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85-666: Built in 1862, the Mower General Hospital complex was designed by architect John McArthur Jr. , and named in honor of Thomas Mower, a surgeon who served with the U.S. Army's 6th Infantry during the Blackhawk War and under U.S. Surgeon General Thomas Lawson during the Second Seminole War . Constructed on 27 acres (11 ha) between Willow Grove and Springfield Avenues, the Reading Railroad line and Stenton Avenue,

170-668: A Freemason , was given a full Masonic funeral by Jackson Lodge in Delaware City. The funeral procession was led by fort's commander, Captain Augustus A. Gibson, from the town's lock on Clinton Street, and ended in the cemetery on Jefferson Street. According to church records, Halloway's body was reclaimed by his family after the war. By August 1863, there were more than 11,000 prisoners on the island; by war’s end, it had held almost 33,000 men. The conditions were relatively decent, but about 2,500 prisoners died on Pea Patch Island. Statistically,

255-465: A larder and pantry. We have been living upon hams, turkeys, chickens, tongues, jellies, pickles, butter, cheese, canned fruits, and jellies of various kinds, with all else that could be desired for comfortable and healthy diet," wrote Reverend Handy in 1864. He further notes, "The only article regularly furnished by the Government commissary is bread. Each man gets a well baked loaf, every other day, which

340-508: A seawall and dykes were built around the island. There is no known evidence that any progress was made on the actual fortification by war's end. The original plan was to build a Martello tower on the island. One source states that an earthwork fort was built on the island during the war and torn down in 1821; also, a wooden fort existed from 1814 to 1824. Construction of a star fort on Pea Patch island began sometime before December 8, 1817. Chief Engineer Joseph Gardner Swift mentions

425-506: A twelve mile circle around New Castle 's Court House . The state legislature passed an act in May 1813 ceding the island to the United States government, which subsequently seized it from Gale. In 1820, seeking to resolve questions surrounding the ownership of the island, Secretary of War John C. Calhoun requested a legal opinion from Attorney General William Wirt . Wirt's conclusion, based on

510-639: A Fort DuPont soldier who worked on the detail. In a Newark Post article, he recalls his orders were to bury everything with explicit orders not to throw anything in the river or remove articles from the island. According to Davis, soldiers buried three pieces of artillery on the island. Only one gun has since been recovered; a 15-inch Rodman gun exhumed from the northwest bastion was sold for scrap during World War II. The 4.7-inch guns of Battery Dodd were sent to San Francisco for use on Army troop transports ; they were returned to Fort Delaware in 1919 but were soon removed from service and used as war memorials. In 1920

595-459: A century. The 250-foot-tall tower-and-spire of his Tenth Presbyterian Church (1854) was the tallest structure in the city when built. (Its 150-foot wooden spire was removed in 1912.) Later, this was surpassed by the tower of City Hall (1874–1901), whose 548 feet (167 meters) made it the tallest occupied building in the world when completed. Until the late 20th century, an unwritten agreement among Philadelphia architects kept all buildings shorter than

680-515: A few years. Babcock supervised the work from about August 1819 until August 20, 1824. Lt. Henry Brewerton was also on site, serving as an assistant engineer during the construction. Completion of the project was delayed years past the proposed date due to uneven settling, improper pile placement and the island's marshy nature. In one occurrence an entire section of 43,000 bricks had to be taken down, cleaned, and reworked due to massive cracking. In 1822, Colonel Totten and General Simon Bernard were on

765-531: A fort on the "Pea Patch in Delaware River" among forts that are progressing nicely. The attack on Fort Mifflin during the Revolutionary War proved that a fort was needed further away from Philadelphia in order to delay possible invaders. A fortification further downriver would also provide protection for other vital port cities such as Chester, Marcus Hook, Wilmington, and New Castle. On February 7, 1821,

850-471: A narrow-gauge railroad, which all supported water-tight mines that could be placed in the Delaware River as a defensive measure against a possible enemy attack. Another casemate at Fort DuPont was built for a mine field controlled by that fort. A similar mine casemate at Fort Delaware had been planned in the 1870s but never materialized due to lack of funding. During the late 1890s new gun batteries were constructed at Fort Delaware. These batteries were part of

