<P> In the first half of the 19th century, South Carolinians became more devoted to the idea that state's rights were superior to the Federal government's authority . Buildings such as the Marine Hospital ignited controversy over the degree in which the Federal government should be involved in South Carolina's government, society, and commerce . During this period over 90 percent of Federal funding was generated from import duties, collected by custom houses such as the one in Charleston . In 1832, South Carolina passed an ordinance of nullification, a procedure in which a state could in effect repeal a Federal law, directed against the most recent tariff acts . Soon Federal soldiers were dispensed to Charleston's forts and began to collect tariffs by force . A compromise was reached by which the tariffs would be gradually reduced, but the underlying argument over state's rights would continue to escalate in the coming decades . Charleston remained one of the busiest port cities in the country, and the construction of a new, larger United States Custom House began in 1849, but its construction was interrupted by the events of the Civil War . </P> <P> Prior to the 1860 election, the National Democratic Convention convened in Charleston . Hibernian Hall served as the headquarters for the delegates supporting Stephen A. Douglas, who it was hoped would bridge the gap between the northern and southern delegates on the issue of extending slavery to the territories . The convention disintegrated when delegates were unable to summon a two - thirds majority for any candidate . This divisiveness resulted in a split in the Democratic Party, and the election of Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate . </P> <P> On December 24, 1860, the South Carolina General Assembly made the state the first to ever secede from the Union . On January 9, 1861, Citadel cadets fired the first shots of the American Civil War when they opened fire on the Union ship Star of the West entering Charleston's harbor . On April 12, 1861, shore batteries under the command of General Pierre G.T. Beauregard opened fire on the Union - held Fort Sumter in the harbor . After a 34 - hour bombardment, Major Robert Anderson surrendered the fort . Officers and cadets from The Citadel were assigned to various Confederate batteries during the bombardment of Fort Sumter . Although The Citadel continued to operate as an academy during the Civil War, cadets were made a part of the South Carolina military department along with the cadets from the Arsenal Academy in Columbia, to form the Battalion of State Cadets . Cadets from both institutions continued to aid the Confederate army by helping drill recruits, manufacture ammunition, protect arms depots, and guard Union prisoners . </P> <P> On December 11, 1861, a massive fire burned 164 acres of Charleston, including the Cathedral of St John and St Finbar, South Carolina Institute Hall, the Circular Congregational Church, and many of the city's finest homes . This fire was responsible for much of the destruction visible in Charleston at the end of the war . </P>

Charleston became an especially important english seaport after