The garrison at Fort Sumter blew out all the fort’s windows during firing drills, later realized their mistake when the temperature plummeted!

>On March 19 the air grew unseasonably chilly and to everyone’s surprise it began to snow, heavily. Large, wet flakes fluttered down and landed like tiny feathers on the battlements, softening the lines of the guns. Over two inches fell atop [Fort Sumter](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/00/FortSumter2009.jpg)’s parapet. A few miles away, in South Carolina’s interior, the snowfall measured over half a foot. This was an aberration. Usually the temperature at the fort seldom dropped below freezing, but the sea air still retained a bone-chilling power. >It did not help that the garrison, while practicing firing, blew out most of the windowpanes in their quarters. They covered the holes temporarily but still an invidious chill slithered inside. ________________________________ **Source:** Detzer, David. “Hostages.” *Allegiance: Fort Sumter, Charleston, and the Beginning of the Civil War*. New York: Harcourt, 2002. 174-75. Print. ________________________________ **Further Reading:** [Fort Sumter](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Sumter)