Fort Bunker Hill was one of seven temporary earthwork forts part of the Civil War Defenses of Washington, D.C., during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

built in the Northeast quadrant of the city at the beginning of the

by the Union Army to protect the city from the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

. From west to east, the forts were:

Fort Slocum Fort Slocum, New York was a US military post which occupied Davids Island in the western end of Long Island Sound in the city of New Rochelle, New York, from 1867 to 1965. The fort was named for Major General Henry W. Slocum, a Union corps c ...

, Fort Totten, Fort Slemmer, Fort Bunker Hill, Fort Saratoga,

Fort Thayer Fort Thayer was one of seven temporary earthwork forts part of the Civil War Defenses of Washington, D.C., during the Civil War built in the Northeast quadrant of the city at the beginning of the Civil War by the Union Army to protect the city f ...

and Fort Lincoln. Unlike other forts, today very little remains of the structure.

Civil War

The fort was built in the fall of 1861 by soldiers from the

11th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry The 11th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Organized in Boston in May 1861, the 11th Massachusetts Infantry was made up mostly of men from Boston, but also from Charlestown ...

on land owned by Henry Quinn and was named after the

Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Boston, Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peri ...

of 1775 in

Charlestown, Boston Charlestown is the oldest Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. Also called Mishawum by the Massachusett, it is located on a peninsula north of the Charles River, across from downtown Bost ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

.National Park Service - Fort bunker Hill - https://www.nps.gov/places/fort-bunker-hill.htm It was located between Fort Slemmer and Fort Saratoga and was intended to assist in the defense of the northeast approaches to Washington between Fort Totten and Fort Lincoln. Company F of the 11th Vermont Infantry Regiment was assigned to Fort Bunker Hill to assist in the defense of the city until November 17, 1862. Thirteen guns were mounted in the rectangular-shaped fort, which operated until the conclusion of hostilities in 1865. The following armament was assigned to Fort Bunker Hill: * Eight 32-pounder James rifle (

barbette Barbettes are several types of gun emplacement in terrestrial fortifications or on naval ships. In recent naval usage, a barbette is a protective circular armour support for a heavy gun turret. This evolved from earlier forms of gun protection ...

) * One 8-inch siege howitzer * One

Coehorn mortar A Coehorn (also spelled ''cohorn'') is a lightweight mortar originally designed by Dutch military engineer Menno van Coehoorn. Concept and design Van Coehoorn came to prominence during the 1688–1697 Nine Years War, whose tactics have been s ...

* One 10-inch siege mortar M. 1841 * One 4-inch ordnance * Two 30-pounder ParrottsFortWiki - Fort Bunker Hill - http://www.fortwiki.com/Fort_Bunker_HillThe Defenses of Washington during the War - The Evening Star, Thursday, October 9, 1902 The following troops garrisoned at Fort Bunker Hill: *

* Company B, Main Coast Guards * Detachment 2d Company, New Hampshire Heavy Artillery * 150th Ohio National Guard * Battery G, 3rd United States Artillery A supporting field battery stood a few yards to the North.

Post Civil War

The site of the fort is bounded by 14th, Otis, 13th, and Perry Streets NE in Brookland, DC. Today, little remains of the fort, and the site is maintained by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

. A marker by the

commemorates the Fort:

''Fort Bunker Hill'' ''One of the Civil War Defenses of Washington erected in the fall of 1861, Fort Bunker Hill occupied an important position between Fort Totten and Fort Lincoln in the defense of the National Capital. Thirteen guns and mortars were mounted in the fort. '' ''United States Department of the Interior'' ''National Park Service''

A nearby road was named Bunker Hill Road after the fort, but it was later renamed Michigan Avenue. Fortbunker3.jpg, NPS sign of Fort Bunker Hill File:Fortbunker2.jpg, Image of NPS Map at Fort Bunker Hill site in Washington, DC

References

External links

National Park Service Fort Bunker Hill Page
{{authority control Bunker Hill, Fort Bunker Hill, Fort Bunker Hill

Bunker A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. T ...

American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Parks in Washington, D.C. Demolished buildings and structures in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., in the American Civil War Bunker Hill, Fort Bunker Hill, Fort 1861 establishments in Washington, D.C. 1865 disestablishments in Washington, D.C. Brookland (Washington, D.C.)

Civil War

Post Civil War

See also

References

External links