Greater Savannah Area

Last Update: 12/OCTOBER/2014

Compiled by Pete Payette - Š2014 American Forts Network

Colonial Forts of Savannah
Fortresses of Savannah from the Savannah Images Project
(1733 - 1814), Savannah
From its founding, Savannah was contained inside earthen walls with palisades, with several batteries (1757 - 1814). Located on Yamacraw Bluff was Fort Halifax (1756 - 1760's). It was abandoned and then rebuilt by Patriots as Fort Savannah (1776 - 1778), captured by the British and renamed Fort Prevost (1778 - 1782). After the British evacuated the city, it was renamed Fort Wayne (1) (1782 - 1790's). The fort was partially rebuilt in 1812, but construction was never completed. Only the curved outer wall by the river was completed, which still exists today at the corner of East Bay and East Broad Streets. Barracks were constructed outside the fort, and this became known as Oglethorpe Barracks (1) (1821 - 1851). They were in use by the Confederates 1861 - 1864, and then as Federal Reconstruction barracks (1864 - 1879).

Other colonial works included British Spring Hill Redoubt (1779), reconstructed at Battlefield Memorial Park at West Broad and Liberty Streets (near the Savannah Visitors Center and History Museum); and the site of Revolutionary War Barracks and Fortifications (aka Savannah Barracks) at Bull and Liberty Streets, now the DeSoto Hilton Plaza. Spring Hill was the main focus of the Patriot - French attack in October 1779. Sailor's Battery was north of Spring Hill and anchored the British line at the Savannah River. Patriot-French seige lines were built south to southeast of Spring Hill.
British Capture of Savannah 1778 state marker at Liberty and Randolph Streets.
Attack on British Lines state marker at the Savannah Visitors Center.
Savannah was the state's first permanent white settlement (1733). The city was occupied by the British from December 1778 to June 1782.

Fort Jackson (1)
(1808 - 1902), Savannah FORT WIKI
A Patriot earthen battery (Mud Fort) was first located here from 1775 - 1778. The British under Lt. Col. Archibald Campbell landed in this area in December 1779 to occupy the city. A new fort was built in 1792, and probably seriously damaged in the 1804 hurricane.

The third brick fort (six guns) was named in 1810, and was enlarged between 1845 and 1860. It became Confederate in January 1861, and was the headquarters for eight other river fortifications in the area. When Union troops under General Sherman occupied the city and raised the Federal flag over the fort in December 1864, the iron-ram C.S.S. Savannah fired on the fort from the river. The ironclad C.S.S. Georgia was scuttled nearby. The fort was last modified in 1874 - 1876 with five new gun emplacements and a magazine on the parapet. The name was changed to Fort Oglethorpe (1) or Oglethorpe Barracks (2) (1884 - 1889). The former name was restored in 1905. Sold to the state in 1923. Opened as a state park in 1969. This is the oldest standing brick fort in the state. The largest black-powder cannon still being fired in the U.S., a 32-pounder, is located here and is used for special occasions.

Savannah CSA Arsenal and Ordnance Depot
(1860's), Savannah
A CSA Arsenal and/or Ordnance Depot was located in the city. Undetermined location.

National Guard Training Batteries
(1909 or 1913 - 1930's), Savannah
Located at Forsythe Park. Enclosed concrete gun mounts still exist here for two batteries used to train state coast artillery troops, locally known as East Dummy Fort and West Dummy Fort. The west fort was once equipped with a small pedestal-mount gun, probably a 3-inch gun, and was transformed in 1963 (rededicated in 2002) as the Fragrant Garden for the Blind. The east fort was once equipped with a disappearing gun mounted on the roof, and stood derelict until remodeled in 2008 as the Forsyth Park Visitor Center and Bandstand. June 2008 Savannah Now article || Georgia Historical Society marker

