The modern-day facade of Fort Sumter sits in Charlston Harbor, Charleston, SC. At the outset of the Civil War, the fortress was a three-story affair, but when the fort's commander refused Confederate demands to surrender the fort, Southern cannon ringing the harbor opened fire. The fort was severely damaged in this bombardment. After its surrender, a C.S.A. garrison occupied the fort. Later in the war, Unon warships bombarded Fort Sumter incessantly, trying to retake the old fortress. After the Confederate surrender, it appeared that the fort had been reduced to rubble, but when engineers began to clear away the debris after the war, they discovered that the fort's first level was still intact.
