Charleston’s 300+ year history cannot be told without highlighting its military significance. Scroll on to learn about the Charleston area’s iconic military sites, including Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site, Fort Moultrie, Fort Sumter National Monument, the Charleston Navy Base and Naval Shipyard Memorial at North Charleston Riverfront Park and Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum.
The first settlement, founded at Charles Towne Landing in 1670, included a wooden stockade surrounding the colony to deter attacks by native Americans and Spanish raiders.
Fort Moultrie, named after Gen. William Moultrie, was the partially built palmetto-log fort that successfully repelled a land and sea assault by much larger British forces during the American Revolution. The fort remained an active military post until after World War II.
Fort Sumter, the island fortress in the middle of Charleston Harbor, was on the receiving end of the first shots fired during the Civil War. Commanded by US Army Maj. Robert Anderson, the fort endured a 34-hour bombardment before evacuation, and was then occupied for the duration of the war by Confederate troops.
The former Charleston Navy Base and Naval Shipyard played vital roles in our nation’s defense from the early 1900’s until their closure in 1996. These two facilities had a profound effect on the region, and today are memorialized at North Charleston Riverfront Park.
Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum, located in Mt. Pleasant, is home to the “Fighting Lady,” the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown. Commissioned in 1943, she was the fourth ship to bear this name and participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater, earning 11 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation.
Living history is everywhere in the Lowcountry! Discover 21 spots every history buff needs to visit in Charleston.
