West Branch Tower

West Branch Tower (1846-1870) - A Martello tower defense established in 1846 on Fort Henry in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Abandoned as a fortification circa 1870.


Fort Henry West Branch Tower

West Branch Tower History

Built as one of six Martello towers between 1846-1848 in Kingston Harbor during the height of the boundary dispute with the United States known as the "Oregon Crisis". The six towers are listed below:

The six Martello towers were (West to East):

Murney Tower at the western edge of Kingston
Shoal Tower in Kingston Harbor
Fort Frederick Tower at Fort Frederick
West Branch Tower at Fort Henry
East Branch Tower at Fort Henry
Cathcart Tower on Cedar Island

This tower was built at the end of the west branch of the Fort Henry ditch to defend the ditch and the surrounding waters. The tower was designed to mount a single 24-pounder cannon on the top platform of the tower. After 1863 the tower was used as family housing for fort enlisted men.

The advent of rifled cannon during the U.S. Civil War made the masonry Martello towers obsolete and ineffective as defensive structures. The towers continued in use as barracks and for other support functions until the departure of British troops in 1870 after Canadian Confederation.

Current Status

No public access. On Fort Henry, Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Visible from the fort.

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Location: On Fort Henry, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

Maps & Images

Lat: 44.231551 Long: -76.462162

Multi Maps from ACME
Maps from Bing
Maps from Google
Elevation: .....'

Sources:

Links:

North American Forts - Kingston Harbor

Visited: 29 Jul 2012