Named for Revolutionary War general and South Carolina native Thomas Sumter, Fort Sumter was one of nearly 50 forts built as part of the so-called Third System, a coastal defense program implemented by Congress in 1817.
In simple terms, the U.S. Armed Forces are made up of the five armed service branches: Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy.
The three branches are the legislative branch, the executive branch and the judicial branch. The United States Congress heads our legislative branch. This branch serves mainly to make laws. The United States president heads our executive branch.