In 1964, the State Ports Authority gave the castle to the Shriners who returned it the following year. Then in 1969, it was given to the SCV Camp 1269, but they returned it in 1984.
The SPA has found that it is unable to use it for business purposes and spends money protecting the small island from erosion.
The fort is located at the end of a spit of land known as Shute's Folly. Most of the uninhabited island is owned by a family trust with a mailing address at South Battery in Charleston.
Castle Pinckney has been located on the eastern tip of the island since its completion in 1809 or 1810. It is one of three remaining round brick fortifications in the US; the other two being in New York City.
It was seized by the Confederacy without a fight and later served as a prison for Union soldiers. In the late 1800s, a lighthouse was built on it before being designated as a national monument in 1924. It was undesignated in the 1950s and sold to the SPA.
The SCV camp says, "Our ultimate aim is to preserve the facility in a respectful and dignified way, to provide a visible link to the past for future generations in the Charleston area."
I Hope to Visit the Site Some Day. --Old B-R'er
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