Fort Pulaskia

In the second quarter of the 19th ce ntury, U.S military engineers bu ilt Fort Pul aski on ma rshy Cockspu r Island to guard the rive r approaches to Savannah, Georgia. Named fo r Cou nt Casim ir Pulaski, a Polish so ld ier of fort une who lost his life in the unsuccessful siege of Savan nah in 1779 , it was designed by Gen. Si mo n Bernard , a d istinguished French military engineer, as part of a coastal fortif ication system adopted by President James Mad ison after th e War of 18 12. Constru ction began in 1829 and req uired $1 mil lion, 25 million bri cks, and 18 yea rs of to il to finish. Its admire rs (and the re were many) considered it invincible and "as strong as the Rocky Mounta ins. " By th e e nd of 1860, however, its armament was still not completed and it was not yet garri son ed. As it tu rn ed out. before United States troo ps co uld occupy the fort, they had to co nquer it. On January 3 , 186 1. two weeks after South Carolina seceded from th e Union and o ne week after Federal troops occupied Fort Sumter in Charleston harbo r, Georg ia Gov. Joseph E. B rown o rdered State mi litia to se ize Fo rt Pul aski . At this time Savannah was a city of abo ut 20,000 inhabitants and a ri ch seapo rt trad ing in cotton , naval sto res. and timber. Th ou g h many disagreed o n the w isdom of sei zin g the Federal fo rt, people of al l classes joi ned in preparations fo r its defense fo llowing the occupation . Afte r Geo rgia seceded o n January 19 , 186 1, Fort Pu laski was transferred to the Con federate States of A me ri ca. By the end of April 1861, 11 Southern States had left the Un ion and were at war with the United States. Befo re th e e nd of the sum mer, President Ab raham Li nco ln o rdered th e U.S. Navy to bl ockade Sou thern ports As the bl ockade ti ghtened it strangled the Confederate economy. On November 7, 186 1, a con1bined Army and Navy exped ition struck at Port Royal Sound , S.C .. abou t 15 111 iles north of Fort Pu laski. Confederate troops fled as Federal wars hips bon1bard ed Forts Walke r and Beau regard . allowing Un ion forces to land un pposed on H ilton Head Island. From th is beach head. the Federals est<1blished a base fo r operati ons agai nst Fort Pulaski and the who le South Al l ntic coast. On November 10, intimidated by the Fede ral presence at H ilto n Head, the Confede rates abando ned Tybee Island at the mo uth of the Savannah, unknowing ly giv ing the enemy the only site from which Fort Pu laski could be taken . The Fede rals acted quickly to take advantag e of the break. Early in December. they cu t the fort 's commun icatio ns w ith th e mainland , then moved troops to Tybee Island to prepare for siege operatio ns. Eng ineer Capt. Qui ncy A. G illmore , who assumed com mand oi all troops on Tybee Island in February 1862, be lieved that an ove rw helmi ng bombardmen t would fo rce the Co nfederates to g ive up the fo rt. Accord ing ly . he erected 11 artillery batteri es co ntain ing 36 guns and mo rtars along the northwest shore of Tybee Island. O n Apr il 10 . after the Confede rates refused G illmore's fo rmal demand to su rrender, the Federals o pened fi re. The Confederates we re not particu larly alarm ed ; the Union guns were a mile away, more than tw ice the effective range fo r heavy ordnance of that day But what th e fo rt's garri son d id not know was that the Federal armament incl uded 1O new expe rime ntal rifled cann ons. whose projectiles began to bo re throug h Pulaski's walls with shattering effect. B noon of h seco nd day the bombardment had opened wide gaps 1n the south as ang le, and explosive shells, passing throu gh the holes. threatened the main powder magazine. Impressed by the hopelessness of the situation and concern ed about the lives of his me n. the Confederate co mmander. Col. Charl es H . O lmstead . su rrendered only 30 ho urs after the bo mbard ment began along with the other 384 off ice rs and men in Pu laski 's garr ison, was sent north and imprisoned at Governor's Islan d in New Yo rk. Whe n he was exchanged in the autumn of 1862 , he resumed command of his reg iment and served w ith d istinct ion for the remainder of the Civ il Wa r. Federal troo ps garrisoned Fort Pulaski until war's end . whe n it was used to ho use several po litica l pri soners. After 1880, a ca retaker and lighthouse keeper were the fo rt's o nl y occupants. They, too, were soon re moved. leav ing the pl ace to the ever-encroac hing vegetati o n and animal life. Th e island was mad e a nati onal mo nume nt in 1924; resto ration of th e fort began in ea rn est about 1933 . Today the fort serves not only as a memorial to the va lor and dedicati o n of those co nnected with its constructio n. bombardment. and defense, but in a larger sense as a history lesson on the e lusiveness of inv incibility Gi ll more was the hero of the day. Fo r his bo ldness in using a new weapo n and fo r the victory wo n. he was breveted a brigad ie r gene ral. O lmstead. The End of an Era The quick fa ll of Fort Pu laski surprised and shocked the world . When the Civil