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Fort
Wool, strategically located at
the mouth of Hampton Roads Harbor
directly across from Fort Monroe, is
the only moat-enclosed active duty
military installation in the
country. This is one historic site
where getting there is definitely
part of the fun, as the fort is
accessible only by boat. Pleasure
boats may moor at the Fort.
The
65-foot Miss Hampton II is
moored at the picturesque Hampton
Harbor right beside the visitor
center, where tickets are
purchased. The 2 ½ to 3-hour cruise
includes (weather permitting) a tour
of Fort Wool. It sails out on the
Hampton River, past Blackbeard’s
Point, where legend claims the
pirate’s head was displayed on a
post after his violent death in
November 1718, off Ocracoke Island,
North Carolina. Ocracoke legend
claims that after the decapitation
Blackbeard’s body swam around his
adversary’s boat seven times looking
for its head.
The
cruise takes passengers along the
coast of Old Point Comfort, named by
Capt. John Smith because of the
“great comfort” it brought his crew
to discover a safe navigable channel
for the passage of their ships. The
point was the site of one of the
earliest forts in America, built in
1609.
It was
decided that companion forts would
be built to guard the entrance to
Hampton Roads. The War of 1812 and
the British burning of the White
House in Washington reinforced the
idea that fortifications were needed
to protect the East Coast and Gulf
Coast. A panel in 1818 suggested
building 26 forts from Maine to
Florida and along the Gulf. Among
them was a fort across from Point
Comfort, to create crossfire to
guard this significant harbor.
In 1819
construction was begun on Fort
Monroe and Fort Wool. Lieut. Robert
E. Lee, an Army engineer, was
involved in supervising construction
of both forts. Fort Monroe,
completed in 1834, was the largest
stone fort ever built in the United
States. Before beginning work on
Fort Wool an island had to be
created on which to build. Workers
needed to haul 40,000 to 50,000
perch (a cubic measure for stone) of
stone to the mouth of the harbor
before they could begin building
Fort Wool. Stones were brought in
from river beds and quarries.
Cranes and rails were used to dump
the stone into the water to create
an island. Between 1819 to 1823,
the workers managed to raise the
island six feet above high water
and construction work began. The
plan for Fort Wool consisted of
three tiers of casemates and a
barbette tier ( 4 tiers designed to
mount 232 guns). About half of the
second casemate as well as one tier
and a part of the second tier was
completed before work stopped in
1830. The island was sinking at a
rate of eight inches a year.
Originally the fort was named Fort
Calhoun (although informally it was
called Castle Calhoun) after the
Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun.
Although incomplete, President
Andrew Jackson was so taken with the
island’s seclusion, he brought
family and friends to the fort for a
summer getaway in 1829, 1831, 1833
and 1835. Guests were housed in the
officers’ quarters. Jackson
entertained dignitaries here
including the Prussian Ambassador.
In 1842, President John Tyler
sought the seclusion of the island
to mourn the death of his wife.
Thousands of pounds of additional
stones were added to the island and
work resumed on the casemates in
1858. The onset of the Civil War
halted construction. The
fortification remained in Union
hands throughout the conflict. The
fort finally got 10 cannons in 1861,
a small part of the 232 planned for
the completed facility. The Union
troops at Fort Wool fired on the
Georgia battery occupying Sewell’s
Point across the harbor in June
1861. The shots landed past the
southerners’ position, but it was
clear that the cannon would reach
across the water. The following
March, two new-fangled ships, the
ironclads Monitor and
Merrimack, met in Hampton Roads
Harbor.
The
Monitor was launched from a
New York City shipyard on January
30, 1862. Six weeks later, on March
9, it encountered the CSS
Virginia, formerly the USS
Merrimack. The Union had
scuttled their wooden steam frigate
to prevent it falling into
Confederate hands, but the South was
able to salvage the vessel and
convert her into an ironclad. For
four hours the ironclads lobbed
cannon balls at each other’s hulls
at point-blank range. When a
Confederate shell exploded in the
sight-hole of the Monitor, it
temporarily blinded Capt. John
Worden. The Monitor withdrew
and so the South claimed victory.
Neither side was a clear victor;
the only decisive winner was the
metal ship.
Lincoln visited Fort Wool in 1862.
From this vantage point he
supervised the unsuccessful invasion
of Norfolk. (Later, Gen. Wool
successfully captured Norfolk and
Portsmouth but Lincoln was not on
hand.) Secretary of War Stanton
ordered Fort Calhoun’s name changed
in order to honor Wool, rather than
a southern secessionist.
In the
early 1900s, the fort entered a new
phase of construction. The walls
were torn down and replaced with
concrete fortifications to defend
against new weapons. Eight of the
casemates remained and the outside
stone wall was incorporated into the
new concrete structure. Six 3" rapid
fire guns and six 6" disappearing
guns were added. A third stage of
construction took place in World War
II, when battery No. 229 was added.
On December 7, 1941 troops
reoccupied the island but the fort
never came under fire and the men
never saw combat. Park rangers
provide guided tours to all
visitors, beginning with the
pre-Civil War section of the fort,
then moving through the World War II
portion .
While
aboard the Miss Hampton II
you’ll be able to see the behemoths
of modern warfare when you cruise
past Norfolk Naval Base’s two-mile
waterfront. This is the world’s
largest naval installation (see
selection). Onboard narrators will
provide information on the aircraft
carriers, guided missile cruisers,
destroyers and nuclear powered
submarines that you will see moored
at the base.
Cruises are given aboard the Miss
Hampton II . Reservations are
recommended, so be sure and call
ahead at (757) 733-9102 or
1-888-757-BOAT. Go to
www.misshamptoncruises.com for
additional information and discount
tickets..
Directions: From I-64 take
Exit 267, Hampton University and
follow Routes 60/143 west-bound to
old downtown Hampton. The
excursion boat to Fort Wool departs
from Hampton’s main dock near the
visitor center. There is a parking
garage at the dock.
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