Fort Mitchel on Hilton Head Island
A Civil War earthwork on Skull Creek, built by Union troops in 1861 and 1862, open to visitors by gate pass or on a Heritage Library tour.
- Built: late 1861 to early 1862
- Design: earthen lunette for five or six heavy guns
- Listed: National Register of Historic Places
- Visit: free gate pass or a guided tour
Fort Mitchel is a Civil War earthwork on a bluff above Skull Creek, on the north end of Hilton Head Island. Union troops built it in late 1861 and early 1862, after the Navy took Port Royal Sound in November 1861, to guard the approach to the coaling station at Seabrook Landing. It is a lunette, a low, crescent-shaped earthen rampart, designed to hold five or six heavy guns, and its walls still stand under the live oaks. It is named for Major General Ormsby M. Mitchel, the Union commander who also gave his name to Mitchelville, the freedmen’s town founded nearby. The earthwork is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The fort sits inside Hilton Head Plantation, a gated community, which is why many people have never seen it. Visiting works in two ways:
A gate pass: ask at the Hilton Head Plantation guard station for a pass to see the fort, and have a valid photo ID ready.
A guided tour: the Heritage Library leads tours with costumed interpreters. Registration is required, and the library’s tour page has the current dates.
Remember the spelling when you search: it is Fort Mitchel, with one L, and the fort and the freedmen’s town both take their name from the same general.
Fort Mitchel in the Island’s Story
The fort is one piece of the Union occupation that changed the island in 1861 and the years after. The same war that fortified the north end brought thousands of freed people to Hilton Head and set up the Port Royal Experiment. Read that story in full in the history of Hilton Head Island. The island’s other Civil War forts, Fort Walker and Fort Sherman, were on Port Royal Plantation and are covered on the Port Royal Plantation page.
More Hilton Head History
Hilton Head Island history from 4,000-year-old shell rings and Captain William Hilton to the Civil War, Gullah Geechee communities and Sea Pines.
Captain William Hilton sighted the island in 1663. Who he was, why Hilton Head carries his name, and how William Hilton Parkway fits in.
Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park, on the site of the first self-governed town of freed people in the US: free trail, exhibits and guided tours.
Hilton Head Plantation on Hilton Head Island: how the gates and guest passes work, what visitors can do inside, amenities, the beach and the rental rule.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you visit Fort Mitchel on Hilton Head?
Yes. The earthwork is inside the gated Hilton Head Plantation. Ask at the guard station for a gate pass with a valid ID, or join a Heritage Library tour, for which registration is required.
Who was Fort Mitchel named after?
Major General Ormsby M. Mitchel, a Union commander, who is also the namesake of the freedmen's town of Mitchelville.
Why was Fort Mitchel built?
Union troops built it in late 1861 and early 1862 to protect the approach to the Navy's coaling station at Seabrook Landing on Skull Creek.
Where is Fort Mitchel on Hilton Head Island?
At 65 Skull Creek Drive, Hilton Head Island, SC 29926, within Hilton Head Plantation on the north end.
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