935-504: A program initiated by the 1885 Board of Fortifications , a government board headed by Secretary of War William C. Endicott ; the resulting system of fortifications is often called the Endicott program. Instead of many guns concentrated in a traditional thick-walled masonry structure, the Endicott batteries are spread out over a wide area, concealed behind concrete parapets flush with the surrounding terrain. As part of this program, Fort Delaware

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1020-527: A report by George Read, Jr. and former Attorney General Caesar A. Rodney was that the state of Delaware had the valid claim to the island, and so New Jersey could not have properly deeded it to Gale. During the War of 1812 , efforts were made to fortify Pea Patch Island. This plan of defense was largely coordinated by Capt. Samuel Babcock, who was working nearby on similar defenses in Philadelphia. During this time

1105-527: A set of officers' quarters were demolished inside the fort. The parade ground was excavated and thousands of piles were steam driven, to support a foundation for a concrete three-gun battery as a way to modernize the defenses protecting ports along the Delaware River. Construction halted for a brief period before resuming in August 1897. This main battery was designed by Army engineer Lt. Col. Charles W. Raymond, assisted by Lt. Spencer Cosby . The new Endicott structure

1190-483: A slice of baker's bread, very often stale, with weak coffee, for breakfast, and a slice of bread and a piece of salt pork or salt beef, sometimes, alternating with boiled fresh beef and bean soup, for dinner. The beef is often tough and hard to masticate." "There are several large ditches running across the island which are filled daily by the bay water and which furnish the water for washing," wrote Capt. William H. Burgwyn, 35th North Carolina Infantry. "Our drinking water

1275-440: A small piece of meat (about three bites) and a pint tin cup of bean soup. We only get two light meals a day." "The mess-room is next to [Division] 22 and near the rear . It is a long, dark room, having a long pine table, on which the food is placed in separate piles, either on a tin plate or on the uncovered greasy table, at meal hours, twice a day," said Capt. Robert E. Park, 12th Alabama Infantry Regiment. "The fare consists of

1360-519: A surplus site. Today, Fort Delaware State Park encompasses all of Pea Patch Island, including the Fort. As of 2018, transportation to Fort Delaware from Delaware City and Fort Mott is provided by a seasonal passenger ferry, the Forts Ferry Crossing . Once at the island, visitors are brought to the fort on a jitney . Tours and special programs are available to visitors. For example, visitors may see

1445-672: Is a former harbor defense facility , designed by chief engineer Joseph Gilbert Totten and located on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River . During the American Civil War (1861-1865), the Union / United States Department of War / United States Army used Fort Delaware as a prison for Confederate prisoners of war , political prisoners , miscellaneous civilians, federal convicts, and privateer officers. A three-gun concrete battery of 12-inch guns , later named Battery Torbert,

1530-547: Is brought from Brandywine Creek about ten miles [away]." High-ranking Confederate officers and some political prisoners were housed in former laundress quarters and open-bay barrack rooms inside the fort. These prisoners were often afforded paroles of the island, access to more food, and allowed more freedoms than the outside prison population. "By the kindness of Gen. Albin Francisco Schoepf (the fort's commandant), Cols. Morgan, Tucker, Coleman and myself were paroled to

1615-483: Is quite sufficient in quantity." "We were installed in a large barrack-room, which then contained seventy or eighty officers. The highest in rank was a Major Holliday," wrote Lt. Francis W. Dawson. "Our room was dry, warm and well lighted, while the Barracks [outside of the fort] were cold, damp and dark. Our room had conveniences for washing [...], and there was plenty of water of a poor quality," said Dawson. "We only left

1700-413: The 165th New York Infantry . The fort was also used to organize and muster troops from Delaware. Ahl's Independent Battery of Heavy Artillery was organized at the fort on July 27, 1863 for garrison duty. Although listed as a Delaware unit, Ahl's Battery was composed of Confederate prisoners that took the oath of allegiance. The fort's artillery soldiers were responsible for manning the guard posts within

1785-614: The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) and encompass a living history museum , located in Fort Delaware State Park . In 1794, the French military engineer Pierre Charles L’Enfant was surveying for defensive sites. He identified an island that he called "Pip Ash" as an ideal site for the defense of the prize of American commerce and culture. The island that L'Enfant called Pip Ash