War began , Pulaski ranked as one of the "' most spectacular harbor defense structures" in the United States. Many considered the fort's 7 Y, foot solid brick walls backed with massive masonry piers unbreachable, including U.S. Chief of Engineers Joseph G. Totten, who procla imed that "you might as well bombard the Rocky Mountains." All previous mi litary experience had taught that beyond a distance of 700 yard s smoothbore cannons and mortars would have little chance to break th rough heavy masonry walls; beyond 1,000 yard s no c hance at all. And since there was no firm ground on which siege batteries could be erected nearer than Tybee Island, a mile or more away, Pu laski 's defend ers felt understandably secure. Even Gen. Robert E. Lee , who as a second lieutenant had worked on the island 's drainage system , told Colonel Olmstead that Federal gunners on Tybee Island could "make it pretty warm for you here with shells, but they cannot breach your wa lls at that distance ... Gillmore's rifled guns proved the fallacy of that judgment. 'The result of this bombardment," wrote o ne Union officer. "'must cause a change in the construction of fortifications as radical as that foreshadowed in naval arch itecture by the conflict between the Mo nitor and M errimac. No works of stone or brick can resist the impact of rifled artillery of heavy cal ibre." Tile strategy that heretofore had guided military leaders had to be revised to meet the threat of this new weapon SAVANNAH RI ER TYBEE ROADS ~~ ~ .McOU EEN.S lSLAND~ , Stanton -... Grant "1~j~~°o7n l;lurn-sld e... Sherman ? ' Halleck -i -/Silameter JcM(fe BIG TYBEE ISLAND The 1 1 Unio n batteries used 1n the red uction of Fort Pulaski are p1npo1nted Union mortar battery on Tybee Island bombards Fort Pu laski These eap- ---~-Lwa LF-OrtJ?.ulaski..because.oLtbe.coosequenLchanges,-i~~~~a;;.~~lrl became an interesting relic of an era now gone. Fort Pulask i be lo nged to what is known as the Th ird System of coast al fortificati o ns, d eve loped d uring th e f irst ha lf of t he 19t h century and cha racterized by g reater struct ura l d ura bili ty tha n ea rlie r wo rks . N early all of th e more tha n 30 Third System forts built after 1816 remai n in existence. The locatio ns of the princ iple wo rk s along the Atlanti c and Gul f coasts on the eve of wa r are show n at ri g ht Col. Charles H. Ol mstead. His decision to su rrende r Fort Pulask i haunted him for decades. "'We were absolutely isolated ," he later wrote. "beyond any possibility of hel p from the Confederate A uthori ties. and I did not feel warranted in exposing the garrison to th e hazard of the blowing up of our main magazin e a dange r wh ich had just been proved we ll within the limits of probab ility .. There are tim es when a so ldi er must ho ld his position to the last extremity,' which mea ns extermmaf/on. but this was not one of them. That the fort could and would be absolutely destroyed by the force of th e enemy was a demonstrated fact . . whi le our own power to harm them had been reduced to a minimum .... I am st ill convinced that there was nothi ng else that cou ld be do ne." 30-Pou nde r Parrott 1 Pro ject ile 2 Expansion ski rt 3 Barre l 4 Ri fli ng 5 Elevatin g sc rew 6 S iege carriage Il lustrations by L. Kennet h Townsend II le or no damage to th e walls 1llmore s ri fled ca nnon, however. caused massive dam age, the ma rks of whic h can stil l be see n on the fort 's walls. Interior view of Pulaski's so utheast casemates showing the breac h made by the Federa l batteries that brou ght about the surrend er of the fort . barrel. An expa nsion ski rt or ring on the projectil e engaged the rifling in the ba rrel . providi ng a spin to the bullet-shaped shel l. This spin gave the projec- tile increased accuracy. range, and penetration power unmatched by the sphe rica l shot of smoothbore guns. Thus even from a distance of about one mile . shots from th e rifled guns pe net rated Fort Pul ask i s wa ll s with relative ease (see drawing at left) 2 The Demilune This huge triangular earthwork was bui lt after the Civil War to protect the rear or "gorge" wall of the fort. During the war. this area was flat and surrounded by a parapet and contained outbuildings and various storage sheds. The earthen mounds overlay four powder magazines cand passageways to several gun emplacements. 1 The Moat This wet ditch that compl etely surrounds the fort 1s 7 feet deep and varies in width from 32 to 48 feet. The water is brought through a canal from the Savannah River and controlled by tide gates. A variety of small marine life inhabits the moat. 3 The Drawbridge A part of the fort's overall defense. the drawbridge is constructed in such a way as to make forced entry difficult. As it is raised , a strong wooden grille, called the portcull is. drops through the g ranit~ lintel overhead; bolt-studded doors are closed behind that. An inclined granite walk leads between two rows of rifle slits. past another set of doors. and into the fort. 4Go1-geWall This the rear section of the lnrt contains the sa lly port or fort entrance Officers lived in most of the rooms here Today. several are furnished to represen t various aspects of life at the fort. 5 The Northwest Magazine On the morn ing of April 11. 