Fort Wool in the Chesapeake Bay-- Part 2: Birds vs. History?

Tourists arrive at Fort Wool on the  Miss Hampton II. a tour boat sailing out of Hampton.  Those traveling the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel can see Fort Wool, lying to the east, on man-made South Island.

Construction started on the fort in 1819, and during the next 125 years, Fort Wool evolved as military technology advanced, resulting in a  rare fort that contains military architecture that spans the entire era of United States seacoast defense.

Notable are the remaining granite casemates dating to 1826, though most of the fort's defenses date from the early 20th century, including the World War II Battery 229 which included two 6-inch shielded guns and its iconic  steel tower.

While fully  recognizing the need for nesting sites for migratory seabirds and completing the tunnel-bridge expansions, these solutions need not and should not come at the expense of the permanent loss of a historic treasure.

The site, in the middle of Hampton Roads, near the  1862 USS Monitor-CSS Virginia battle, offers dramatic views of the Chesapeake Bay and Fort Monroe.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Wool in the Chesapeake Bay Seems to Be Going to the Birds-- Part 1

From the November 13, 2020, Bay Journal "Fort Wool, nesting  seabirds both need  saving" by Terry McGovern.

Recently, efforts have been made to turn Fort Wool into a habitat for nesting seabirds.   But, Fort Wool is also a historic site and saw use during the Civil War and other wars, including World War II.  

It was built on an island of granite blocks after the War of 1812, partially in response to the British attack on Washington, D.C.  It and the completion of nearby Fort Monroe allowed American cannons to control access to Hampton Roads.

It also served a s a summer residence for two U.S. presidents:  Andrew Jackson and John Tyler and it was an initial sanctuary  for enslaved blacks escaping to freedom under the protection of the Union Army.  Guns from Fort Wool fired on the Confederate ironclad CSS Virginia in the Battle of Hampton Roads in March 1862.

Union president Abraham Lincoln observed the first Union attempt to take Norfolk, Virginia, from the fort's ramparts in May 1862.

Until recently, the fort was visited by thousands of people a year and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

--Brock-Perry

USS Constellation Goes for Reconstruction-- Part 2

In the War of 1812, the Constellation sailed from Washington, D.C. to Hampton Roads, Virginia, and immediately was blockaded by the British at Norfolk.

The current USS Constellation was built in 1854, using a small amount of material from the original ship which had been disassembled in 1853.

The ship has been patched and rebuilt several times, so definitely is not the original ship.

--Brock-Perry

Charles Chocteau Gratiot-- Part 2: Builder of Forts

During the War of 1812, Gratiot served as General William Henry Harrison's chief of engineers.and distinguished himself in the construction of Fort Meigs in 1813.  He also rebuilt Fort St. Joseph, later named Fort Gratiot in his honor.  In 1814, he took part in the attack on Mackinac Island where he received the Thanks of Congress.

From 1817 to 1818, he was chief engineer of the Michigan Territory and superintending engineer 1819-1828 in the building of the defenses of Hampton Roads, Virginia.

On May 24, 1828, he was appointed colonel of engineers and brevetted to brigadier general.For the next ten years, he was chief administrator on river, harbor fortifications and road construction in the United States.

--Brock-Perry

Battle Off Newport News Point-- Part 2

The American gunboats were shoal draft coastal ships (so they could go in shallow water) about 65-feet long and mounted 2-3 guns.  The use of oars enabled them to maneuver even in calm winds.  When Thomas Jefferson started to go with these ships to do the Navy's fighting, he started mothballing our super frigates.

Even so, Jefferson's gunboats were called "Bulldogs" and were poorly regarded.  Even militia refused to serve on them.  Many of the USS Constellation's men were reassigned to the gunboats after that frigate was bottled up behind the guns of Fort Norfolk and Fort Nelson by the British.

On June 18,  1813, the commandant of Gosport Navy Yard, John Cassin,  ordered 15 gunboats to go out past Craney Island where they drove off a flotilla of British attack barges that threatened two American sloops and a schooner.

--Brock-Perry

Battle Off Newport News Point-- Part 1

From the June 19, 2013, Hampton Roads (Va.) Daily Press "War of 1812: Gunboats attack off Newport News Point" by Mark St. John Erickson.

Just one British ship of the line with 74 guns in Chesapeake Bay and even that had more firepower than all the American batteries defending the Elizabeth River.  At peak strength, the British had nearly a dozen of these ships as well as frigates, sloops and smaller ships.  Altogether there were nearly 100 British warships for the Americans to fight.

The small American fleet had 20 gunboats and the 38-gun frigate USS Constellation.

The frigate HMS Junon, 38 guns, ran aground and, seeing a target of opportunity, 15 gunboats left the James River on the night of June 19, 1813, using oars.

The small gunboats were ordered by President Thomas Jefferson and modeled after the small North African gunboats that had captured the frigate USS Philadelphia off Tripoli in 1803.

--Brock-Perry

War Comes to Hampton Roads-- Part 2

For two years, the British raided the James River as far as Lawnes Creek and Jamestown. They raided Warwick County and attacked Norfolk. They burned and plundered Hampton. They also attacked all over the Chesapeake Bay, including Maryland and Baltimore. //// This blockade was intended to blunt the American invasion of Canada. //// The frigate USS Constellation, Captain Charles Stewart, sailed out and had to flee two ships of the line, three frigates, a brig and a schooner. Tide and the wind turned against him, but he was able to get his ship to safety by kedging for hours and get under the protective guns of Fort Norfolk. //// --Brock-Perry

War Comes to Hampton Roads-- Part 1

From the february 10, 2013, Hamton Roads (Va.) Daily Press "War Comes to Hampton Roads" by Mark St. John Erickson. //// There was a British warship at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay on February 4, 1813. Just one British 74-gun ship-of-the-line mounted more cannons than all the ones the Americans had to defend the Elizabeth River and Norfolk. //// That one ship was joined by more and more British warships who anchored between Lynnhaven Bay and Old Point Comfort. //// It didn't long for conflict to begin. On February 8, 1813, the U.S. six-gun schooner Lottery, out of Baltimore, was attacked by the British. A two-hour battle began the "campaign of fire, plunder and fear that would terrorize Tidewater and the bay for two years." //// --Brock-Perry