- Charleston Arsenal
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Porter Military Academy
Location: 175-181 Ashley Ave., Charleston, South Carolina Coordinates: 32°47′12″N 79°56′52″W / 32.78667°N 79.94778°WCoordinates: 32°47′12″N 79°56′52″W / 32.78667°N 79.94778°W Area: 1.1 acres (0.45 ha) Built: 1862 Architect: Bell, Holten; Snook, John Butler Architectural style: Greek Revival, Late Gothic Revival, Octogon Mode Governing body: State NRHP Reference#: 96000685[1] Added to NRHP: June 21, 1996 The Charleston Arsenal was a United States Army arsenal facility in Charleston, South Carolina seized by state militia at the outbreak of the American Civil War.
The arsenal was constructed in 1841 near the intersection of Ashley Avenue and Mill Street in Charleston. It served as a storage place for weapons, ordnance, and ammunition for the U.S. Army in antebellum days. An earlier Federal arsenal, the Old Citadel, was taken out of service and after became a part of the Citadel. The Charleston arsenal produced a considerable amount of artillery and small arms ammunition during the Mexican-American War and up to the Civil War.
With the secession of South Carolina in late 1860, it became a target for Confederate sympathizers and local militia. South Carolina troops seized the arsenal in late December, and the Confederates held it for much of the war. Josiah Gorgas had the arsenal enlarged and modernized with the installation of steam power. For a time, it was used a barracks to house Confederate troops, including the 26th South Carolina. The arsenal was finally retaken by Union troops in 1865 when Charleston finally fell.
On July 16, 1866, the U.S. Government designated the 11.26-acre (4.56 ha) site as a Federal Military Reservation, but in 1879 the army closed the arsenal. The building and land was sold in 1888 to the Porter Military Academy and in 1963 became part of the Medical University of South Carolina. The campus was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2009-03-13. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html.
External links
U.S. National Register of Historic Places in South Carolina Lists by county Abbeville • Aiken • Allendale • Anderson • Bamberg • Barnwell • Beaufort • Berkeley • Calhoun • Charleston • Cherokee • Chester • Chesterfield • Clarendon • Colleton • Darlington • Dillon • Dorchester • Edgefield • Fairfield • Florence • Georgetown • Greenville • Greenwood • Hampton • Horry • Jasper • Kershaw • Lancaster • Laurens • Lee • Lexington • Marion • Marlboro • McCormick • Newberry • Oconee • Orangeburg • Pickens • Richland • Saluda • Spartanburg • Sumter • Union • Williamsburg • York
Lists by city Other lists Keeper of the Register • History of the National Register of Historic Places • Property types • Historic district • Contributing property Categories:- Historic districts in South Carolina
- National Register of Historic Places in Charleston, South Carolina
- Gothic Revival architecture in South Carolina
- Buildings and structures completed in 1841
- South Carolina in the American Civil War
- Buildings and structures in Charleston, South Carolina
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