1862, Federal arti ll ery projectiles breached the southeast angle and crashed into the walls and roof of this magazine containing 4.0,000 pounds of gunpowder. Rather than __ be blowrf up by their own gunpowder,Jhe.garrise surrendered . The walls of the magazine are from 12 to 15 feet thick, or roughly four feet th 1cker1hanihe re~t of the walls in the fort. 6 Confederate Defense System The Confederate defenders of the fort built earthen traverses between the guns and over the magazine and dug ditches and pits in the parade ground to catch rolling cannon shot. They also erected a heavy timber blindage to cover the interior peri meter of the fort as a protection against shel l frag ments. ? The Prison During the winter of 1864. the northeast. southeast. and part of the south casemates were used as a military prison holding Confederate officers under miserable conditions. After the war. severa l political prisoners were held here. 8 The Breach The 7 5-foot-thick walls at this angle were demolished by Union rifled artillery on Apri l 10--11. 1862. forcing the Confederates to su rrender the fort T e walls were repaired •;1 h1n 6 weeks after the surrender by troops of the 48th New York Volu eers 9 Southwest Bast iOn This bastion. wh 1Ch burned 1n an 1895 fir" · has been left unrestrJred to show various construction detai ls of th fo rt. Brick arches under th e terreplein carry we ight to coun ter-arches 1n the floor which . in tu rn. are su pported by a timber gril lage and p ilin g driven 70 feet into the mud of Cockspur. 10 Cistern Room The cistern exposed here is one of te n that we re used to store fresh water. Ra in fi ltered th ro ugh the sod on the terreplein ran d own lead pipes in brick pie rs and thence to th e ta nks. The w hole system co uld hold mo re than 200.000 gallons. 11 Exhibits and Restrooms This section of the gorge wall contains various exhibits on soldier life and artil lery in the Civil War. 12 Damaged Wall The craters made by Union artillery pock the south and southeast walls. Rifled cannon shot fired from Tybee Island penetrated the wall s 20 to 25 inches. Some of the 5.275 shots fired can still be seen in the wall. -- ./ / I // I -;)I II If h' ~ -- . Visitor Center Things You Should Know Cockspur Island was originally a series of small hummocks surrounded by salt marsh It 1s now mostly dry land because dredged materials have been deposited ou tside the dikes around the fort . McOueens Island . however. is mostly virgin sal t marsh Temperatu res range from 20° F m winter to 1oo° F in summer Here you can see luxuriant. sem i-t ropica l plants intermixed with those of the temperate and desert zo nes. Here. too. are large populations of resident and migrant birds. Mammals include marsh rabbit. raccoons. opossums. and mink. Occasionally an alligator wil l enter the moat when the water level drops on the rest of the island. but generally they shun people and live elsewhere. There are many snakes 1n and around the fort m spring and summer. mostly the yell ow rat snake brown or black with dull white or yellow markings. These are harml ess and serve as natural mice- and rat-exterm inators in the fort . Of the many species of reptiles here. only the eastern diamondback rattlesnake is poisonous. Please do not tease or molest these animals or any other w1ldl1fe Fort Pulaski is open daily. except Decem ber 25 and January 1. from 8·30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m .. with extended hours in summer. The park can be reached via US 80 from Savannah. It is administered by the National Park Se rvice. U .S Department of the Interior Address all 1nqu1ries to the Superintendent. Fort Pul aski Nationa l Monument. Box 98. Tybee Island. GA 3 1328. 9 ! L I ·1 I "' 11&1 Ca nnon mounted in the northw est basti on , li ke th e b ron ze howi tzer shown here. helped to pro tect the fort's entrance . This v iew al ong Pulaski's exterior gorge wa ll shows part of the moat and th e fo rt's entra nce and drawbridge. For Your Safety 0 Stay off moun ds and topmost wa ll s of the fort . 0 Don't run on the terrep lein (u pper level) of the fort. 0 Co me down from the terrep lein whe n there is lightning. n Keep pets on leash or otherwise physica ll y restrai ned . 0 Mosq uitos , gnats, an d horsefl ie s are prese nt in spring and sum mer; use a repel lent or wear protecti ve c lothing. 0 Watch yo ur step in the fo rt and stay on the trail s when walking or hiking. If you have any qu esti ons or need assista nce in any way whil e v isitin g the park. pl ease don't hesitate to ask us. Enj oy yo ur v isit. Trails Along the park trails. shown on the map at left. you can see the variety of plants and animal hie on the island. A short distance from the fort 1s a mon ment to John Wesley, founder of Method ism. who landed in Am erica in 1736 at Cockspur Oaymark Island COCKSPUR ISLAND (D 0 GPO 1986 ulaski Lighthouse 49 1-4 17 400 13