Forts. What kid of any age doesn’t like a good fort? Snow forts, tree forts, pillow forts, REAL forts too. Today I came across a virtual treasure trove for forts– North American Forts. Neat stuff that, everything from small coastal batteries to the big ones; old colonial palisades (as in steel-helmets-and-breastplates colonial) to frontier enclaves.
There is also an organization dedicated to the identification and preservation of old fortifications, the Council on America’s Military Past. One of its directors is the esteemed former CO of the Marine Corps History Division’s reserve detachment, Col Nick Reynolds.
Got an old fort in your backyard? I’d love to hear about it…
Of the old forts I have visited my favorite and most memorable will always be:
Fort Jefferson
(Dry Tortugas National Park)
(1846 – 1917 ?), Garden Key ¤National Archives MAP¤ | Overhead Photo from NOAA
A huge 16-acre hexagon-shaped fort located 68 miles west of Key West. Original name was Fort at Garden Key until 1850. Held by the Union through the entire Civil War. Mostly used as a Federal prison. Designed to carry almost 450 guns, it was never fully armed. Only Fort Monroe in Virginia is larger, but only in terms of area. Construction was finally halted in 1876. It was regarrisoned for the Spanish-American War and WWI, but newer guns were never installed. A fire gutted the barracks in 1912. Used as a Navy Coaling Station beginning in 1904. The fortress suffered damage from Hurricane Charlie in 2004. Another website | A website with great photos from Shannontech.com | More photos from Hughes Photos.
You used to be able to take a tour of the crumbling brick fort, even on the top with no rails. The only way to stay on the island is to camp on the beach or stay onboard a boat. Beautiful water filled with all kinds of protected wildlife.