Fort Moultrie Field Trip

Cannon Row at Fort Moultrie

NPS Photo

Historic Fort Moultrie features 171 years of seacoast defense history from the American Revolution through World War II. It is an ideal location for a variety of field trips. An entrance fee is charged to visit Fort Moultrie. Some educational or scientific institutions may be eligible for a fee waiver. Fee waiver information is listed below. Groups made up of youth (12th grade and younger) are required to have a minimum of one adult leader for every ten youth. Youths must stay with their designated adult leader at all times. Adult leaders are responsible for their group's conduct.

Protecting You and the Park

These regulations are in place for your safety and the safety and preservation of the historic site.

Respect the park: Leave all plants, rocks, shells, or other natural and historic objects in the park. Place litter where it belongs. Sitting, standing, and climbing on fort walls and cannons is strictly prohibited. Loud noises are discouraged. Throwing objects at, feeding, and harassing all wildlife is strictly prohibited.

For your safety: Running, pushing, and yelling are not allowed. Be aware of uneven surfaces and watch your step. Stay away from large drop offs on top of gun batteries. Do not cross areas that are closed with chains or other barriers to avoid risk of injury. Stay with your group and always have adults lead and bring up the end of the line.

Respect the right of others to enjoy their national park: Loud noises and other disruptive behavior, including music playing from personal devices, are not allowed and can spoil the experience for other visitors.

Call 911 in an emergency, then notify a ranger. First Aid and an AED are located in the visitor center.

Academic Fee Waivers

The park commonly receives requests to waive entry fees for visiting groups. When possible, the park may issue an academic fee waiver to eligible educational or scientific institutions. The procedures for obtaining a fee waiver are outlined below. The park requires fee waiver applications two weeks in advance of the planned visit to ensure sufficient time for processing. If you need to cancel or reschedule the visit, please call the park before the group's planned arrival date so your place may be made available to others. The fee waiver allows for up to one chaperone/teacher per ten students. All additional chaperones will be charged according to the current fee schedule.

Groups that do not qualify for an academic fee waiver will be charged according to the current fee schedule. Fort Moultrie Annual Pass, Interagency Annual, Interagency Senior, Interagency Access, Golden Age, and Golden Access Passport holders and their immediate family members (parents, spouse, and children) do not have to pay the per person entrance fee.

Academic Fee Waiver Eligibility

Academic fee waivers are not granted automatically. Educational groups must apply and meet the criteria to receive a fee waiver. There are three criteria to qualify for an academic fee waiver: eligibility, educational purpose, and relevance of park resources or facilities to the educational purpose.

1. Eligibility

National or international applicants must prove they are a school or bona fide academic institution by submitting one of the following types of documentation:

• Documentation of educational or scientific tax exemption from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or the applicant's national, state, or local tax authority; or
• Documentation from a bona fide academic institution meeting one of these eligibility standards, confirming that the group is visiting for the purpose of providing transferable academic credit based on a curriculum; or
• Documentation of accreditation or recognition as an educational institution from a legitimate international, national, regional, state, or local authority for the applicant's location. Suggestion of affiliation with a state or a local school system is not the same as providing proof of accreditation, and therefore will not be accepted as proof.

2. Educational Purpose of Visit

Applicants must provide a written statement (documentation) verifying that the visit supports a specific curriculum for which academic credit is offered.

3. Relevance of Park Resources or Facilities

Relevance to park resources must be described. Applicants must provide a written statement identifying the park resources and/or facilities that will be used to support the educational purpose of the visit, and how they are relevant to that purpose.

Home Schools: Home schools may be granted fee waivers based on the course of study following the procedures above, as long as they meet your state's requirements for home schools. A copy of a home school verification record from your state department of education is required.

How to Apply for an Academic Fee Waiver

Applying for an academic fee waiver is easy. Follow the instructions in the application link below. Applications must be received two weeks in advance of the planned visit. Submit all required elements of the application at the same time to ensure timely processing of the application. Applications submitted without full documentation or sufficient information may result in delayed processing or fee waiver denial.

If your application is approved you will receive an official Academic Fee Waiver from the park. The group leader must present a copy of the approved fee waiver upon checking in at the Fort Moultrie Visitor Center.

If your application is denied you will receive a letter from the park explaining why your group does not qualify.

Fort Moultrie Fee Waiver Application Form and Instructions

Mail applications to:

Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park
Attn: Academic Fee Waiver Applications
1214 Middle Street, Sullivan's Island SC 29482

or email the application to [e-mail]. The subject line should read- Attn: Academic Fee Waiver Applications.

Notice: Permit and fee waiver applications must be received at least 14 days in advance of the requested activity. However, due to Permit/Waiver Office staff being on leave, applications received after June 30 for activity occurring between July 13 and August 22 will not be accepted. Applications received after June 30 for activity occurring after August 22 may experience processing delays.

Reminders

• Fee waivers applications must be submitted two weeks in advance of the date of requested visit
• Applications without full documentation or information may result in delayed processing or Fee Waiver denial
• Fee waivers cannot be granted for hardship factors
• If you need to cancel, please do so at the earliest opportunity to make the date available to others
• Fee Waivers allow for one teacher/chaperone per ten students. Additional chaperones will be charged the usual park fee

Applicable Regulations

The National Park Service is guided by the following regulations in the administration of academic fee waivers:
1. The Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C 6801-6814; P.L. 108-447, Division J, Title VIII), December 2004
2. Department of the Interior, National Park Service: Reference Manual 22A, Recreation Fee Collection, April 2011