Kentucky wanted to stay out of it. The populace of the state was deeply divided between supporting the Union or the Confederacy. To try and keep the division from deepening, the state legislature declared in May 1861 that Kentucky would remain neutral.

Maj. Robert Anderson was in a tight spot. His job was to occupy and defend the three U.S. forts guarding Charleston Harbor. Just six days before, South Carolina had seceded from the United States and Anderson was worried his men would be attacked. With a small garrison of sixty men, Anderson couldn’t occupy all three forts. Castle Pinckney was unmanned and Fort Sumter was unfinished. Anderson’s men were all stationed in Fort Moultrie.