Hilton Head Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Fort Walker
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
1. Fort Walker Marker
Hastily built in 1861 to protect the S.C. coast
against Union attack, Fort Walker, commanded
by Col. William C. Heyward, bore the brunt
of the Union attack on November 7, 1861,
when after 4½ hours, with only 3 guns left
serviceable and ammunition almost gone,
the troops under Gen. Thomas F. Drayton
were forced to withdraw from the island.
Rebuilt by Union forces, it was renamed
Fort Welles.Erected 1961 by Hilton Head Island Historical Society. (Marker Number 7-9.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and Castles • War, US Civil. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1886.
Location. 32° 13.965′ N, 80° 40.629′ W. Marker is on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, in Beaufort County. Marker is on Fort Walker Drive, on the right when traveling north. Between N. Port Royal Drive & Steam Gun Place, at Port Royal Plantation- a Secure Gated Community, Restricted access. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Hilton Head Island SC 29928, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. "Robbers Row" (a few steps from this marker); Hilton Head
this page online
More about this marker. Fort Walker - In 1861, soon after South Carolina seceded from the Union, Fort Walker was established by the Confederate Army near the end of what is now Fort Walker Drive.
Additional commentary.
1. Limited access to markers on Port Royal Plantation
This marker and several others are in Port Royal Plantation, which is a gated community. Access can be gained by way of a weekly tour offered by The Coastal Discovery Museum. Call them at 843-689-6767 or visit the web site at www.coastaldiscovery.org
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 2009
2. Fort Walker Marker with Port Royal Sound in background
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
3. Fort Walker Marker with Interpretive markers along Ft. Walker Drive
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
4. Fort Walker Interpretive Marker
Left- General Thomas F. Drayton,C.S.A .
at Fish Hall Plantation
Right- Commodore Percival Drayton, U.S.N. on the deck of the USS Hartford.
Thomas Fenwick Drayton, Brigadier General, C.S.A., a West Point graduate, and his brother, Commodore Percival Drayton, U.S.N., Captain of the USS Hartford, met at the outbreak of the Cival War, shook hands, and each went the way his conscience directed. On November 7, 1861, the brothers met in combat at the Battle of Port Royal. Commander Percival Drayton, on the Union gun boat Pocahontas, attacked Fort Walker of which General Thomas Drayton was in command.
Right- Commodore Percival Drayton, U.S.N. on the deck of the USS Hartford.
Thomas Fenwick Drayton, Brigadier General, C.S.A., a West Point graduate, and his brother, Commodore Percival Drayton, U.S.N., Captain of the USS Hartford, met at the outbreak of the Cival War, shook hands, and each went the way his conscience directed. On November 7, 1861, the brothers met in combat at the Battle of Port Royal. Commander Percival Drayton, on the Union gun boat Pocahontas, attacked Fort Walker of which General Thomas Drayton was in command.
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
5. additional Fort Walker Interpretive Marker
This pivot gun on the U.S. gunboat, "Pocahontas", was one of those which Captain Percival Drayton, U.S.N., used so effectively in 1861 shelling of Fort Walker, the fort commanded by his brother, General Thomas F. Drayton, C.S.A. The Draytons owned Fish Hall Plantation on Hilton Head Island, only a mile or so from the fort.
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
6. Fort Walker Interpretive Marker
Looking like a picturesque corner of a New England resort, the office of the Chief Commissary os Subsistence and its neighboring Officers Quarters
lined the beach immediately west of the 1200 foot
Port Royal Sound Army pier. This building approximately
one mile northeast from this point on the beach.
The Hilton Head Island Historical Society, `
7. Fort Walker Line of Union ships Port Royal Interpretive Marker
This map shows clearly the elliptical course followed by the line of Union battleships as they shelled first Fort Walker and the Fort Beauregard. Separate dotted line shows course of the "Pocahontas" used by the Union to enfilade Fort Walker from close inshore.
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
8. Fort Walker earthworks remains as seen today
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
9. Fort Walker earthworks
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
10. Fort Walker earthworks
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 6, 2009
11. Fort Walker beach were Union troops landed ashore
Port Royal Sound and site of Fort Beauregard in background
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on February 28, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 9,084 times since then and 533 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on February 28, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 5. submitted on April 16, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 6. submitted on February 28, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 7. submitted on August 30, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 8, 9, 10, 11. submitted on February 28, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.
