Category:Fort Adams: Difference between revisions
| Line 31: | Line 31: | ||
Magruder and his company departed Fort Adams on 31 Oct 1859 and the fort reverted to caretaking status until the [[U.S. Civil War]]. | Magruder and his company departed Fort Adams on 31 Oct 1859 and the fort reverted to caretaking status until the [[U.S. Civil War]]. | ||
The caretaking detachment was commanded by Ordnance Sergeant [[Mark W. Smith]]. Ordnance Sergeant Smith was a veteran of both the Seminole and [[Mexican | The caretaking detachment was commanded by Ordnance Sergeant [[Mark W. Smith]]. Ordnance Sergeant Smith was a veteran of both the Seminole and [[Mexican War]] and would later serve at [[:Category:Fort Griswold|Fort Griswold]] in Groton Connecticut where he died in 1871. | ||
==U.S. Civil War== | ==U.S. Civil War== | ||
Revision as of 19:48, 3 January 2006
This is a stub article. You are encouraged to add content and remove the stub notation {{Stub}} when you feel it has enough content to qualify as a full article.
Fort Adams (1793-1946) - Fort Adams was built on the site of an early Patriot and French fort from 1780. Rebuilt in 1798 with 17 guns by Major Louis Tousard, it was named for President John Adams and opened on 4 Jul 1799. The first commanding officer of Fort Adams was Capt. John Henry of the 2nd U.S. Regiment of Artillerists and Engineers. From 1 Apr 1802 to Jul 1814 the fort was unmanned.
The War of 1812
The War of 1812 made it necessary to garrison with three companies of Rhode Island militia who were released from duty Feb 1815. After the war the fort was usually garrisoned by a company of regular artillerymen and operated as a subpost of Fort Wolcott until 1821 when the garrison was removed.
Expansion
The current structure was built beginning in 1824 under the supervision of Lt. Andrew Talcott and, starting 22 Feb 1825, Lt. Col. Joseph Totten, it took over 30 years to complete.
Throughout Totten's tenure as superintendent of construction he was assisted by a number of lieutenants in the engineer corps who had recently graduated from West Point. These included John G. Barnard, who commanded the defenses of Washington during the Civil War, George W. Cullum, who would become the superintendent of West Point and Pierre G. T. Beauregard who would become a general in the Confederate Army and commanded the attack on Fort Sumter at the begining of the Civil War.
The Outer Redoubt was built in 1825. The Fort is a massive work with structural walls constructed of local shale and Maine granite. Alexander McGregor, a Scots mason and Newport resident, oversaw the stonework, which is still relatively intact.
Features of Fort Adams that are uncommon or unique in United States military architecture include galleries under the ditches, counterscarp galleries, underground listening galleries tunneled under the glacis, and extensive outer defenses including the redoubt and tenailles, massive earth-filled, masonry cribs designed to protect the outer face of the fort's crown work from battering by a besieger's artillery.
Fort Adams was mostly complete by 25 Aug 1841 when it was garrisoned by two companies (F and I) of the 2nd U.S. Artillery Regiment. The Fort was placed under the command of Major Matthew M. Payne.
Mexican War
In April of 1847 Fort Adams was designated a "rendezvous and recieving depot for all troops raised in the Eastern States". In realitity the fort was used in this capacity only by the 9th U.S. Infantry Regiment, commanded by Colonel Truman B. Ransom of Vermont. The regiment shipped out for Mexico between May 21st and 28th. The regiment saw action at the battle of Chapultepec, where Colonel Ransom was killed on September 13th. On May 19th, 1847 Brigadier General Franklin Pierce stopped briefly at Fort Adams on his way to Mexico. Pierce departed Fort Adams on the 28th, along with the last detachment of the 9th U.S. Infantry, and served with distinction in Mexico. He was elected president of the United States in 1852 and served from 1853 until 1857.