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1870-622: The Harbor Defenses of San Juan, Puerto Rico . Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, the island was garrisoned by a detachment of soldiers from Battery C, 261st Coast Artillery Battalion, a unit from the Delaware Army National Guard . Battery C manned the two rapid-fire guns of Battery Hentig, located outside of the fort. These guns were removed in 1942 for use at Fort Miles in Lewes, Del., leaving Fort Delaware unarmed. Fort Miles, on

1955-548: The United States with his family when he was ten years old. Much of his mature style was characterized by Italianate and Second Empire forms and several of his best-known buildings feature mansard roofs, which he helped to introduce and popularize in the United States. During the American Civil War , McArthur planned 24 temporary war hospitals, including Fort Delaware 's 600-bed hospital on Pea Patch Island. Philadelphia has looked up to McArthur's architecture for more than

2040-490: The Veteran Reserve Corps (also known as the "Invalid Corps). Another 1,363 were discharged on surgeons' certificates of disability and an additional 3,718 were transferred to other facilities for further care while 1,508 were recorded as having deserted. Despite the grievous wounds and serious illnesses treated here, hospital physicians lost just 257 patients total by war's end. The hospital featured many amenities for

2125-592: The canal destined to connect the Chesapeake with the Delaware [.]" The fort on the Delaware shore was not built until the Civil War. The star fort was designed by army engineer Joseph G. Totten and construction was supervised by Capt. Samuel Babcock. The five-pointed star design is viewed as "transitional" between the second and third systems of US fortifications . The fort was designed in 1815 and construction began within

2210-440: The 19th New York Volunteers, Mlotkowski's Independent Battery A, Young's Independent Battery G (Pittsburgh Heavy Artillery), 5th Delaware Infantry , 6th Delaware Infantry , 9th Delaware Infantry , 5th Maryland Infantry , 11th Maryland Infantry , 6th Massachusetts Militia , 157th Pennsylvania Infantry (Battalion), 201st Pennsylvania Infantry , 215th Pennsylvania , 157th Ohio Infantry , 196th Ohio Infantry , and Zouaves of

2295-659: The 3-inch guns of Battery Alburtis and Battery Allen were scrapped as part of a general removal of M1898 3-inch guns from service. By the end of the First World War, Fort Saulsbury near Slaughter Beach , Del. was near completion, and with 12-inch guns on long-range carriages reduced the three upriver forts to secondary lines of defense. The Harbor Defenses of the Delaware were one of the most extreme examples of gun batteries being built seaward as gun ranges increased. In 1940 Fort Delaware lost its three 12-inch guns, two of which were used to arm Battery Reed, Fort Amezquita in

2380-473: The 8 inch Columbiad gun, which is located on the northwest bastion, fired daily. Park staff and volunteers interpret the roles of people who were at the fort during the Civil War. Beach erosion affecting Pea Patch Island was recognized as a potential threat to the Fort in 1999. The United States Army Corps of Engineers erected a 3,500- foot -long seawall during the Winter of 2005-2006 which now protects

2465-471: The Atlantic Ocean south of Cape May , itself reduced Fort Saulsbury to a secondary line of defense. The fort was eventually stripped of the most of its electrical wiring, which was re-used at Fort Miles. Fort Delaware was declared as a surplus site by the federal government at the end of the war. Delaware acquired the fort from the United States government in 1947 after the federal government declared it

2550-499: The Board of Engineers reported: "In the Delaware, the fort on the Pea Patch island, and one on the Delaware shore opposite, defend the water passage as far below Philadelphia as localities will permit: They force an enemy to land forty miles below the city to attack it by land, and thus afford time for the arrival of succors [...] The two projected forts will also have the advantages of covering

2635-563: The Island", said Col. William W. Ward, on March 24, 1864. Gen. M. Jeff Thompson , Gen. Robert B. Vance and the Cols of our command form a mess, and live very well. We give a negro woman $ 7.00 per week for cooking, $ 10.00 for washing." Also living in the former laundress quarters was Reverend Isaac W. K. Handy of Portsmouth, Va., a political prisoner. "Our supplies have, recently, been so abundant, that "Commissary" Tibbetts has appropriated [Room] No. 3 as

