Mount Vernon Arsenal (2)

Mount Vernon Arsenal (2) (1828-1894) - A U.S. Army arsenal established in 1828 in Mobile County, Alabama. Captured by Confederate forces in 1861 and held by them until the end of the U.S. Civil War. Returned as a U.S Arsenal after the war. Designated Mount Vernon Barracks in 1873. Abandoned in 1894 and deeded to the State of Alabama in 1895.

Mount Vernon Arsenal (2) History

The arsenal was authorized by congress in 1824, completed in 1828 and formally designated on 1 Jan 1829 as Mount Vernon Arsenal. The primary function of the arsenal in the early years was the assembly of guns manufactured elsewhere and the manufacture of ammunition.

The arsenal was seized by Alabama troops 4 Jan 1861 on orders from the Alabama governor. The arsenal commander, Captain Jesse l. Reno, surrendered the garrison without incident and the Alabama troops took it over. The arsenal later became a Confederate arsenal until the end of the war. After the fall of New Orleans in 1862 many of the arsenal functions were moved and equipment were moved to the Selma Arsenal because it was further away from Union forces. The arsenal was returned to the Federal government at the end of the war in 1865.

The arsenal was designated as Mount Vernon Barracks on 25 Jul 1873. The barracks was used at times as a prison for captured Apache Indians between 1887 and 1894.

Mount Vernon Arsenal was abandoned in December 1894 and deeded to the State of Alabama in 1895.

Current Status

Mount Vernon, Mobile County, Alabama

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Location: Mount Vernon, Mobile County, Alabama.

Maps & Images

Lat: 31.087778 Long: -88.028611

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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 12

Links:

North American Forts - Mount Vernon Arsenal (2)

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