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Fort Delaware was constructed between 1848 and 1860 on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River along the border of Delaware and New Jersey. Fort Delaware was built on the site of a star-shaped fort which was constructed sometime around 1818. The original fort was unintentionally burned down by an Army Corps of Engineers Lt who was sent to repair foundation issues with the original construction. Rubble from the original fort was then used to reinforce the seawall around the island.

Fort Delaware has positions for 169 cannons in total with 68 loopholes for muskets and a tier of 11 cannons on the roof. In addition to being on an island, the fort is surrounded by a moat with a tide gate to control the moat's level via a canal from the river.

During the Civil War, Fort Delaware was the site of a large POW camp for Confederate prisoners and various political prisoners including several Confederate generals such as Brigadier General Johnston Pettigrew. The Philadephia Inquirer said it "contained an average population of southern tourists who came at the urgent invitation of Mr (Abraham) Lincoln". Among others, most of the prisoners captured at Gettysburg were imprisoned here. By the end of the Civil War, the island fort/prison held nearly 33,000 men. In total, about 2,500 prisoners died on the island.

In 1896, part of the fort was demolished and rebuilt to support a three-gun Endicott battery. The new reinforced concrete structure is one of only two 3-story Endicott batteries in the United States.

In 1919, Fort Delaware was mothballed with the exception of three 12-inch Endicott guns. In 1940, two of the guns were sent to Fort Amezquita in San Juan Puerto Rico. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, Fort Delaware was garrisoned by the 261st Coast Artillery Battalion of the Delaware Army National Guard. At the end of WWII, Fort Delaware was declared as surplus and acquired by Delaware from the U.S. Government in 1947. As of 2018, visitors can tour the island by taking a passenger ferry from Delaware City.

Source: wikipedia

Historic Photos of Fort Delaware

End Historic Photos