Civil War Defenses of Savannah
(1861 - 1865), various locations
Confederate coastal defenses of Savannah through 1864:
Fort Tatnall (2), on a small island in the Savannah River between Barnwell Island and Forts Jackson (1) and Lee on the south bank.
Fort Lawton (2), on Barnwell (Smith) Island in the Savannah River.
Fort Lee, on the Savannah River below Fort Jackson. Small remnant still exists on industrial property.
Causten's Bluff Fort, on St. Augustine Creek north of Thunderbolt, near the present-day Islands Expressway bridge. Remnants still exist on private property inside gated community.
Fort Bartow (1), Riverside, remnants still exist on private property inside gated community, visible from President Street (US 80). General Robert E. Lee narrowly escaped death in an incident here in 1862 when a cannon exploded. Several people were killed, and a large piece flew right over the general's head and landed 400 yards away.
Whitemarsh Island Line, an earthwork line with a bastion gun battery, between Fort Bartow (1) and Gibson's Point.
Gibson's Point Battery (aka Eastern Point Battery), east of Riverside, a redoubt with two water batteries. Remnants exist on private property.
Turner's Creek Battery, below Gibson's Point.
Wilmington Battery (1861 - 1862), Wilmington, on the Wilmington River.
Bonaventure Battery, on St. Augustine Creek about halfway between Causten's Bluff Fort and Fort Thunderbolt (2).
Fort Thunderbolt (2), Thunderbolt (previously known as Wassaw). No remains. ¤ National Archives MAP ¤
Turner's Rock Battery, Turners Rock. Still exists on private property.
Battery Daniels (aka Forge Battery), Parkersburg, with several supporting batteries (no remains) on the Herb River and Grimball's Creek. No remains.
Fort Wimberly, on the west-side of Isle of Hope, east of Bethesda. Originally named Fort (or Battery) Lawton (1). Earthwork still exists on grounds of Wormsloe Plantation SHS.
Defensive trenchworks still remain within Skidaway Island State Park.
Burnside Island Battery, near Vernon View facing the Back River.
Fort Beaulieu (8 guns), near the mouth of the Vernon River at the old Beaulieu Church. No remains.(pronounced "byew-lee")
Fort Screven (1) (8 guns), on Green Island at the junction of the Vernon and Little Ogeechee Rivers. Does not appear on some 1864 maps. Earthworks and brick magazines still exist on private property. (info courtesy of Lewis Strickland)
Fort Rose Dew, on Rose Dew (Dhu) Island in the Little Ogeechee River, below Coffee Bluff. Eroding remnants exist on private property.
Coffee Bluff Battery, on the Little Ogeechee River south of Mt. Herman.
Tybee Island Battery (1861), abandoned to the Union in November 1861.
Wassaw Island Battery (1861), abandoned to the Union after Tybee Island was captured.

Confederate land defenses of Savannah (most locations undetermined):
Fort Boggs (14 guns) the anchor of the CSA inner defense line around the present-day downtown area. Remnants (five detached lunettes) located around the now cut-down Brewton Hill at the present-day Savannah Country Club golf course.
Fort Brown (2) (11 guns), at the Hillcrest Abbey Roman Catholic cemetery near Skidaway Road and East Gwinnett Street. Small remnant remains.
See also Eastern Savannah Neighborhood Project
Fort Mercer (9 guns)
Battery Harrison
Fort Hardeman
Fort Augusta (2)
Camp Sam Crump
Camp Defiance
Battery Cheves
Battery Acee
Battery Barnes
Battery Jones (7 guns), state marker on US 17 at Salt Creek near Silk Hope.
Fort James (3), somewhere on the Ogeechee River.
Pine Point Battery
Camp Houston
Fort Rosedon
Fort Moncrief
Capers Battery
Battery McBeth, a CSA gun mounted on a flatbed railcar.
A line of CSA earthworks and batteries was northwest of the city from Garden City to Silk Hope. Many of the above named works may have been located within this western line.
CSA Evacuation of Savannah state marker at Bay and Jefferson Streets.

After the fall of the city in December 1864 to General Sherman, the Union built a line of defenses within the CSA inner line to protect the occupying garrison. Troops were encamped in Forsyth Park, among other areas. The Union had already captured most of the outlying barrier islands in 1862.

Camp Davidson
(1864), Savannah
A stockaded Confederate POW camp located at the old U.S. Marine Hospital on the eastern edge of the city. Built to house Union POWs transferred from camps at Macon and Andersonville as Union cavalry raids advanced through the state. The camp was abandoned after only six weeks (July - August 1864). See also Civil War Prisons in Georgia from the New Georgia Encyclopedia

Camp Onward
(1898 - 1899), Thunderbolt
A Spanish-American War embarkation camp for troops assigned occupation duty in Cuba. Located primarily along East Victory Drive and Shell Road. Originally briefly named Camp Fitzhugh Lee. The hospital camp was located in the Ardsley Park area. See also The Spanish-American War in Georgia from the New Georgia Encyclopedia.

Thunderbolt Fort (1)
(1734), Thunderbolt
A colonial militia fort was built here to protect settlers. It was reported to be in ruins by 1737.

Wormsloe Fort
(Wormsloe Plantation State Historic Site)
(1733 - 1775), Isle of Hope
Tabby ruins of a fortified colonial house. A small wooden blockhouse known as Noble Jones' Fort was originally here in 1733 until replaced with the tabby house in 1741. The tabby house, completed in 1745, was fortified until 1775. The present plantation house was built by Jones' grandson in 1828. Admission fee. See also New Georgia Encyclopedia entry | Another website from NPS (Golden Crescent)

CSA earthworks (Fort Wimberly) are also located on the grounds (see above).

Skidaway Island Fort
(1734 - 1738), Skidaway Island
A settlers' fort was built on the north-east point of the island along the Wilmington River.

Scouts' Fort
(1735), Green Island
A SC colonial militia ranger fort and coastal patrol boat base located at the mouth of the Little Ogeechee River.

Camp at Beaulieu's Plantation
(1779), near Montgomery
The French fleet under Vice Admiral Jean-Baptiste Charles Henri Hector Theodat, Comte d'Estaing, landed 3,500 troops at Beaulieu's Plantation on the Vernon River in September 1779 to begin joint operations with the Southern Continental Army against British-held Savannah. The attack failed, and the French fleet returned to the West Indies in October.