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2720-470: The barracks and by 5 were on board the Crescent and under way. There are 35 of our boys and about 90 of the other two batteries and of Company C, 157th Ohio [Infantry]." "After long delay - all being ready - the guards took their places, and the command was given to march through the sally-port, to the west end of the "bull-pen"," according to Reverend Isaac Handy. "As the noble fellows marched out, I stood at

2805-570: The bastions to defeat attacks on the curtain walls . Thus, the fort had positions for 169 cannon. The fort also had a moat , with a tide gate on a canal from the river to control the moat's level. Construction of a deep foundation was necessary since the island's soils were of "a compressible mud often forty feet deep; the level where sand was finally reached". In 1849, Major Sanders' crews began using steam-powered pile drivers to place long piles (similar to modern telephone poles) in excavated areas to provide adequate support. In 1850 pile driving

2890-609: The city of Charleston, and are said to be exposed to the shelling of their own guns. I am glad of this move as it will be a diversion to the monotonous life led in prison," said Capt. Leon Jastremski of the 10th Louisiana Infantry . This group of prisoners was later known as the " Immortal Six Hundred ". "Aug. 20 - Am detailed to go to Charleston with the Rebel Officers. Was very busy in the forenoon hunting up shoes and packing up things," said Pvt. Alexander J. Hamilton, Pittsburgh Heavy Artillery. "At 3 p.m. we fell in and marched up to

2975-407: The deeper channel was. A total of 123 heavy cannon could be mounted on the seacoast fronts, with 15 more in the bastions. The long rear front was called a "gorge wall", with two tiers totaling 68 loopholes for muskets and a tier of 11 cannon on the roof. In the center of this wall was the sally port , the only entrance to or exit from the fort. Twenty short-range flank howitzers could be mounted in

3060-462: The disagreement, and Secretary of War William Marcy and Humphrey agreed. John Sergeant was appointed arbitrator, and in late 1847 heard arguments from the United States (represented by Senators John M. Clayton and James A. Bayard Jr. ) and Humphrey (represented by former Secretary of War John Eaton and former Secretary of the Treasury George M. Bibb ). On January 15, 1848, he ruled that

3145-508: The facility was completed. Moran's exterior and interior views included photos of the special medical wards that could be isolated for patients with infections and then novel centralized storage facilities for supplies. The hospital, a major military facility, was built in 1862 on a lot of 27 acres, situated between Stenton, Germantown, Springfield, and Abington avenues in Philadelphia's Chestnut Hill . Wyndmoor station , Market Square Shopping Center, apartment buildings, and townhouses now occupy

3230-471: The five bastions to support 15-inch Rodman guns . During the Civil War a ten-gun battery was built on the river's west bank near the later Fort DuPont ; this was rebuilt as a 20-gun battery in the 1870s but not fully armed. In October 1878, a massive hurricane struck the area causing considerable damage to structures outside the fort. The majority of buildings on the south side of the island were destroyed. The Trinity Chapel, built in 1863 by Confederate POWs,

3315-434: The fort as well as serving on various duty positions on the island. Infantry troops were mainly responsible for manning guard posts along the seawall, which ran around the island. In August 1864, there were approximately 85 guard posts on the island that required about 255 men on each shift. After the Civil War, the fort was operated by a small garrison of the 4th U.S. Artillery . In the early 1870s, plans were made to modify

3400-401: The fort in sealed off casemates, empty powder magazines, and two small rooms inside the sally port . In those small rooms, names of Confederates can still be seen carved into the brick. According to The Philadelphia Inquirer , the island "contained an average population of southern tourists, who came at the urgent invitation of Mr. Lincoln". The first Confederate general to be housed at the fort

3485-427: The fort's breast high wall. Masonry arches and vaults were used throughout the entire fort to equally distribute weight and to provide stability. Poured concrete was used as a layer above the vaults to offer counter resistance and to "create a strong floor system". On July 29, 1858, Major Sanders died on the island due to "complications of carbunculous boils"; Lt. William Craighill replaced him until Maj. John Newton

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3570-645: The fort, engineers built additional rapid-fire batteries, which were later named Battery Dodd and Battery Hentig. Battery Dodd was added as an emergency measure after the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in 1898. It had two 4.7-inch 40 caliber guns purchased from the United Kingdom; at that point few of the Endicott batteries were complete and it was feared the Spanish fleet would bombard the US east coast . The battery

