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Old Citadel

SC PICTURE PROJECT 5 Comments

SC Picture Project / Charleston County / Old Citadel

The Old Citadel, located on what is now Marion Square in downtown Charleston, began as a state arsenal. Built in 1829, the arsenal was first guarded by federal troops from Fort Moultrie in 1830. However, South Carolina removed the troops in 1832 due to a disagreement with the federal government over imposed tariffs and replaced them with South Carolina militia.

Old Citadel

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The arsenal continued to be guarded by state militia until Governor John P. Richardson proposed converting the arsenal into a military academy in 1842. The state legislature approved the idea in December of that year, and by March 20, 1843, the school’s first cadets arrived at the Citadel Academy, a date that is celebrated by cadets today as Corps Day. During that first year of operation, the school’s Board of Visitors reported the following vision to the governor and state legislature:

“The Board have aimed at a system of education at once scientific and practical, and which, if their original design is carried out, will eminently qualify the Cadets there taught, for almost any station or condition of life.”

Old Citadel Historical

Internet Archive Book Images, The Citadel Handbook, 1919

South Carolina seceded from the Union in 1860, and on January 9, 1861, cadets stationed on Morris Island fired what some consider the first shots of the Civil War. Their target was an unarmed Union supply ship called the Star of the West which had recently been acquired by the US War Department. Since the ship was unarmed, others believe the first shots of the Civil War were fired several months later from Fort Johnson on James Island at Union-occupied Fort Sumter. It is hard to place the date precisely as the United States did not recognize the Confederacy as a credible foreign government and thus never officially declared war.

Old Citadel Postcard

Boston Public Library, Tichnor Brothers Collection, circa 1930-1945

As the war ravaged the South, Union troops took over the Citadel, forcing the school to close on February 18, 1865. It remained in possession of the federal government for the next 17 years. In 1877 Citadel alumnus Brigadier General Johnson Hagood organized a campaign to reopen the Citadel, and in October of 1882, cadets once again occupied the building on Citadel Green, as Marion Square was then known. General Hagood was serving the state as governor by that time, and the school’s current football stadium is named for him.

The Citadel student body grew exponentially over the next several years, and a larger school was planned to accommodate more students. In 1922 the school officially opened its present campus, located along the Ashley River on land donated by the city. Today the Old Citadel is owned by Embassy Suites and operates as a hotel.

Plan Your Trip: Old Citadel

Where is Old Citadel located?
Address: 337 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29403
GPS Coordinates: 32.787699,-79.936030
What else should I see?
Marion Square 0.1 mile
St. Matthew's Lutheran Church 0.1 mile
Best Friend of Charleston 0.2 mile
J.M. Connelley Funeral Home 0.3 mile
Show me more like this!
  • See other South Carolina Colleges
  • See other South Carolina Hotels & Inns
  • See other South Carolina Military
    Old Citadel Map

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Hugh Robinson says

      January 19, 2021 at 12:01 AM

      Lived on second floor of the main building 1936-9, family of 6 kids while father West Point Army lieutenant taught at new Citadel, only family in the building which before moving to Fort Leavenworth, KS in winter of 1939 started to be renovated for city offices(?). Now 93 years, next to youngest & only surviving sibling.

      Reply
    2. Linda Whit says

      September 25, 2020 at 8:58 AM

      Valerie McMillan – my father lived at Old Citadel in the 1930s with his family as well.

      Reply
    3. William Kirton says

      January 17, 2018 at 3:45 PM

      My Grandfather graduated from the Citadel in 1886, I have his picture in uniform, his diploma and a 50th Reunion pic I would like to share with you all. Please contact me, the reunion pic has a group of older men in it and I am hoping to name them.

      Reply
    4. Valerie Mcmillan says

      March 2, 2016 at 12:48 AM

      Lived at Old Citadel when I was a child!!

      Daddy taught physics at Citadel–
      What memories!!
      Liz, you remember too????

      Reply

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    ABOUT US

    We are a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit that works to preserve the history of South Carolina’s historic, natural, and cultural landmarks before they are lost to time. This website serves as a permanent digital archive of over 2,300 South Carolina landmarks – and counting. Learn more about our work.

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