# Fort Carroll > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Fort_Carroll > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Fort_Carroll.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Carroll > Source revision: 1304359074 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{for|the Civil War defense facility of Washington, DC|Samuel S. Carroll}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}} {{Infobox NRHP | name = Fort Carroll | nrhp_type = | image = Fort Carroll.jpg | caption = Fort Carroll, Baltimore, Maryland | location = Soller's Flats, in the Patapsco River, near [Curtis Bay, Maryland](/source/Curtis_Bay%2C_Maryland) | coordinates = {{coord|39|12|53|N|76|31|09|W|region:US_type:landmark|display=inline,title}} | locmapin = Maryland#USA | architect = | architecture = | added = April 14, 2015 | area = {{convert|3.4|acre}} | refnum = 14000955{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2015-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf|title=National Register of Historic Places Listings|date=2015-04-24|work=Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 4/13/15 through 4/17/15|publisher=National Park Service}} }} [[File:Fort Carroll Key Bridge Aug2010.jpg|thumb|right|Fort Carroll, next to the [Key Bridge](/source/Francis_Scott_Key_Bridge_(Baltimore))]] '''Fort Carroll''' is a {{convert|3.4|acre|adj=on}} [artificial island](/source/artificial_island) and abandoned hexagonal [sea fort](/source/Coastal_defense_and_fortification) in the middle of the [Patapsco River](/source/Patapsco_River), just south of [Baltimore, Maryland](/source/Baltimore%2C_Maryland). It is named for [Charles Carroll of Carrollton](/source/Charles_Carroll_of_Carrollton) (1737–1832), a signer of the [Declaration of Independence](/source/United_States_Declaration_of_Independence). ==Design and construction== In 1847, the State of Maryland permitted the United States War Department to construct a fort in the shallow water of Soller's Point Flats to protect the city of Baltimore. Fort Carroll was important for the defense of Baltimore—before the fort's construction, [Fort McHenry](/source/Fort_McHenry) just outside the city was the only military defensive structure between Baltimore and the [Chesapeake Bay](/source/Chesapeake_Bay). The fort was part of the "Permanent System" or [Third System](/source/Seacoast_defense_in_the_United_States) construction program, which aimed to defend America's most important ports.{{MHT url|id=1637|title=Fort Carroll, Baltimore County}}, at Maryland Historical Trust Then Brevet-Colonel [Robert E. Lee](/source/Robert_E._Lee) designed the hexagonal structure and supervised the construction, which the [U.S. Army Corps of Engineers](/source/U.S._Army_Corps_of_Engineers) commenced in 1848. The fort received its name on October 8, 1850. In 1852, Lee left Baltimore to become Superintendent of the [United States Military Academy](/source/United_States_Military_Academy) at West Point. In 1853, a [lighthouse](/source/Fort_Carroll_Light), now abandoned, was built on the ramparts to aid navigation into Baltimore Harbor. In 1898, a new lighthouse was built, which is still seen today. It was automated in 1920 and discontinued operations sometime before 1945. The original design foresaw the fort armed with 225 cannons on three levels. However, in April 1861, at the [American Civil War](/source/American_Civil_War) outbreak, Fort Carroll's walls were still less than half the planned height of thirty feet. Only five gun platforms were ready, and only two were armed. Still, the Army placed about thirty cannons and occupied the fort throughout the war. In April 1864, torrential rains flooded the fort's magazines, which led the Army to move all the powder and ammunition to Fort McHenry. thumb|A diagram of the fort based on a 1914 topographic map ==Spanish–American War== When the United States entered the [Spanish–American War](/source/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War) in 1898, the Army again defended the fort, although the batteries were completely obsolete by then. The Army, therefore, commenced the construction of modern concrete gun emplacements following the [Board of Fortifications](/source/Board_of_Fortifications) designs. The Army created three batteries: Battery TowsonThe battery was named in honor of Major General [Nathan Towson](/source/Nathan_Towson), U.S. Army. He had served in the War of 1812 and the Mexican War and died July 20, 1854, in Washington, District of Columbia. (two 12" [barbette](/source/barbette) carriage guns), Battery HeartThe battery was named in honor of Major Jonathan Heart, [2nd U.S. Infantry](/source/2nd_Infantry_Regiment_(United_States)), who served during the Revolutionary War. He died on November 4, 1791, in action with Indians near [Fort Recovery](/source/Fort_Recovery), Ohio. (two [5-inch M1897 guns](/source/5-inch_gun_M1897) on [balanced