3655-432: The ground and carrying parts of the hospital all over the island and out on the river," wrote Ordnance Sergeant James Maxwell. Several years before the start of the war, in 1892, a mine control casemate was built on the northern tip of the island. This casemate was built semi-underground and then covered with dirt for concealment. This mining casemate served in conjunction with a one-story torpedo (mine storage) shed and

3740-512: The historical fort site and a migratory bird rookery , considered to be the largest such habitat north of Florida . Starting in 2009, Fort Delaware has hosted at least one game each summer of the Diamond State Base Ball Club , a vintage base ball team. The Diamond State Base Ball Club also typically plays 4-6 games per year at nearby Fort DuPont. The Diamond State Base Ball Club is a non-profit amateur organization created for

3825-512: The hospital complex was configured as a central compound surrounded by a ring of 47 radiating wards and other buildings, and had a 3,600-bed capacity. Its first commanding officer was Andrew Hopkins, M.D., a surgeon who later contracted and died from typhoid fever . Of the roughly 20,000 patients who passed through this facility from the time of its opening on January 3, 1863 until its closure on May 31, 1865, 9,799 survived their respective treatments and were returned to duty and 878 were transferred to

3910-412: The island and in the Delaware River. Official records also show that prisoners at Fort Delaware received more "care packages" than any other POW camp in the country. "Things here are not quite as bad as I expected to find them. They are, however, bad, hopeless and gloomy enough without any exaggeration," said Pvt. Henry Berkeley. "We went into dinner about three o'clock, which consisted of three hardtack,

3995-475: The island during the summer of 1898. Following a period of caretaking status , the fort was garrisoned for a brief time during World War I . Nearby Fort DuPont was the main defense site, with Fort Delaware and Fort Mott serving as a sub-posts, according to army records. In March 1919, soldiers began the process of mothballing the old fort, removing everything except items pertaining to the three 12-inch guns of Battery Torbert, according to Pvt. James C. Davis,

4080-425: The island had belonged to the state of Delaware and therefore the title given to the United States government was valid. It appears no further work was done on this fort. The present Fort Delaware was erected mainly between 1848 and 1860 as one of the larger forts of the third system of U.S. seacoast defense fortifications . Although major construction was wrapped up before the American Civil War (1861-1865),

4165-474: The island to inspect the faulty works. Captain Babcock was severely criticized for altering Totten's plans without orders. Babcock subsequently appeared before a court-martial for his actions in late 1824. It was determined he was not guilty of neglect but rather error in judgement and he was acquitted. During the trial his counsel was George Read Jr. of New Castle, Del. Fort Delaware's first documented commander

4250-521: The island. Grillage timbers were driven into the island's soft mud to serve as a base for the foundation of Delafield's fort. In 1838, James Humphrey of New Jersey (a descendant of Dr. Henry Gale) sent legal representation to the island, claiming he had legal rights to the island. This began a decade-long legal battle over the island's ownership, which prevented Delafield's fort from being built. After conflicting opinions from two different circuit courts, President James K. Polk suggested an arbitrator resolve

4335-459: The island. These two classes of prisoners were separated by a tall fence complete with a catwalk for the guards. In 1864, the War Department ordered the rations to be cut in retaliation for the treatment of Northern soldiers in southern POW camps. Although prisoners were only receiving two small meals, they were allowed to purchase extra food from the sutler, and allowed to fish in the waterways on

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4420-446: The nice regulation of heat" which would normally be used in the evaporation process. The wounded were brought directly from Southern battlefields by railroad—a journey known as "going from the seven circles of hell to heaven." In 1862, Philadelphia photographer John Moran created, published, and sold a series of albumen print photographs of the hospital. Moran's photos were issued as both mounted photographs and stereographs soon after

4505-435: The opening of the sally-port, as near by as the guards would allow, and until the very last man disappeared from the enclosure. 'Good-bye! Good-bye!' was uttered, time and again, as the files moved on; and I could do nothing but return farewells, as some one or more in every rank would wave the parting salutation." Starting in 1861, volunteer troops were sent to garrison Fort Delaware that included Collis' Zouaves d' Afrique ,

