Back in 2006, when I began dating my wife, she introduced me to Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site, not far from her condominium on the outskirts of Old Town Alexandria. When I went to check out Fort Ward one morning, I was amazed at what I found. Despite living in the D.C. area on and off for around seventeen years, I had never heard of, let alone visited, the place. Now, it is one of my favorite Civil War sites around. In a region where governments and the private sector have done a relatively inadequate job of preserving and interpreting the Civil War defenses around the nation's capital, Fort Ward -- run by the City of Alexandria -- stands out as a gem. (See here, here, and here for a description of the woeful state of preservation of the D.C. forts.)
Fort Ward was part of the ring of defensive works around Washington that totaled 161 forts and batteries by war's end. The Union Army began construction of Fort Ward in July 1861 and completed work by September 1861. The initial earthwork fort was 540 yards in perimeter and had 24 gun emplacements. The fort was named after Commander James H. Ward, the first Union Naval officer to be mortally wounded in the Civil War. Scheduled for rebuilding in 1863, Fort Ward was expanded to a perimeter of 818 yards and 36 gun emplacements by April 1865. During the war, the fort was garrisoned by soldiers from many different units, including regiments of heavy artillery from Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Fort Ward, which stood guard over the approaches to Alexandria via the Leesburg Turnpike and the Little River Turnpike, never came under attack. The Army closed the fort permanently in December 1865 and sold any salvageable materials at auction.
Map of Fort Ward (Courtesy of Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site) |
Reconstruction of entrance gate to Fort Ward, originally completed in 1865. The arch is topped by a castle, the insignia of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which designed and constructed Fort Ward. |
6-pounder James rifle (foreground) and 24-pounder howitzer (background) in the Northwest Bastion |
24-pounder howitzer (foreground) and two 4.5-inch rifled cannon (background) in the Northwest Bastion |
Exterior view of emplacement for 24-pounder howitzer in the Northwest Bastion |
Exterior view of Northwest Bastion and ditch. Note gun emplacements. Fort Ward's walls were 18-22 feet high, 12-14 feet thick, and slanted at 45 degrees. |
Marshall House, site of the death of Union Col. Elmer Ellsworth, who became a martyr to the Northern cause early in the Civil War. The Confederate flag that Ellsworth removed from the Marshall House is also on display. The Museum contains a research library of around 2,000 volumes, and throughout the year, hosts a variety of events, including living history demonstrations and a Civil War-era Christmas celebration. I also encourage readers to join the Friends of Fort Ward, whose "primary goal is to work to support the City of Alexandria’s stewardship of the Fort, provide supplemental funding for the Fort Ward Museum, and advocate for the Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site’s best interests."
Note on Sources:
The Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site website, linked to above, has a wealth of material on the history of Fort Ward. In addition, the Historical Marker Database provides information on all of the markers at the site. The photos are from the author's personal collection.
4 comments:
Nicely presented. Your selection of photographs is well done, giving an educational overview of what remains intact. Having had an ancestor at one of the "long gone" forts around the District, I am, like you, very appreciative of the extent to which the City of Alexandria has maintained this site.
Thanks, John. I am glad you liked the photos. I went to Fort Ward one day back in the spring to get some shots. I hadn't yet started the blog, but the pictures have finally come in handy.
Which fort? That is great to have such family history.
I will be posting about other forts around D.C., but like I said, Fort Ward is the best-preserved and really stands out about the rest.
My great-great grandfather, Frederick Unger, served in the 7th New York Heavy Artillery at Fort Reno, which was located in the Tenleytown neighborhood of the District. They left there on May 15, 1864 and headed down to Spotsylvania where they saw the elephant during the fighting of May 19 on the Harris Farm. He was wounded in the arm that day, but remained enlisted through the end of the war.
Interesting. Thanks for sharing. I used to hang out in the Tenleytown area when I was an undergrad at AU. As you know, there are unfortunately no remains of Fort Reno left today, but at least a marker commemorates the spot.
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