Fort Pulaski National Monument

Fort Pulaski National Monument
Company type	National monument
Industry	Historic preservation, tourism
Founded	1924
Headquarters	Cockspur Island, Georgia, United States
Area served	Cockspur Island and McQueens Island, Georgia
Products	Historic site, museum
Owner	National Park Service
Website	www.nps.gov/fopu/index.htm

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Fort Pulaski National Monument, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 7 August 2025

Fort Pulaski National Monument is situated on Cockspur Island, positioned between Savannah and Tybee Island in the state of Georgia. It safeguards Fort Pulaski, notable for the Union Army's 1862 effective use of rifled cannons, a technological advancement that made traditional brick fortifications obsolete. Additionally, the fort functioned as a prisoner-of-war camp during its operational history.

The National Monument encompasses nearly all of Cockspur Island, which contains the fort, along with the entirety of nearby McQueens Island.

Construction

In the aftermath of the War of 1812, President James Madison launched a comprehensive coastal defense initiative aimed at shielding the United States from overseas threats. The construction of a fort to secure Savannah's harbor commenced in 1829, initially overseen by Major General Babcock and subsequently by Second Lieutenant Robert E. Lee, a recent graduate from West Point. The chosen site was Cockspur Island, located at the entrance to the Savannah River. In 1833, the fort received its name in honor of Casimir Pulaski, a Polish military leader who served under George Washington during the American Revolution and was instrumental in training soldiers and leading sieges at Charleston and Savannah.

Fort Pulaski was incorporated into the Third System of coastal defenses, recognized for their advanced structural strength. Nearly 30 such forts constructed after 1816 remain along the Atlantic and Gulf Coastlines.

The fort’s foundation relied on wooden pilings driven deep into the mud—up to —to support an estimated 25 million bricks. Completed in 1847 after 18 years and costing nearly $1 million (~$ in ), its walls measured 11 feet thick and were considered impervious to all but the largest land-based artillery. At that time, smoothbore cannon had an effective range of approximately half a mile, whereas Tybee Island—the closest landmass—was situated farther away. The fort was deemed impregnable; Chief of Engineers General Totten famously compared attacking it to bombarding the Rocky Mountains.

Civil War

Although finished in 1847, Fort Pulaski remained lightly manned until 1860 when South Carolina’s secession sparked the Civil War. Georgia Governor Joseph E. Brown ordered state forces to seize control of the fort, which they accomplished by transporting 110 men from Savannah aboard a steamship. Following Georgia's entry into the Confederate States of America in February 1861, Confederate troops took up residence within Fort Pulaski.

By December 1861, Confederate forces withdrew from Tybee Island due to its exposed position and vulnerability, enabling Union forces to establish strategic positions across the Savannah River. Under the command of Quincy A. Gillmore, Union troops constructed artillery batteries along Tybee Island’s shoreline.

Siege and capture of Fort Pulaski

On April 10, 1862, Union commanders issued a demand for Fort Pulaski’s surrender to avoid unnecessary bloodshed; however, Colonel Charles H. Olmstead, leading the Confederate garrison, declined.

Though prepared for an infantry assault that never materialized, the fort faced a heavy artillery bombardment instead. The Union deployed 36 guns—including cutting-edge James Rifled Cannon and Parrott rifle artillery—initiating continuous shelling. These rifled weapons could accurately strike targets from distances up to four or five miles away, breaching one corner wall within just 30 hours and endangering the main powder magazine. Confronted with imminent destruction and cut off from reinforcements, Olmstead chose to surrender. Remarkably, only two soldiers lost their lives throughout the siege.

Reflecting on his decision afterward, Olmstead stated:

We were completely isolated without any possibility of aid... I did not believe it was justifiable to risk my garrison facing an explosion of our main magazine... The fact that the enemy’s firepower could utterly demolish the fort was undeniable... I remain convinced that no other course was viable.

Gillmore’s effective use of rifled artillery led to his promotion from engineer captain to brigadier general.

Union administration

Within a month and a half following the fort's capitulation, Union troops restored Fort Pulaski, effectively blocking all maritime traffic to and from Savannah and severely undermining the Confederate war capabilities. Once under Union jurisdiction, General David Hunter issued General Order Number 7 on April 16, 1862, which declared freedom for all enslaved individuals present at the fort and on Cockspur Island. Consequently, Fort Pulaski emerged as an important station on the Underground Railroad, offering refuge to escaping slaves.

The initial Union contingent stationed at the fort consisted of approximately 600 soldiers but was later decreased to around 250 as Confederate efforts to reclaim the site diminished. In October 1864, the fort was repurposed as a detention center for captured Confederate officers known as "The Immortal Six Hundred." These detainees faced severe hardships including moldy bread, spoiled pickles, scarce water supplies, and suffered from starvation, dehydration, dysentery, and scurvy. Thirteen prisoners perished and were interred outside the fort’s grounds. After the Civil War concluded, Fort Pulaski briefly functioned as a military and political prison accommodating prominent Confederate figures such as secretaries of state and war, governors, and senators.

Postwar developments

Between 1869 and 1872, powder magazines were constructed in the demilune area behind the fort, while existing artillery emplacements were enlarged to accommodate heavier weaponry.

By the early 1900s, Fort Pulaski had fallen into neglect. To safeguard this historically significant site, President Calvin Coolidge designated it a National Monument on October 15, 1924. Ownership was transferred from the War Department to the National Park Service in 1933. Restoration initiatives began with assistance from the Civilian Conservation Corps focused on Cockspur Island.

Prior to World War II, Fort Pulaski reopened briefly to visitors; during the war, Cockspur Island was utilized as a US Navy section base. After the conflict ended, management returned to the Park Service. The fort was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. Today, it remains accessible to the public and houses a museum established in the 1980s.

In November 2009, Fort Pulaski served as a filming location for Robert Redford’s movie The Conspirator, which portrays events surrounding President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. It also appeared in the 2012 action-comedy horror film Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies, where it was depicted as a Confederate stronghold overtaken by zombies.

References

The National Parks: Index 2001–2003. Washington: United States Department of the Interior

External links