4590-649: The overall death rate for prisoners was about 7.6 percent. Half of the total number of deaths occurred during a smallpox epidemic in 1863. Inflammation of the lungs (243 deaths), various forms of diarrhea (315 deaths) and smallpox (272 deaths) were the leading killers amongst the prison population. About 215 prisoners died as a result of typhoid and/or malaria, according to records in the National Archives. Other causes of death include scurvy (70 deaths), pneumonia (61 deaths) and erysipelas (47 deaths). Five prisoners drowned, and seven died from gunshot wounds. During

4675-571: The patients and staff, including plumbing to provide hot water, special medical wards that could be isolated for patients with infections, centralized storage for supplies, flush toilets, band music, etc. In addition, while many medicines provided for the treatment of soldiers were provided by regular military supply routes, hospital stewards at Mower also operated a small laboratory on the hospital's grounds in which "they prepared tinctures in quantities varying from one-half gallon to ten gallons, and also fluid extracts." These tinctures, as well as "most of

4760-616: The post engineer did not declare the fort finished until 1868 . Construction of the counterscarp wall, slate pavement, and "hanging shutters and doors" was still ongoing. The fort was designed by U.S. Army chief engineer Joseph G. Totten, and construction was supervised by Major John Sanders. Engineers in supporting roles included Captain George B. McClellan , Major John Newton , Lieutenant William Price Craighill , Lieutenant Montgomery C. Meigs and civilian engineer Edwin Muhlenbrach. The fort

4845-429: The purposes of providing physical fitness to its members, educating the public on the history of baseball and local history, and serving as a point of public pride. The A&E Network's Civil War Journal recorded portions of an episode at the fort entitled "War Crimes: The Death Camps" that originally aired October 9, 1994. The Sci-Fi Channel investigation series Ghost Hunters conducted two cases there including

4930-400: The room to march down into the mess-hall." In late 1862, prisoners inside the fort were fed three meals a day instead of the usual two. "For breakfast we had a cup of poor coffee without milk or sugar, and two small pieces of bad bread. For dinner we had a cup of greasy water misnamed soup, a piece of beef two inches square and a half inch thick, and two slices of bread. At supper the fare was

5015-644: The same as at breakfast. This was exceedingly light diet," wrote Lt. Francis Dawson. "We contrived to make some additions to our diet by purchases at the Sutler's store." On August 20, 1864, six hundred Confederate States Army officers boarded the Crescent bound for Morris Island off the coast of South Carolina , "for the purpose I believe of being placed under the fire of the Confederate batteries in retaliation for an equal number of Federal officers who have been placed in

5100-451: The seawall around the island. The sandstone remnants can still be seen today. Captain Delafield designed the second version of Fort Delaware "as a huge bastioned polygonal form to be built in masonry." Delafield desired his fort to be "a marvel of military architecture on Pea Patch", and the design was much larger than the star fort. In 1836, excavation work progressed on the north side of

5185-519: The site. John McArthur Jr. John McArthur Jr. (1823–1890) was a prominent American architect based in Philadelphia . Best remembered as the architect of the landmark Philadelphia City Hall , McArthur also designed some of the city's most ambitious buildings of the Civil War era. Few of his buildings survive. John McArthur Jr. was born in Bladenock, Scotland , on 13 May 1823, and came to

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5270-519: The stairways' large platforms. A huge storm damaged the island's dike and seawall in 1854 . Due to the threat of high-tide waters, efforts were directed toward repairing the dike and adjacent seawall, slowing progress on the stonework. More than two million bricks were purchased from Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for the scarp wall's interior. These bricks were used in construction of underground cisterns, casemates, powder magazines, soldier barracks, officer quarters, bread ovens and

5355-460: The syrups, cerates , ointments, wines and waters of the Pharmacopoeia " were produced in this 14-foot by 16-foot stone building, which was "ventilated only by an open skylight, using just "a large-sized cooking stove, and some of the more ordinary apparatus," but no percolator. Consequently, the efficacy of some of their products was questionable since the stewards did not have the "proper means for

5440-583: The top of the statue of William Penn atop McArthur's tower. A Presbyterian and a member of Tenth Church, McArthur was married to Matilda Prevost; they had two sons and two daughters. McArthur died in Philadelphia on January 8, 1890. This is a partial list. A descendant, David Paul McArthur, works as an architect out of the Fishtown section of Philadelphia . Fort Delaware 39°35′24″N 75°34′19″W  /  39.59000°N 75.57194°W  / 39.59000; -75.57194 Fort Delaware

