First Shots at Fort Sumter

1. First Shots at Fort Sumter

4. Attempts to Relieve Fort Sumter As of April 1861, the US only retained control of two forts in the South: Fort Pickens at Pensacola, FL and Fort Sumter in Charleston, SC. Shortly after South Carolina seceded, the commander of the Charleston harbor defenses, Major Robert Anderson, moved his men from Fort Moultrie to Fort Sumter, located on a sandbar in the middle of the harbor. After refusing requests from the South Carolina government to vacate the fort, Anderson and the eighty-five men of his garrison settled in for what essentially became a siege. In January 1861, President Buchanan attempted to re-supply the fort, however the supply ship, Star of the West, was driven away by guns manned by cadets from the Citadel. Fort Sumter Attacked During March 1861, a debate raged in the Confederate government regarding how forceful they should be in trying to take possession of Forts Sumter and Pickens. Davis, like Lincoln, did not wish to anger the border states by appearing as the aggressor. With supplies low, Lincoln informed the governor of South Carolina, Francis W. Pickens, that he intended to have the fort re-provisioned, but promised that no additional men or munitions would be sent. This news was passed to Davis in Montgomery, where the decision was made to compel the fort's surrender before Lincoln's ships arrived. This duty fell to Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard who had been given command of the siege by Davis. Ironically, Beauregard had previously been a protégé of Anderson. On April 11, Beauregard sent an aide to demand the fort's surrender. Anderson refused and further discussions after midnight failed to resolve the situation. At 4:30am on April 12, a single mortar round burst over Fort Sumter signaling the other harbor forts to open fire. Anderson did not reply until 7:00 when Captain Abner Doubleday fired the first shot for the Union. After a 34-hour bombardment, and with his ammunition almost exhausted, Anderson surrendered the fort.