Battery Rodgers

Battery Rodgers (1863-1867) - A Union U.S. Civil War Battery first established in 1863 in present day Alexandria City, Virginia. Named Battery Rodgers after Navy Captain George W. Rodgers, who was killed at Charleston Harbor 17 Aug 1863. Abandoned in 1867.

Battery Rodgers 15" Rodman in Background, 8" Parrott Gun in Foreground	Battery Rodgers Magazine
15" Rodman Gun at Fort Foote Perhaps the Original Gun From Battery Rodgers

History of Battery Rodgers

Battery Rodgers was also one of 33 forts on the Virginia side of the Potomac River that made up an outer defense line for Washington DC known as the Arlington Line.

Battery Rodgers 15" Rodman Gun

Battery Rodgers Interior

Established in August 1863 as a water defense on the Potomac River at Alexandria City. The battery was built on a bluff at Jones Point at the south end of Alexandria with a clear view of the Potomac River. The battery had a perimeter of 330 yards and emplacements for six seacoast guns. Armament included five 200 pounder Parrott rifles and one 15" Rodman gun.

This was a large battery with a face of 30 yards and flanking side curtains of about 25 yards. Supporting the large seacoast guns were two magazines and two bombproofs. Other buildings included two barracks, a hospital, a prison and a slaughterhouse.

Battery Rodgers was complemented on the other side of the river in Maryland by Fort Foote which was similarly but more heavily armed. Fort Foote had two 15" Rodman guns emplaced by the end of the war. One of the original Fort Foote 15" Rodmans remains in place today along with a second 15" Rodman that was originally at at Battery Rodgers.

The fort was abandoned in 1867, well after the end of the war.

Fort Casey (1) Partial Commanders List (edit list)

Assumed	Relieved	Rank	Name	Cullum	Notes
1899-09-08	1901-01-16	‘2d Lt.	Putnam, Alfred B.	3875
1901-01-16	1901-03-26	‘1st Lt.	Kessler, P. M.	N/A
1901-03-26	1901-05-15	‘2d Lt.	Pratt, Raymond B.	N/A
1901-05-15	1901-11-06	‘1st Lt.	Kessler, P. M.	N/A
1901-11-06	1902-07-19	‘2d Lt.	Kerrick, Harrison S.	N/A
1902-07-19	1902-08-18	‘Capt.	Tracy, Joseph P.	N/A
1902-08-18	1902-09-22	‘Capt.	Lewis, Isaac N.	3031	Cullum's Register has him remaining in command until October 1903.
1902-09-22	1902-11-22	‘Maj.	Williams, John R.	2593
1902-11-22	1903-10-08	‘Capt.	Lewis, Isaac N.	3031
1903-10-08	1905-12-20	‘Maj.	Walker, Leverett H.	2385	Cullum's Register gives the dates of his command as Oct. 3, 1903 to Apr. 2, 1906 but noting that he was "on leave in Japan Dec. 14, 1905 to April 2, 1906".
1903-10-12	1904-01	Capt.	Alexander, Walter Stone	2766	Dates of command are from Cullum's Register but directly contradict the dates of the preceding, also from the Register. The brief command was probably during a leave of the preceding.
1905-12-20	1906-08-01	‘Maj.	Barney, George F.	2940
1906-08-01	1906-10-26	‘Capt.	Hancock, William F.	2972
1906-10-05	1907-04	‘Capt.	Scott, Guy T.	N/A
1907-04	1907-06-15	‘Lt. Col.	Niles, Lotus	2554	Cullum's Register has him assuming command on Feb. 12, 1907.
1907-06-15	1907-08-02	‘Capt.	Gilbert, Bertram C.	N/A
1907-08-02	1909-11-18	‘Maj.	Hayden, John L.	3243
1909-11-18	1910-01-16	‘Capt.	Geary, John T.	N/A
1910-01-16	1910-02-03	‘Capt.	Brown, Hugh S.	N/A
1910-02-03	1910-03-30	‘Capt.	Geary, John T.	N/A
1910-03-31	1911-10-19	Maj.	Stevens, Gustave W. S.	3131	Promoted Lieut.‑Colonel Feb. 19, 1906
1911-10-1	1914-06-18	Maj.	Hayden, John L.	3243	Promoted Lieut.‑Colonel Oct. 5, 1911
1915-04-11	1916-07-12	•Lt. Col.	Hayden, John L.	3243
Dates are formatted in yyyy-mm-dd to sort correctly. The Cullum Number is the graduation order from the United States Military Academy by year and class rank and links to a page for the officer on the website version of the Cullum Register. Listings without a Cullum Number indicate that the person was not a graduate of the United States Military Academy.

Current Status

No remains, three markers at Jones Point in Alexandria City, Virginia. the actual Battery Rodgers 15" Rodman gun is located across the river at Fort Foote in Maryland.

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Location: Jones Point, Alexandria City, Virginia. Map point is approximate. Maps & Images Lat: 38.79524 Long: -77.04141 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 28'

See Also:

• Arlington Line - U.S. Civil War
• Washington DC Fort Ring
• Washington DC Defense System - U.S. Civil War

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 823.

Links:

• North American Forts - Battery Rodgers
• Wikipedia - Battery Rodgers
• HMDB - Battery Rodgers
• HMDB - The Civil War and Battery Rodgers
• HMDB - Guarding the Potomac

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