5525-456: The war, 109 Union soldiers and about 40 civilians died on the island as well. Many of the Confederate prisoners and Union guards who died at the fort are buried in the nearby Finn's Point National Cemetery in Pennsville, New Jersey . By 1863, enlisted men and junior officers (mostly lieutenants and captains) of the prison population were living in the wooden barracks on the northwest side of

5610-526: Was Brig. Gen. Johnston Pettigrew . During the war, a total of about a dozen generals were held within the fort as prisoners of war. In 1862 and 1863, two separate phases of construction took place, building a "barracks for enlisted prisoners of war" that was known as the "bull pen," said Pvt. Henry Robinson Berkeley a Confederate prisoner. Most of the Confederates captured at Gettysburg were imprisoned here. An L-shaped barracks building, using similar plans,

5695-477: Was Maj. Alexander C.W. Fanning, who took command prior to 1825. That year, a letter documenting a lost mail shipment was written by him as post commander. Army records document that the fort was manned by soldiers of the 2nd U.S. Artillery . Circa 1829, Major Benjamin Kendrick Pierce took command of Fort Delaware. During his tenure, the fort was garrisoned by Companies A and B, 4th U.S. Artillery . Major Pierce

5780-529: Was a three-story reinforced concrete emplacement, which was built from 1894 to 1900 to support three 12-inch breech-loading rifled guns on disappearing carriages . These guns, mounted in 1900, had a range of approximately 10 miles. The three-gun battery, later named Battery Torbert after Maj. Gen. Alfred Torbert , is one of two three-story Endicott batteries in the United States, the other being Battery Potter, with unique gun-lift carriages, at Fort Hancock, New Jersey . The unusual height of Battery Torbert

5865-468: Was able to assume the role of supervising engineer. In 1859, in official correspondence, Major Newton reported that the fort would be ready to arm and garrison by 1860. In 1861, before the Impending Civil War started, Capt. Augustus A. Gibson took command of the fort and a small garrison of only 20 regular army soldiers. Construction languished until the end of the Civil War; the garrison's focus

5950-414: Was about the size and location of the previous star-shaped fort. It was in the shape of an irregular pentagon, with five small bastions at the corners, called "tower bastions" by Totten. Four of the sides were seacoast fronts, with three tiers of cannon on each, two casemated tiers in the fort and one barbette tier on the roof. The irregular shape provided for more cannon on the east-facing fronts, where

6035-553: Was centered on mounting cannon inside the fort. In 1861, 20 columbiad guns were received and work to mount these guns quickly began. By 1862, another 17 guns were delivered. By 1866, approximately 156 guns were mounted in total, filling the fort's casemates and ramparts to capacity. During the Civil War, Fort Delaware went from protector to prison; a prisoner-of-war camp was established to house captured Confederates, convicted federal soldiers, and local political prisoners as well as privateers. The first prisoners were housed inside

6120-538: Was complete; crews had driven 4,911 piles, reusing 1,095 piles from the Delafield fort. Because of the star fort's failed foundation, Totten and Sanders decided to evaluate the weight resistance before moving forward with construction. The engineers proposed a singular test consisting of 30 blows from an 8-foot height using an 800 pound weight. A total of 5,754 piles were tested and 2,955 failed more than one fifth of an inch. Roughly 1,700 piles were subsequently spliced and re-driven an additional 10 to 20 feet. The pile driving

6205-552: Was completed in 1899, after the war was over. Battery Hentig had two 3-inch M1903 guns and entered service in 1901. Battery Allen was named for Robert Allen, Jr., a cavalry officer who died at Gaines Mill in the Civil War. Battery Alburtis was named for William Alburtis, killed in the siege of Veracruz in the Mexican–American War. Battery Dodd was named for Captain Albert Dodd, also killed at Gaines Mill. Battery Hentig

6290-449: Was constructed for Union soldiers assigned as guards. A 600-bed hospital was also built around the same time and was designed by architect John McArthur Jr. of Philadelphia. "These Barracks [sic] were common wooden sheds, affording accommodation for about ten thousand persons," wrote Lt. Francis W. Dawson, a Confederate POW captured in August 1862. "The bunks were arranged in tiers of three, and into one of these I crawled. The next morning I

