When and where was the first shot of the American Civil war fired?

Question

Clue: It was not the assault on Fort Sumter.

Answer 1

Delegates of South Carolina went to the Buchanan administration and told them, among other things, that any attempt to supply Fort Sumter (which they knew was short of supplies) would be considered an act of war. They also did this with the Lincoln Administration (which refused to receive them).

Even though President James Buchanan had been informed By Major Robert Anderson, Commander of Fort Sumter (a report backed up By General Winfield Scott) that it would take 20,000 union troops to hold the Forts in Charleston Harbor and it was known then that such troops were not only not available, but raising such troops (at that time) would not be supported by Congress, President James Buchanan sent in the private ship Star of the West to supply Fort Sumter.

With this act President James Buchanan forced South Carolina to respond to defend their harbor and on 9 January 1861 South Carolina guns (Cadets of the Military College of South Carolina The Citadel, specifically from Battery Greg on Morris Island) in the harbor fired on the ship forcing it to retreat. These are considered the first shots of what would become the civil war.

Knowing that he couldn’t maintain Fort Sumter, the Union commander (Major Robert Anderson) gave all appearances of abandoning it, by first sending civilian families from Fort Sumter to other Union sites around the Harbor with the troops to follow. At the last minute, he reversed this process by bringing the troops back into Fort Sumter. In this he was attempting to get Union forces to come to his rescue and this was the second event in starting the civil war. Again, South Carolina responded with defensive action on 12 and 13 April 1861 by firing on Fort Sumter until it surrendered.

President Lincoln knew of all of the events leading to the firing on fort Sumter and knew that that there was no point to maintaining Union troops in Charleston Harbor. General Winfield Scott and others advised President Lincoln to withdraw the troops and allow things to settle with the expectations that seceding States would peacefully return to the Union. Over three months had passed since the first firing on the Star of the West with no increase in actions by South Carolina which was clearly acting in a defensive posture.

Instead Lincoln allowed events to progress until the firing on Fort Sumter which provided the event for the justification of raising Union troops. It should be kept in mind that during this period that none of the seceding southern States attacked the North.

Answer 2

April 12, 1861 With Confederate forces attacking the union garrison at Fort Sumter in South Carolina

Answer 3

Prior to the confederates bombarding fort sumtner, cadets of the citadel fired on the federal ship," Star of the West" trying to bring relief to the union troops at fort Sumtner Jan 9, 1861

Answer 4

4/9/sixty 5 Lee 4/26/sixty 5 Johnston 5/4/sixty 5 Taylor 5/12/sixty 5 Capt Stephen Whitaker 5/26/sixty 5 Kirby Smith 6/23/sixty 5 Stand Watie never Joe Shelby 11/6/sixty 5 CSS Shenandoah, Lieutenant James Iredell Waddell, surrendered to US government in Liverpool, England

Answer 5

Was it at Fort Pickens, Pensacola Harbour, Florida?

Answer 6

2016 November 3rd.