Construction began in 1829 on an artificial island created from a sand bar in Charleston Harbor. Seventy thousand tons of granite arrived from New England to build up the foundation while engineers laid a timber foundation several feet beneath the water line by 1834.
Lieutenant Henry S. Farley actually fired the first shot from James Island even though Edmund Ruffin claimed he fired it. Captain Abner Doubleday then fired the Union's first defensive shot at 7:00 a.m. on Friday, the 12th of April 1861.
A boat assault planned for the 8th of September 1863 failed due to poor coordination between army and navy commanders. Eight men were killed, nineteen wounded, and one hundred five captured during the botched attempt while the Confederates suffered no casualties.
Major Anderson returned to raise the flag he had lowered four years earlier on the 14th of April 1865. The Federal government formally took possession of Fort Sumter on the 22nd of February 1865 before this ceremony occurred.
Access requires a thirty-minute ferry ride from either the Visitor Education Center or Patriots Point. Private boats are no longer allowed to approach the island directly as part of current regulations.