pillar](/source/balanced_pillar) mounts) and Battery AugustinBattery Augustin was named in honor of 2nd Lieutenant Joseph N. Augustin, Jr., [24th U.S. Infantry](/source/24th_Infantry_Regiment_(United_States)), who died July 2, 1898 of wounds he had received the day before at the [Battle of San Juan Hill](/source/Battle_of_San_Juan_Hill). (two 3" balanced pedestal-mount guns). thumb|left|350px|Fort Carroll. Note that the industrial plant in the background is not on the island. The new batteries were ready by September 1900, well after the war's end. They received their names on March 30, 1903. ==World War I and afterwards== After World War I broke out, in 1917, the Army removed the guns from Battery Heart, and in 1918, those from Battery Towson to use elsewhere. By 1920, all guns had been removed from the fort. In March 1921, the Army officially abandoned Fort Carroll and moved whatever military equipment was left to nearby [Fort Howard](/source/Fort_Howard_(Maryland)). The [War Department](/source/United_States_War_Department) declared the island excess property in 1923 but took no immediate steps to sell the land. A variety of proposals for the use of the island were advanced, including a prison, as well as a 1923 plan advanced by Baltimore mayor [William Broening](/source/William_Frederick_Broening) to place an electric "Welcome to Baltimore" sign on the island, accompanied by a statue of [Lord Baltimore](/source/Cecilius_Calvert%2C_2nd_Baron_Baltimore).{{cite news|last=Anft|first=Michael|title=Re-Fortification? Local Builder Sets Sights on Fort Carroll|url=http://www2.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=4871|access-date=11 January 2012|newspaper=Baltimore City Paper|date=October 25, 2000}} In World War II, the Army used the fort as a firing range. It also served as a checkpoint for vessels. In May 1958, Baltimore attorney Benjamin Eisenberg purchased the island for {{US$|10000|1958}}, intending to put a casino there, but development plans never materialized. The fort is now an [involuntary park](/source/involuntary_park). It is also a site for occasional [urban exploration](/source/urban_exploration)s (which constitute [trespass](/source/trespass_to_land)). In 2013, [Preservation Maryland](/source/Preservation_Maryland) placed Fort Carroll on its list of threatened historic properties.{{cite web|title=2013 Endangered Maryland List Released|url=http://www.preservationmaryland.org/uploads/file/Endangered%20Maryland%202013%20Press%20Release.pdf|publisher=Preservation Maryland|access-date=23 June 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150920054848/http://www.preservationmaryland.org/uploads/file/Endangered%20Maryland%202013%20Press%20Release.pdf|archive-date=20 September 2015}} It was listed on the [National Register of Historic Places](/source/National_Register_of_Historic_Places) in 2015. On April 19, 2024, the third temporary alternate channel established after the [collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge](/source/collapse_of_the_Francis_Scott_Key_Bridge) was named after the fort, the beginning of which is to its immediate west.{{Cite web|url=https://www.keybridgeresponse2024.com/post/update-14-multimedia-release-unified-command-opens-third-temporary-alternate-channel|title=UPDATE 14 Multimedia Release: Unified Command opens third temporary alternate channel|date=April 19, 2024|website=Key Bridge Incident}} thumb|500px|The three temporary channels as of April 20, 2024 ==References== {{reflist}} ==Notes== {{Reflist|group=Note|1}} ==Further reading== * {{cite book | last = Lewis | first = Emanuel Raymond | title = Seacoast Fortifications of the United States | publisher = Leeward Publications | year = 1979 | location = Annapolis | isbn = 978-0-929521-11-4 }} * {{cite book |last1=Weaver II |first1=John R. |title=A Legacy in Brick and Stone: American Coastal Defense Forts of the Third System, 1816-1867, 2nd Ed. |publisher=Redoubt Press |location=McLean, VA |year=2018 |isbn=978-1-7323916-1-1 }} ==External links== {{commons-inline}} {{Forts of Baltimore}}{{National Register of Historic Places in Maryland|state=collapsed}} {{authority control}} Category:Artificial islands of the United States Category:Military installations established in 1848 Category:Unused buildings in Maryland Category:Buildings and structures in Baltimore County, Maryland Category:River islands of Maryland Carroll Category:Landforms of Baltimore County, Maryland Carroll Carroll Category:Robert E. Lee Category:National Register of Historic Places in Baltimore County, Maryland Category:American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Category:Military installations closed in 1921 --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Fort Carroll](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Carroll) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Carroll?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.