Built in 1809, Castle Pinckney is the oldest fortification still standing in Charleston Harbor. It was an active military post until 1869. Seeing no practical purpose for keeping this small fortification that sits on the southern tip of Shute’s Folly Island, the War Department, in 1876, transferred custody of the 3.5-acre plot of land to the Treasury Department. Two years later, the Lighthouse Service took over the old masonry fort and the surrounding land. Several warehouse buildings and a large wharf were constructed to support a supply depot for the service. For the next 40 years, tenders operating from Castle Pinckney supplied the more than 100 lighthouses that operated from New River Inlet, North Carolina to Cape Canaveral, Florida.
In 1916, the Lighthouse Service relocated their depot to what is today Ashley River Coast Guard Station off Tradd Street. Ownership of Castle Pinckney then reverted back to the Department of the Army.
In 1933, Castle Pinckney was transferred to the Interior Department. This did not immediately change the day-to-day use of the fort as it continued as a small supply base for the U.S. Corps of Engineers. In 1935, studies were commenced by the National Park Service to determine the feasibility of doing one large-scale restoration project at either Fort Johnson, Fort Moultrie, or at Castle Pinckney. There was precedent for this, as the NPS had just completed restoration projects at Jamestown and Yorktown. Fort Sumter, at the time, was not an option as it remained part of the Department of the Army.
In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge had honored Castle Pinckney by designating it as a National Monument, along with the Statue of Liberty and Forts Pulaski, Marion, and Matanzas. By 1938, however, it was clear that the National Park Service was actively questioning the value of keeping Castle Pinckney as a National Monument, especially one that was inaccessible to visitors. Herbert Kahler, the superintendent of the region, wrote the head of the National Park Service that “it is believed that the area does not have sufficient historical value to warrant its classification as a National Monument.” Khaler recommended that nothing should be done to develop the site, but to instead wait until the military was willing to relinquish control of Fort Sumter.
In 1947, the Interior Department approached the Army about trading Castle Pinckney for Fort Sumter. NPS historian Dr. Charles Porter would write that year, “Castle Pinckney never had enough on the ball historically for us to make anything of it, but with Fort Sumter we can really do something worthwhile.” Fort Sumter was designated a National Monument the following year and transferred to the Park Service. It was not until 1951 before Congress passed a bill transferring ownership of Castle Pinckney back to the Secretary of the Army. Saddled again with Castle Pinckney, the military managed to hand the Castle back to the NPS in a 1954 dockside ceremony. Two years later, President Eisenhower signed a proclamation removing the Castle as a designated National Monument. This action allowed the NPS to sell the property. Put up for auction by the General Service Administration, the 3.5-acres was sold to the South Carolina Ports Authority for $12,000. A March 4, 1958 deed transfer ceremony took place at the Castle with the assistance of a Citadel color guard.
Since 2011, the Sons of Confederate Veterans Fort Sumter Camp 1269 has owned Castle Pinckney. The non-profit Castle Pinckney Historical Preservation Society provides day-to-day stewardship of the old fortress. It is currently not open to the public.
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