Fort Defiance (Brooklyn) was one of the forts constructed by General

Nathanael Greene Major general (United States), Major General Nathanael Greene (August 7, 1742 – June 19, 1786) was an American military officer and planter who served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War. He emerge ...

in 1776 to provide for the defense of New York. It was located at what is now Conover and Van Dyke Streets in

Red Hook, Brooklyn Red Hook is a neighborhood in western Brooklyn, New York City, United States, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. It is located on a peninsula projecting into the Upper New York Bay and is bounded by the Gowanus Expressway and the Ca ...

Construction

On August 27, 1776, during the

Battle of Long Island The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was an action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at and near the western edge of Long Island in present-day Brooklyn ...

, five cannons, a series of earthworks and a defensive wall were manned by colonials on an island in New York Bay. It was the westernmost of forts along Brooklyn Heights, defending the Upper New York Bay from incursion by the British navy. Prior to the battle a thousand men worked under General

Israel Putnam Israel Putnam (January 7, 1718 – May 29, 1790), popularly known as "Old Put", was an American military officer and landowner who fought with distinction at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). He als ...

's direction to prepare for the invasion of New York, building the fort during one night in April. General

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

inspected the fort in May, finding it 'exceedingly strong'. The complex consisted of three redoubts on the small island, connected by trenches, with an earthwork on the island's south side to defend against a landing. On 12 July 1776 the first test of the redoubts came when Admiral Howe sent two ships, Phoenix and , to run the American gauntlet by heading up to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The cannons at Fort Defiance fired, as did the cannons at Governor's Island and at Fort George. The ships survived, bombarded the city and went on to blockade the crossings at Tarrytown, N.Y.

H.M.S. Roebuck

Early on the morning of the battle the British fleet, anchored off Staten Island, proceeded up the harbor and encountered stiff north-easterly winds. All were forced to turn back, except for H.M.S. Roebuck. Stalled at

Buttermilk Channel 300px, The Buttermilk Channel, shown in red, in Upper New York Bay Buttermilk Channel is a small tidal strait in Upper New York Bay in New York City, approximately long and wide, separating Governors Island from Brooklyn. The channel is marked ...

, it came under fire from Fort Defiance, and returned same. By midmorning the

Carronade A carronade is a short, smoothbore, cast-iron cannon which was used by the Royal Navy. It was first produced by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, and was used from the last quarter of the 18th century to the mid-19th cen ...

from Roebuck had silenced the

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a Fortification, fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on Earthworks (engineering), earthworks, although some are constructed of ston ...

s, but she had been damaged and retired to anchorage.

Aftermath

The fort was abandoned after the war, the embankments leveled, the dredges filled in the ponds and the

Atlantic Basin The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

was hollowed out to be made into a protected wharf. The Indian path to the fort was named the ''Red Hook Road'' from the fort to Fulton St. By the 1850s, it was becoming the largest port in NYC. Valentino Park has a plaque commemorating Fort Defiance (a stop on the Revolutionary War Heritage Trail) about 2 blocks from its actual location at Conover and Van Dyke Streets. In 1952, a local Brooklyn historian re-located the site of the fort to Dwight and Beard streets, then home of Erie Basin dry dock owned by Todd Shipyards Corporation. In a public ceremony officials from the company installed a bronze plaque on their wall. This location was later proven to be inaccurate - it was likely under water at the time - and it was believed the historian chose the bogus location in order to secure funding for the plaque from the company. The plaque is now lost.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fort Defiance (Brooklyn) Military installations established in 1776 American Revolutionary War forts 1776 establishments in New York (state)

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

Military history of New York City 18th century in Brooklyn