Welcome to Fort Huger

Welcome to Fort Huger. Gateway to the Confederate Capital. Fort Huger (pronounced Hu-gee) sits on the James River on a site formerly known by names - Hardy's Bluff, Harden's Bluff and Mother Tynes' Bluff. The overlook and deep navigable channel just offshore made this location a strategic military position for the observation of - and potential engagement with - activity along the river. During the American Civil War, a fort was built here for that purpose., In 1861, Confederate State Engineer Andrew Talcott was assigned the task of surveying and designing potential defenses along the James River to protect against a Union naval assault upon the Confederate capital of Richmond, located 60 miles upriver., This site, named for Confederate General Benjamin Huger, commander of the Department of Norfolk, was selected and designated suitable for gun batteries. Other fortifications along the James River included Fort Boykin, Mulberry Island Point Battery, Jamestown, Fort Powhatan and Drewry's Bluff Battery. In addition, a series of trenches, earthworks and forts extending from Gloucester Point and across the Virginia Peninsula to this side of the James River , all of Confederate Major General John Magruder's defensive line against the Union - effectively blocked the Union's land approach to Richmond and closed the York and James Rivers as supply routes for their armies., Construction here began in 1861 under the command of Captains E.T.D. Myers and John Clarke and closely followed Talcott's plan. To supplement their limited workforce, the Confederacy hired free blacks and slaves to help construct the fort., Fort Huger, like most fortifications erected during the war, was built entirely of earth. Using only mid-nineteenth century hand tools and a few horse-drawn implements, this defensive work took hundreds of men many months to erect. The fort was armed with cannons along the river, and the interior was protected by the land's natural geography, earthworks and a swamp., Various difficulties made construction a challenge. Axes were in short supply, and there were serious conflicts regarding the fort's leadership. In March 1862, General Robert E. Lee wrote a letter to Huger stating his expectations for the facility. However, the fort was not complete when it was called into action in May 1862 against the U.S. James River Blockading Squadron., On May 4, Magruder abandoned his defensive line in the face of the overwhelming Union forces. With the land route to Richmond cleared, the Union focuscd their attention on the Confederate forts blocking the James River., On May 8, the USS Galena, USS Port Royal and USS Aroostook attacked both Fort Huger and Fort Boykin , with the worst of the fire directed at Fort Boykin. The Port Royal and Aroostook fired from the James River channel while the Galena moved in closer with raking shots. Both forts eventually ceased fire as their cannons were not powerful enough to damage the ironclad Galena or to reach the two ships beyond her., The bombardments convinced the Confederates that these forts were untenable, and they were abandoned. US. Marines landed and occupied Forts Boykin and Huger on May 17 and 18 to find most of the guns spiked, the carriages burned and structures within the forts destroyed., The reduction of both forts opened the James River for the Union fleet to head upriver to the strong Confederate position at Drewry's Bluff, just eight miles southeast of Richmond., Fort Huger lay abandoned until efforts were put forth by Isle of Wight County and the community to restore and preserve it in the mid 2000s. It was dedicated to the county's citizens in 2008., 1862 Armaments , Brought via barge from Gosport Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia , One 7-inch army Columbiad, rifled bore , Two 8-inch Columbiads, smoothbore , Three 9-inch Dahlgrens, smoothbore , Six double-fortified navy 32-pounders, smoothbore , Source: Lieutenant John Watters, U.S. Navy, commanding USS Minnesota, May 19, 1863, (captions) , Major General Benjamin Huger (1805-1877) Commander of the Department of Norfolk , Andrew Talcott (1797-1883) Confederate State Engineer , USS Galena , Fort Huger, Hardy's Bluff, 1863 Confederate States of America, Army, Department of Northern Virginia, Chief Engineer's Office Courtesy of the Virginia Historical Society , Fort Huger and Mulberry Point Battery with intermediate soundings, 1863. Confederate States of America, Army, Department of Northern Virginia, Chief Engineer's Office Courtesy of the Library of Congress , Dahlgren shell fired at Fort Huger from USS Galena Collection of Craig Bell , Fort Huger, 2007 Courtesy of the Virginia Historical Society, The Union fleet was stationed at Fort Monroe. After the March 1862 battle between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia, the James River was ceded to the Union. The forts along the James River became the last chance to protect the Confederate capital of Richmond. Sources: Esri Welcome, NAVTEQ, Tom Tom, Intermap, iPC, USGS, FAO, NPS, NRCAN, GeoBase, IGN, Kadas ter NL, Ordnance Survey, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong) and the GIS User Community