¤ COAST DEFENSES of SAVANNAH (see also Hilton Head, SC)
Harbor Defense of Savannah - FORT WIKI

¤ Fort Pulaski (National Monument)
(1829 - 1880, 1898 - 1903), Cockspur Island
British Fort George (1) (1761 - 1772), an 11-gun 100-square foot palisaded redoubt with a 40-square foot blockhouse, was originally located here. The ruins were dismantled by Patriots in December 1778 to deny its use by the British. Next came American Fort Greene (1) (1794 - 1804), an irregular work with an outer battery, but it was destroyed by a hurricane. The Cockspur Island Lighthouse was first built in 1839, rebuilt in 1854.

Construction of Fort Pulaski was begun in 1829, was named in 1833, and was not completely finished by 1861. Confederates occupied the fort between 1861 and 1862. CSA Long Island Battery was just west of the fort. The Union recapture in April 1862 proved the obsolesence of static forts. The outer walls are pockmarked with many battle scars, testifying to the ferocity of the battle. It was then used by the Union as a POW camp, and later as a Federal prison. Union batteries on Tybee Island used in the seige of Fort Pulaski included: Batteries Totten (four mortars), McClellan (four guns), Sigel (six guns), Scott (four guns), Halleck (two mortars) (still exists), Sherman (three mortars), Burnside (one mortar), Lincoln (three guns), Lyon (three guns), Grant (three mortars), and Stanton (three mortars). Other Union seige batteries included Battery Vulcan on Venus Point, Jones Island; and Battery Hamilton (six guns) across the channel on Bird's Island (marker erected 2004). The demilune was rebuilt in 1873 - 1875 with nine new gun platforms and four magazines. The fort's war damaged walls were repaired, but no other modifications were done. The demilune was rearmed with one M1888 8-inch gun on M1892 barbette carriage, and a mining casemate was added (replacing two platforms), during the Spanish-American War (1898 - 1899). Became a National Monument in 1924, restored by the CCC in 1933. Admission fee. State Marker

Battery Hambright (1899 - 1903 ?) is just outside the fort. It was part of Fort Screven (see listing below). The entire island became a Navy and Coast Guard base during WWII, and was reopened to the public in 1947. Two Navy ammunition bunkers are located west of the Coast Guard Station.

¤ Fort Screven (2)
(1897 - 1944), Tybee Island
The island was first reserved for the military in 1875 but no work was ever done. Construction was started in 1897 for Fort Tybee (2) (or Tybee Barracks) and Camp Graham (1898). Formally named in 1899. The Tybee Island Lighthouse (admission fee) is at the fort, and the Tybee Museum (since 1961) is in Battery Garland (1899 - 1942). The lighthouse was first built in 1773 and rebuilt in 1867. Endicott batteries are Battery Habersham (1900 - 1928), Battery Fenwick (1898 - 1920) built on, Battery Brumby (1898 - 1917) partially built on, Battery Backus (1899 - 1920, originally one emplacement, two more added 1900) built on, and Battery Gantt (1904 - 1920). Battery Hambright (1899 - 1903 ?) was located at Fort Pulaski (see above listing). Another battery was located on Wassaw Island (1899 - 1900) (see below listing). In 1924 the post was transferred from the Coast Artillery to the Infantry. During WWII Army Engineer diving and salvaging units trained here. Several post buildings still exist, most have been modified for private houses in this seaside community. The Tybee Post Theater (built 1930) has been restored for public use. State Marker at the Tybee Museum (Battery Garland).

A blockhouse may have been built here in 1736 by James Oglethorpe. British Fort Tybee (1) was built here in December 1778 soon after Savannah was occupied. It was abandoned shortly before French and Patriot troops took the island in September - October 1779 during the unsuccessful seige of the city. In 1815 Tybee Tower, a Martello tower with an exterior battery, was located near the old lighthouse. No longer used by the Civil War except as a signal station. It was finally destroyed by the Army in 1914. A CSA battery was temporarily located here in 1861 (see above listing). It was abandoned in November 1861 when the Union arrived at Hilton Head, SC. The Union then established Tybee Island Post here.
See also Historic Tybee Island from the Savannah Images Project
Tybee Island History from NPS

TEMPORARY HARBOR DEFENSES of SAVANNAH
A temporary battery of four 155mm guns in revetments (no Panama mounts) was located here on the beach in WWII (1942 - 1944). A joint Army-Navy Harbor Entrance Control Post (HECP) was also located here at Fort Screven.

¤ Wassaw Island Military Reservation
(Wassaw National Wildlife Refuge)
(1861 - 1865, 1898 - 1900), Wassaw Island
The island was originally the location of a CSA battery early in the Civil War. The Union established Wassaw Island Post after capturing Tybee Island.

During the Spanish-American War an unnamed battery was located here on Cape Charlotte. The guns (two 4.7-inch) were removed in 1899 and transferred to Battery Backus at Fort Screven in 1900, and the island was then abandoned. The concrete remnants are now located in the surf zone. Once referred to locally as Fort Morgan, the Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources officially named the site Battery Henry Sims Morgan in 2006. Public day-use visitation allowed, boat access only.

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