Fort Branch (2)

Fort Branch (2) (1862-1865) - A Confederate star shaped earthworks fort first established in 1862, during the U.S. Civil War, in Martin County, North Carolina. Named for Confederate Brigadier General Lawrence O’Brian Branch, who was killed at Sharpsburg, 17 Sep 1862. The fort was abandoned in April 1865 at the war's end. History Fort Branch was located on a 70' bluff at Rainbow Banks on the Roanoke River. The fort was designed to help block Union gunboat access up the Roanoke and to protect a critical railroad trestle . The original fortification was built in February 1862 with an upper battery of three guns and a lower battery of two guns by a Confederate engineer, Captain Richard K. Meade. Part of his original fortification was destroyed by a Union raid but a stronger eleven gun fortification was completed in two months and the guns mounted by 9 Feb 1863. The fort was evacuated on 10 Apr 1865, a day after General Lee surrendered at Appomattox. The magazine was blown up and the remaining ammunition was dumped into the Fort's well and the guns were dumped into the Roanoke River. Current Status Privately owned but open to the public, administered by the Fort Branch Battlefield Commission, Martin County, North Carolina. The site has been restored and eight of the original twelve guns were recovered from the Roanoke River and are on display. Marker located on NC 125 at the intersection of Fort Branch Road (SR 1416). {"selectable":false,"width":"500"} Location: On Fort Branch Road in Martin County, North Carolina. Maps & Images Lat: 35.9295254 Long: -77.1699516 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: .....' Sources: Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 610 Links: North American Forts - Fort Branch (2) Fort Branch Site Civil War Album - Fort Branch Visited: No