Construction of the fort continued during this period. The most significant improvement was the completion of the redoubt about 1/4 mile south of the main fort. The constuction of the redoubt was mostly completed under the supervision of 1st Lt. Isaac Ingalls Stevens who would rise to the rank of Brigadier General in the Civil War and be killed in the battle of Chantilly, Virginia. His son, Hazard Stevens, who was born during his father's posting to Newport, would earn the Medal of Honor and be breveted to Brigadier General. The redoubt qualifies as a fort in its own right and has a number of sophiticated features including an outer ditch, and inner ditch, reverse fire galleries, inteconnceting tunnels and an unique dual spiral granite staircase.
The fort was manned continously until October 1853 when it was placed in caretaking status until 1857. In 1857 the fort was garrisoned by Company I of the 1st U.S. Artillery under the command of Capt. (Bvt. Lt. Col.) John B. Magruder. On 11 Sep 1859 Magruder was host to Maj. Gen. John E. Wool, commander of the Army's Department of the East, and former President Millard Fillmore when they inspected Fort Adams.
Magruder and his company departed Fort Adams on 31 Oct 1859 and the fort reverted to caretaking status until the U.S. Civil War. The caretaking detachment was commanded by Ordnance Sergeant Mark W. Smith. Ordnance Sergeant Smith was a veteran of both the Seminole and Mexican War and would later serve at Fort Griswold in Groton Connecticut where he died in 1871.
U.S. Civil War
During the U.S. Civil War Fort Adams was rearmed, with new Rodman guns, 10-inch pieces in the casemates and 15-inch guns in open batteries atop the southwest bastion of the crown work. Later, the army constructed permanent batteries for 10- and 15-inch Rodman guns on the island.
On 11 Jan 1861 Lieutenant Edson and six ordnance men from Watertown Arsenal arrived to activate the Fort. On 9 May 1861 the frigate U.S.S. Constitution ("Old Ironsides") arrived under tow with about 70 midshipmen of the U.S. Naval Academy on board. The academy was moved from Annapolis, Maryland for fear of Maryland being invaded by the Confederates. This arrangement lasted until 21 Sep 1861 when the academy was moved to Newport.
From Oct 1862 until the end of the war, Fort Adams served as the headquarters of the 15th U.S. Infantry Regiment of the Regular Army, under the command of Colonel Oliver L. Shepherd. Fort Adams was used pimarily as a recruit depot.
From Oct 1862 to May 1863 the fort was commanded by Lt. Col. John P. Sanderson of the 15th U.S. Infantry. He was succeeded by Col. Oliver L. Shepherd. Colonel Shepherd's command was interupted by the brief tenure of Brigadier General Robert Anderson in 1863.
From Aug 19th to Oct 26th of 1863 Fort Adams was under the command of Brigadier General Robert Anderson. Anderson was a living legend for his stand at Fort Sumter at the beginning of the war but was in poor health, atributed to the stress he suffered as a result of surrendering Fort Sumter, which prevented him from active service at the front. Anderson was assigned to Fort Adams in hopes that by being in a pleasant and healthy environment he would recover from his ailments. In late October Anderson retired from the Army at his own request. He died in Nice, France in 1871. He is buried in the West Point Cemetery.
Eddicott Era
Endicott Era The high ground at Fort Adams adjacent to the redoubt provided room for four gun batteries, including Battery Reilly with two 10-inch disappearing guns. Two batteries of 12-inch mortars were also located at Fort Adams.
Endicott era batteries on the west side include
- Battery Belton (1907-1925)
- Battery Bankhead (1907-1913)
- Battery Reilly (1899-1917)
- Battery Talbot (1899-1917)
- Battery Edgerton (1898-1943)
- Battery Greene (1898-1943), which was renamed Battery Gilmore in 1940
- Unnamed battery from 1898 near Battery Bankhead
- Mobile 90mm guns were also here in WWII.
Location: Maps & Images
Lat: 41.48106 Long: -71.33555
Links:
Publications:
Visited: No