Seven Things You Didn't Know About New York's Central Park-- Part 2: Fort Clinton and the Cannon

3.  The cannon at the War of 1812's Fort Clinton actually came from an American Revolution British ship.

Fort Clinton has views of Harlem Meer and the city's east side and served as a strategic overlook in the War of 1812.  It was named after the city's mayor at the time, DeWitt Clinton.  The fortification and its original remains were retained during the construction of Central Park.

A historic cannon and mortar can be found at the top that actually predate the War of 1812.  They came from the HMS Hussar, a British ship from the American Revolution that sank in the East River in 1778, and were later donated anonymously to the park in 1865.

This Revolutionary War cannon was placed in various sites around the park until placed at Fort Clinton in 1905.  When the staff of the Conservancy  cleaned the cannon in 2013, they found it was still loaded with cannonball and powder, all of which have since been removed.

I have already written about this.  Click on the Fort Clinton label below.

No Big Bangs Here.  --Brock-Perry

Castle Clinton in New York City

From Wikipedia.

After some initial confusion between Fort Clinton and Castle Clinton, I figured out which was which.  Fort Clinton was part of New York defenses built quickly in 1814 to defend against an expected British attack.  Castle Clinton, so called because of its appearance, was also a Fort Clinton at one time and also called West Battery.

It was built on a small artificial island at the south end of Manhattan Island which has since been filled in with land fill.  It is located about two blocks from where the Dutch built Fort Amsterdam in 1626.

It was built between 1808 and 1811, designed in part by Jonathan Williams, and was to complement the three-tiered Castle Williams on Governor's Island for the city's protection.  Castle Williams was called East Battery.

Today, Castle Clinton is used as a departure point for visitors going to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

--Brock-Perry

Central Park's Fort Clinton-- Part 3:

Fort Clinton was named for the city's mayor, DeWitt Clinton.  The site had previously been used by British Hessian troops during the occupation of New York City 1776-1783.

From the Central Park web site.

In the 1860s, designers of Central Park recognized the scenic and historic value of Fort Clinton and returned the location to its original topography and the remains of the fort.  By 1900, the remains had eroded and the site was turned into a scenic overlook with rustic fencing, benches and flag pole.

The Central Park Conservancy rebuilt Fort Clinton in 2014 for the War of 1812 bicentennial.  Two cannons were also reinstalled.

--Brock-Perry

Central Park's Fort Clinton-- Part 2: A Tale of Two Clintons, a Castle and a Fort

Last night, I was talking with my friend Kevin, who grew up in Brooklyn, at the American Legion and told him I was writing about McGowan's Pass, Fort Fish, Nutter's Battery and Fort Clinton.  He said he knew all of these places on Manhattan.  But he referred to Fort Clinton as the "Castle."

I didn't know about the Fort Clinton in Central Park being anything like a castle since it was built very quickly.

When I did the search for Fort Clinton this morning, I found out why it was the castle.

It turns out that Manhattan has two fortresses known as Clinton.  The one Kevin was referring to is now called Castle Clinton and is at the south end of the island.  Both of them were named for mayor DeWitt Clinton, though.

So, this is so you won't get confused about the two Fort Clintons.

--Brock-Perry

Election Day, 1812: 200 Years Ago

I was unable to find the exact day of the 1812 presidential election, but will write about it today since it is vote day.

And the election was kind of mean back in 1812 as it is today.  And, there was also this war going on.

It was the incumbent Democratic-Republican President James Madison and VP Elbridge Gerry (he of gerrymandering fame) against the dissident Democratic-Republicans backing DeWitt Clinton, the nephew of Madison's vice president, and his VP candidate Jared Ingersol.

The Federalists generally supported Clinton.

Big campaign issues were the French and the British impressment.  American expansionists wanted to take over British Canada and Florida.

It was close, like today's election, with Madison getting 50.4% of the popular vote with 140,431 and 128 electoral votes to Clinton's 89.  The states of: Louisiana, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Vermont voted for him.

DeWitt Clinton got 47.6% popular with 132,781 votes and 89 electoral votes, mostly in the New England and Mid-Atlantic states:  New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Of course, the New England states threatened to secede from the United States over the War of 1812, and by-an-large, didn't support it.  Of course, these same states did not believe the Southern states had the right to secede in later years.

Another Tight Election.  --Brock-Perry