6375-511: Was designed by Maj. Charles W. Raymond and built inside the fort in the 1890s . By 1900 , the fort was part of a three fort concept, the first forts of the Coast Defenses of the Delaware , working closely with Fort Mott further upstream on the opposite shore, in Pennsville , New Jersey, and Fort DuPont downstream in Delaware City , Delaware. The fort and the island currently belong to

6460-454: Was due to being initially designed for gun-lift carriages. On top of the fort, flanking the 12-inch battery, were two smaller rapid-fire batteries, which protected the short-range sectors around the island and the mine field. These positions were later named Battery Allen and Battery Alburtis, and were armed with two 3-inch M1898 guns on retractable masking parapet mounts each. They were built in 1899 and accepted for service in 1901. Outside of

6545-517: Was finally complete in 1851 and the wooden grillage was the next layer constructed. The fort is primarily composed of gneiss , granite, brick, and cement. Initially, the stone for the scarp wall was gneiss imported from long prized quarries around Port Deposit , Maryland (on the east bank of the Susquehanna River , north of the Chesapeake Bay ) In 1852, Major Sanders reported the gneiss

6630-535: Was granted orders to use the federal arsenal in New Castle, Del. as barracks for his two companies until "Fort Delaware can be reoccupied." Captain Richard Delafield , Babcock's replacement, asked for $ 10,000 to tear down the remaining structure the following year. In 1833, Fort Delaware was torn down to make room for a new fortification. According to official records, the rubble from the star fort served to reinforce

6715-493: Was locally known as Pea Patch Island . This island was mostly unaffected by humanity with one exception. Dr. Henry Gale, a New Jersey resident, used Pea Patch as a private hunting ground. Gale was offered $ 30,000 for the island by the US Army , but he refused. The military was determined to get the island, so they appealed to the state of Delaware, which claimed ownership of the entire Delaware River and all islands therein within

6800-439: Was named for Edmund C. Hentig, a cavalry officer killed fighting Native Americans at Cibiou Creek, Arizona in 1881. During the Spanish–American War, the fort was garrisoned by artillery soldiers of the 4th U.S. Artillery and volunteers from Company I of the 14th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Names of soldiers from the 14th P.V.I. appear today, carved on the brick walls inside the fort. These soldiers were stationed on

6885-424: Was partially destroyed in the storm. The chapel was subsequently used to store hay until totally demolished sometime after 1901. On August 3, 1885, a tornado struck the island, destroying the post-war hospital and caused considerable damage to other structures. "A storm took place here. We have had nothing like it since [October 1878] and a strong whirlwind with it, sweeping every thing before it, pulling trees out of

6970-403: Was supplemented by Fort DuPont on the river's west bank and Fort Mott on the east bank; these were the first forts of the Coast Defenses of the Delaware . Both of these were built new for the Endicott program, in both cases replacing earlier batteries. Part of an unfinished battery at Fort Mott from the 1870s was used for new batteries at that fort. In 1896, half of the soldier barracks and

7055-517: Was the older brother of the 14th President of the United States, Franklin Pierce . In February 1831, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sent Lt. Stephen Tuttle to evaluate the foundation issue and offer possible solutions. On February 8, 1831, around 10:30 p.m, a fire originating in Lieutenant Tuttle's quarters destroyed much of the work, burning until the next morning. Maj. Pierce, the post commander,

7140-462: Was told that these Barracks were the quarters for the privates and non-commissioned officers, and that, by requesting it, I could be removed to the quarters for the officers, which were inside the Fort." The first Confederate prisoner to die at Fort Delaware was Captain L. P. Halloway of the 27th Virginia Infantry. He was captured at Winchester, Va. on March 23, 1862, dying on April 9. Captain Halloway,

7225-453: Was too hard for his stone masons and cutters to shape, slowing the progress of construction. After that, purchase records show granite was bought from John Leiper's quarry in nearby Delaware County, Pennsylvania . Leiper's granite was also used throughout for various items such as the steps for the circular stairways. Stone from further north in New England of Vinalhaven, Maine was used for

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