St. Simons Island in Glynn County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
Frederica Northeast Town Bastion
Fort Frederica National Monument
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, March 10, 2016
1. Frederica — Northeast Town Bastion Marker
”There are two bastion towers of two stories each in the hollow of the bastions, defended on the outside with thick earthworks, and capable of lodging great numbers of soldiers.”
London Magazine
October 23, 1747
An earthwork known as a bastion projected from this corner of the town wall. Within the bastion stood a remarkable wooden tower fortified with gunports. A similar tower was built on the opposite side of the town to your right.
A visitor to Frederica in 1745 wrote: "At the N.E. and S.E. angles are erected two strong, covered, pentagonal bastions, capable of containing 100 men each to scour the flanks with small arms, and defended by a number of cannon...."
Archeological investigations in 1957 confirmed the historical records. Although the tower is gone, its corners were found; five posts mark their location today. Musket balls, gun flints, and other military artifacts were recovered. Discovery of more than 100 glass beads indicates that Indians may have traded with soldiers who stood guard duty here.
Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Anthropology & Archaeology • Colonial Era • Forts and Castles. A significant historical year for this entry is 1745.
Location.
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Regionally, this marker is in Georgia’s Coastal Plain, on the Georgia Coast and the Golden Isles, and on the Sea Islands. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Broad Street (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); The World Is My Parish (about 500 feet away); The Defender (about 500 feet away); The Town Wall (about 500 feet away); The Flesh Market (about 500 feet away); Frederica (about 600 feet away); Shoemaker and Soldier (about 600 feet away); Tavernkeepers (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in St. Simons Island.
Also see . . . Fort Frederica History. Three years after founding Georgia in 1733, Gen. James Edward Oglethorpe established Fort Frederica to defend the fledgling colony against Spanish attack from Florida. Designed in the traditional European pattern of the period, the fort included three bastions, a projecting spur battery now washed away, two storehouses, a guardhouse, and a stockade. (Submitted on March 16, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
2. Marker detail: Artists conception of the bastion tower that once stood here.
3. Marker illustration
Soldiers in the bastion tower could have fired at attackers through narrow openings in the heavy timbers. However, no battle was fought here.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, March 10, 2016
4. Frederica — Northeast Town Bastion Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on April 3, 2021. It was originally submitted on March 12, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 271 times since then and 9 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 16, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
