Some Day is Here: Fort Monroe, Virginia

main Sallyport of Ft. Monroe

9-24-11 Our friends and us to toured the old Ft. Monroe, Virginia. Never did i expect to be so captured by the history and architecture of this place. THEN the daily paper had a large article about Ft. Monroe's historical impact for the African/American people. this blog is to document these facts about Fort Monroe. So here goes.

Fort Monroe's construction began in 1819 and it has been occupied since 1823. It has very recently been closed. Incidentally, the future Confederate General Robert E. Lee was stationed here from 1831 to 1834 as Lieutenant of Engineers and occupied quarters across the street from the museum. He was second in command of the detachment that was completing the construction of the fort. Known as the Gilbraltar of the Chesapeake, it is the largest stone fort ever built in the United States. It is the nation's only active moat enclosed fort. It's walls stretch 1.3 miles and encloses 63 acres. Ft. Monroe was named in honor of President James Monroe. Some points of interest are:
The Casemate Museum: located in the fort's walls is the cell of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Also, the museum depicts the history of Ft. Monroe and the US Army Coast Artillary Corps.
Chapel of the Centurion- a protestant chapel founded in 1858 by Lt. Julian McAllister in gratitude for his escape from death and named in honor of the Roman Centurion Cornelius, the first gentile converted to Christianity.
Old Point Comfort- lighthouse at the confluence of Hampton Road and Chesapeake Bay.
Main Sallyport or entrance- there is the remains of a big cistern that provided the supply of water
Daily Press article in today's newspaper regarding the impact of the Fort Monroe on the history of the African American population reported:
150 years ago, Fort Monroe commander, Benjamin F. Butler gave three Hampton slaves asylum as "contraband of war". The belief was so widespread in the North that few slaves wanted to leave their masters. Even, the New York Times initially gave Butler's decision no more than a brief, five-line report.
Thousands of fugitive slaves flocked to the fort, eager to press their case for education,political and property rights and religious liberty. By the war's end there were 40,000 in Hampton Roads. Their goals were american goals. they started creating their own schools. the present day Hampton University was constructed in 1863 as the Butler School and housed 250 contraband students. It was later used by the freedmen at Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute. Rapidly, six schools were built. All six of these schools were busy with day and night classes and still could not meet the demand of 10,000 students. They recognized that power came from knowledge and they wanted their voices heard. AMA, Presbyterian and Baptist missionaries founded churches that are still active. Compared to remote life on most plantations, this region was far more closely linked to the world both by maritime trade and the constant stream of outsiders that passed through Fort Monroe.
After the war, there was an evolution of two sprawling contraband communities. "Slabtown" located near Yorktown and "Acretown" in what is now Lackey. A third settlement rose outside Union lines at Gloucester Point. These were no haphazard communities. They were well organized and well built. Nice, neat, tidy neighborhoods of 400-500 cabins.

After we visited the fort, we had a MOD with Pete and Jean at Harpoon Larry's Oyster Bar in Newport News. Great food and great visiting with our friends!!!!

stone wall and moat

front of Casemate Museum

self explanation

Casemate Museum

courtyard

beautiful courtyard

thus Washington Lee University

Mr and Mrs Robert E. Lee

military exhibition

phenomenal stone work

a hall in the old fort
the stone work once again

Command officer's mess kit

Jefferson Davis artifacts

initial cell- a casemate- of Confederate President Jefferson Davis

An American flag hung in the cell of Jefferson Davis
the entire time that he was here

another exhibit regarding Jefferson Davis

This exhibit of family living
next door to the cell!!??

parlor like area

Trumpets
the bottom one was found in the moat
damaged for sure/ the horn sort of peeled back

the bar

Another example of the stone and brick
exterior of the fort

Robert E. Lee quarters

Fort Wool

Chamberlain Hotel
a successor to three previous hotels
this privately owned and operated facility
opened in 1928

Have i shown enough pictures of the
brick and stone work?

Street view of the chaplain's headquarters

Robert E Lee quarters
a better view

Another view of the moat and wall

Seacoast Batteries/ Battery DeRussey
most of these detached batteries were built
between 1891 and 1920 and they housed some
of the most powerful seacoast weapons of their time.
These batteries included Irwin,Parrott,DeRussey,
Church, Anderson and Ruggles