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Fort Pulaski National MonumentCockspur Lighthouse
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Fort Pulaski National Monument
Fort Facts
  • Fort Pulaski took 18 years to build, from 1829-1847.
  • Around 25,000,000 bricks were used to construct Fort Pulaski.
  • Many of the bricks were locally made in Savannah. Known as "Savannah Gray." Other bricks were shipped in from Maryland and Virginia.
  • Granite and sandstone blocks arrived from New York and Connecticut.
  • The United States government spent nearly $1,000,000 in construction costs.
  • A labor force of skilled workers, both free and slave under the supervision of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built the fort.
  • A young Second Lt. Robert E. Lee was in charge of subsistence and other planning during early construction.
  • Fort Pulaski's moat average seven to eight feet deep.
  • Fort Pulaski's walls tower 22 feet high inside, and 32 feet up from the outside moat.
  • The parade ground inside Fort Pulaski stretches out over two acres.
  • The fort's walls average between five and eleven feet thick of solid brick.
  • Fort Pulaski was claimed by the State of Georgia before the Civil War.
  • After the outbreak of war, Confederate troops occupied Fort Pulaski from January, 1861 to April, 1862.
  • The only battle at Fort Pulaski occurred on April 10th & 11th, 1862 between Union forces on Tybee Island and Confederate troops inside the fort.
  • Union troops occupied Fort Pulaski from April, 1862 until the end of the Civil War.
  • After 1862, Fort Pulaski was used as a military and political prison.
  • Union General David Hunter issued Gen. Order No. 7 freeing area slaves, predating Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation.
  • Fort Pulaski became a destination on the Underground Railroad for slaves searching for freedom.

 

30-Pounder Parrot Rifle  

Did You Know?
By 1860 Fort Pulaski's armament was still not completed and it was not yet garrisoned. As it turned out, before United States troops could occupy the fort, they had to conquer it. Fort Pulaski National Monument, Georgia

Last Updated: November 12, 2006 at 09:42 EST