Charlesfort-Santa Elena Site

Charlesfort-Santa Elena Site
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
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Nearest city	Beaufort, South Carolina, U.S.
Built	1562
NRHP reference No.	74001822
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	August 7, 1974[1]
Designated NHL	January 3, 2001[2]

The Charlesfort-Santa Elena Site is an important early colonial archaeological site on Parris Island, South Carolina, United States. It contains the archaeological remains of a French settlement called Charlesfort, settled in 1562 and abandoned the following year, and the later 16th-century Spanish settlement known as Santa Elena. The Spanish remains include a fort built directly on top of the abandoned Charlesfort remains.

The fort and other nearby structures have been called, at various times, Fort San Marcos or Fort San Felipe, and have the designated archaeological site identifiers 38BU51 and 38BU162. Because of their remarkable state of preservation, and their importance in understanding early French and Spanish colonial practices, the site was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2001. The site is accessible through the United States Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Port Royal, South Carolina.