickens, named for General Andrew Pickens of the American Revolution, stood on the western end of Santa Rosa Island at the entrance to Pensacola Bay. It had two levels for artillery and, with Fort McRee opposite the inlet to the bay and Fort Barrancas on the mainland, was designed to prevent enemy warships from entering Pensacola Bay or approaching the vitally important Pensacola Navy Yard. It had a key advantage over Fort Sumter in that it was located directly on the Gulf of Mexico instead of on a man-made island in the bay. Like the South Carolina fort, however, as long as it remained in Union hands, Pensacola Bay was effectively closed to Southern use. To learn more about Fort Pickens, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortpickens1.

An attack on either fort would lead to the outbreak of civil war. In mid-January it appeared that the first spark might ignite at Fort Pickens, where on January 16, 1861, 150 years ago today, Lieutenant Adam J. Slemmer of the U.S. Army refused a second demand that he surrender the fort to a growing force of state militia. The government in Washington, D.C., was faced with the issue of whether to attempt to reinforce either fort or both forts, with the realization that doing so might well ignite the war they hoped to prevent.

January 11, 1861 - Alabama Secedes & Demand for Surrender of Fort Sumter is Refused

Alabama State Capitol

January 11, 1861

Just 24 hours after Florida seceded the previous day, Alabama joined the growing number of Cotton States in leaving the Union on January 11, 1861.

As the ladies of Montgomery unveiled a blue flag that included the words "Independent Now and Forever" on one side and the Latin words "Nole Me Tangere" or "Touch Me Not" on the other, the delegates to the Alabama Secession Convention passed an ordinance of secession that specifically blamed the "election of Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin to the offices of President and Vice-President of the United States of America."

The document also included an invitation to the other Southern states to meet in Montgomery on February 4, 1861, to consider measures for the "common peace and security." This convention, of course, would lead to the formation of the Confederate States of America.

Please click here to learn more about Alabama's historic old capitol, where the ordinance of secession was passed: http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/montgomerycapitol2.

In Louisiana, meanwhile, state troops took possession of Forts Jackson and St. Philip on the Mississippi River below New Orleans. The forts were the primary river defenses for New Orleans and were considered of vital military importance.

Fort Sumter in 1861

In South Carolina, the first demand for the surrender of Fort Sumter was made by the State of South Carolina. Major Robert Anderson, commanding the fort, refused. Work continued on the fort at a rapid pace as soldiers and workmen struggled to place the unfinished citadel into a defensible condition. Guns were mounted and traverses constructed to protect exposed positions inside and on the top of the fort.

Around Charleston Harbor, state forces pushed forward with the construction of battery positions. Defenses facing the harbor and Fort Sumter were improved at Fort Moultrie and sand batteries were thrown up at other positions. The progress was rudimentary at this stage of the growing siege, but would intensify over the coming months.

To learn more about Fort Sumter, please visit http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortsumter.