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| ALBUM of 1862 ETCHINGS and DRAWINGS |
During
the 18th and 19th centuries the area around Beaufort and Beaufort Inlet
was highly vulnerable to attack. The construction of Fort Dobbs was
begun in 1756 during the French and Indian War, but when the war ended
the fort was never completed. Early in the 1800s a small masonry fort
was built that guarded the inlet during the War of 1812. Shoreline
erosion and a hurricane had swept Fort Hampton into Beaufort Inlet by
1825.
The
War of 1812 demonstrated the weakness of existing coastal defenses. The
United States government began construction on an improved chain of
coastal fortifications. This undertaking involved the construction of
thirty-eight new, permanent coastal forts known as the Third System. As
part of this system, pentagon-shaped 26-casemate Fort Macon, with a
ditch separating its covertway and inner citadel, was designed by
Brigadier General Simon Bernard and built by the U. S. Army Corps of
Engineers. The fort was named for native North Carolinian Nathaniel
Macon (1758–1837), who served in the Revolutionary War and as Speaker of
the United States House of Representatives, until he returned to his
home state and served in the state senate. Construction began in 1826.
Using brick made in the area and masons from Beaufort and other parts of
the country, the US Army Corps of Engineers completed the fort in
December, 1834. Total cost of the fort was $463,790.
The
War of 1812 demonstrated the weakness of existing coastal defenses. The
United States government began construction on an improved chain of
coastal fortifications. This undertaking involved the construction of
thirty-eight new, permanent coastal forts known as the Third System. As
part of this system, pentagon-shaped 26-casemate Fort Macon, with a
ditch separating its covertway and inner citadel, was designed by
Brigadier General Simon Bernard and built by the U. S. Army Corps of
Engineers. The fort was named for native North Carolinian Nathaniel
Macon (1758–1837), who served in the Revolutionary War and as Speaker of
the United States House of Representatives, until he returned to his
home state and served in the state senate. Construction began in 1826.
Using brick made in the area and masons from Beaufort and other parts of
the country, the US Army Corps of Engineers completed the fort in
December, 1834. Total cost of the fort was $463,790.
Fort Macon ALBUM of 1862 Drawings and Etchings
