An Unfinished Fort

An Unfinished Fort. . Mounds of earth atop this high bluff are the remains of Confederate Fort Heiman. Its commanding view of the Tennessee River made it ideal to support the low-lying, flood-prone Fort Henry across the river. Confederate Brig. Gen. Lloyd Tilghman, then commanding officer at both Forts Henry and Donelson, ordered it built. Slave labor from Alabama and Mississippi did most of the work. The new fort, named after Col. Aldophus Heiman of the 10th Tennessee Regiment, who commanded the 1,100 troops at the fort and oversaw its construction, was still unfinished when Union Brig. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant launched his offensive in February 1862. On February 4, realizing he probably could not prevent the destruction or capture of Fort Henry, General Tilghman moved the Fort Heiman garrison back to Fort Henry to supplement that fort's defenses. Fort Heiman was subsequently occupied by Union troops from Brig. Gen. C.F. Smith's division and later Col. W.W. Lowe's Fifth Iowa Cavalry., Confederate Troops at Fort Heiman: , January-February 1862 , . 27th Alabama Regiment , . 15th Arkansas Regiment , . Two companies of Alabama cavalry , . Unorganized company of 40 Kentucky cavalrymen , . A section of light artillery under Lt. Peter Stankiewizc, (Image Caption): , Colonel Adolphus Heiman