Forts of Mobile bay, Alabama - Fort Gaines

Built on the eastern tip of Dauphin Island, Fort Gaines (along with Fort Morgan) was one of two forts built by the U.S. Government to protect Alabama's Mobile Bay from foreign attack.

Begun in 1819, the fort was never really completed. A flaw in the original construction location caused the foundations of the brick citadel to overflow at high tide, sending designers back to the drawing board. It took 34 years for engineers to resolve the difficulties and come up with a better design for the fort.

When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Fort Gaines was considered a state of the art fortification and was quickly seized by Southern troops. Its heavy cannon cooperated with those of Fort Morgan across the channel to keep Mobile Bay open for Confederate blockade runners until August of 1864. That was when Admiral David G. Farragut's Union fleet stormed into the bay, running a gauntlet of artillery fire between the two forts.

The gunners in Fort Gaines watched helplessly as the courageous crew of the ironclad C.S.S. Tennessee was finally battered into submission about 1 mile north of their defenses. The fort itself then came under immediate attack and for three days was battered with artillery fire from both land and sea before its commander, Colonel Charles Anderson, finally raised the white flag. The 800 Confederates in Fort Gaines had desperately tried to defend their fort, but the Union ironclads could move to within point blank range to blast holes in the masonry fort, while their own shot bounced harmlessly off the iron of the Federal ships.

Modern batteries were added to the fort's defenses during the Spanish American War and it remained an important U.S. Army post through World War II.

Now a beautifully preserved historic site, Fort Gaines is open to the public daily. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortgainesal.

Summer Escapes #7 - Dauphin Island, Alabama

One of the true crown jewels of the Gulf Coast, Dauphin Island, Alabama, is one of the most beautiful spots in the Deep South for a summer escape. It also offers a fascinating history and some of the nation's most significant historic sites.

A charming barrier island bordering the Gulf of Mexico at the mouth of Mobile Bay, Dauphin Island was visited by Native Americans for hundreds if not thousands of years before Spanish and French explorers first set foot on its white sand beaches. Massive shell mounds left behind by Indians of the Mississippian era once stood as tall as 50 feet high on the island, reminders of thousands of meals of raw oysters and other shell fish. One of the few surviving mounds can be seen today at Shell Mound Park on the north shore of the island.

Dauphin Island received its name from the French, who arrived there in 1699. They found piles of human bones (probably washed from an ancient burial mound) on the island and believed that a massacre had taken place there, prompting them to call it Massacre Island. They soon renamed it after a member of French royalty. Hurricanes and other disasters drove the main French settlement from Dauphin Island in just a couple of decades, but for a brief time it was the home of the Governor General of Louisiana.

The island was also held by the British and Spanish over time, before passing into the hands of the United States when American troops took Mobile during the early 19th century. By 1819, construction was underway on Fort Gaines at the eastern tip of the island. With Fort Morgan across the channel on Mobile Point, the massive brick fortress was designed to protect Mobile Bay from enemy invasion.

Southern troops seized both of the forts in 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War. Fort Gaines played a critical role in the Battle of Mobile Bay in 1864, one of the key actions of the war. It was within site of its walls that Union Admiral David G. Farragut uttered his famous orders, "Damn the torpedoes! Full Speed Ahead!" The anchor of his flagship, the U.S.S. Hartford, is on display today at Fort Gaines, which is now a beautifully preserved historic site.

Dauphin Island is also known for its outstanding beaches, slow-paced coastal life and outstanding fishing. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/dauphinisland.

Fort Gaines - Dauphin Island, Alabama

Located on the eastern tip of Dauphin Island, Fort Gaines was one of two huge masonry forts built during the first half of the 19th century to defend Alabama's Mobile Bay from foreign attack.

Occupied by Southern troops in 1861, the fort was the focus of heavy fighting during the Battle of Mobile Bay and it was within sight of its walls that Admiral David Farragut yelled his famed command, "Damn the torpedoes. Full speed ahead!"

Imposing fortifications, Fort Gaines and its sister work, Fort Morgan on Mobile Point, kept the Union navy at bay for more than three years, allowing Mobile Bay to remain a major port for blockade runners for much of the Civil War.

On August 5, 1864, however, the fleet of Admiral Farragut attacked in one of the great land/sea battles of the war. Despite the loss of the U.S.S. Tecumseh to an underwater mine or "torpedo," the Union fleet forced its way into Mobile Bay. The accomplishment was no longer achieved, however, than the lone Confederate ironclad C.S.S. Tennessee steamed out to engage Farragut's warships. In a tremendous battle, the Tennessee was literally battered into submission, at times engaging as many as seven Union ships at once. A smoking wreck by the end of the battle, she surrendered about one mile north of Fort Gaines.

A three day siege of the fort followed, resulting in the surrender of the 800 man garrison on August 8, 1864. It would take another eight months and a major campaign, however, before the U.S. flag was raised again over the city of Mobile.

The old fort today is a major landmark on Dauphin Island, a beautiful barrier island just south of Mobile, Alabama. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortgainesal.