The first Fort Moultrie was a hastily constructed palmetto-log and sand defense on Sullivan's Island guarding Charleston Harbor. On June 28, 1776, British warships under Sir Peter Parker attacked the unfinished work. Colonel William Moultrie's South Carolina defenders endured a day of cannon fire and kept the ships from forcing the harbor. The soft palmetto and sand absorbed much of the impact, while British fire and maneuvering faced the hazards of the channel. The victory gave the new revolutionary cause an important early success in the South and helped make the palmetto a durable state symbol.

The fort's flag and the story of Sergeant William Jasper have long shaped memory of the battle. Such stories should be situated beside the experience of gun crews, laborers, and people on both sides of the harbor. In 1780 British forces captured Charleston and the Sullivan's Island position; the original fort did not remain untouched after its celebrated defense. New works were constructed or repaired as military needs changed. A visitor looking only for the 1776 log fort will miss the site's subsequent history and the changing technologies of coastal defense.

The present fort includes features from the third Fort Moultrie, completed in 1809, and later adaptations. During the nineteenth century its guns and walls formed part of the harbor defense system alongside Fort Sumter. The Civil War again placed Charleston's approaches at the center of conflict. Fort Moultrie continued to change into the twentieth century, when modern batteries and military control facilities reflected new threats and weapons. Interpretation arranged through successive periods lets visitors walk from the early republic to World War II without treating all walls as products of the Revolutionary battle.

The National Park Service preserves and interprets Fort Moultrie as part of Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park. Exhibits, surviving masonry, batteries, and the island setting explain why command of the harbor mattered. Repeated construction, repair, and restoration produced a layered military site; the original 1776 palmetto fort is not standing inside the modern works. Coastal exposure, drainage, and visitor movement make conservation ongoing work. Its relationship to Fort Sumter can be understood from the harbor geography, but the forts have different access arrangements and their histories should not be merged.

Fort Moultrie is at 1214 Middle Street on Sullivan's Island. The grounds, parking, and restrooms currently open daily 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., subject to park closures; visitors check in at the visitor center. The fort has its own entrance fee, and the park uses cashless payment. Fort Sumter requires a separate authorized ferry journey and ticket. Those distinctions prevent a common mistake: directions and ticket rules for the ferry at Charleston do not describe an ordinary visit to this road-accessible island fort. The site's story extends from 1776 victory to generations of coastal defense.