Named after Revolutionary War hero General Thomas Sumter, this fort was built following the War of 1812 as one of a series of fortifications along the southern US coast. Construction began in 1829, and the fort was still unfinished when the American Civil War began with an attack on these very walls. The fort was virtually destroyed, but has been rebuilt according to its original specifications. In this scene, children view the 100-pounder “Parrott Rifles” that were installed here after the Civil War. A massive concrete blockhouse was also built inside Fort Sumter’s original walls in 1898 to protect Charleston during the Spanish-American War. It never saw combat. I composed this image to compare the innocent curiosity of the visiting children to the massive cannons surrounding them.