Fort Morgan State Historic Site - Gulf Shores, Alabama

Flank Howitzers at Fort Morgan

If you've never been to Fort Morgan, you should add it to your list! It is one of the most fascinating places on the Gulf Coast.

The historic old fort was begun in 1819 and stands on the site of an earlier work named Fort Bowyer (see Fort Bowyer - Alabama's Forgotten Battle of the War of 1812). Named for General Daniel Morgan, a hero of the American Revolution, the fort withstood one of the fiercest naval attacks of the Civil War.

Land Face of Fort Morgan

In fact, Fort Morgan has touched so much history it is difficult to summarize its story in less than book form! To offer a few highlights, however, the fort served as a holding camp for unfortunate Creek Indian families making their way west on the Trail of Tears. The fort was seized by state militia forces in 1861 as Alabama seceeded from the Union and the first Alabamian to give his life in the Confederate cause died here.

Confederate forces strengthened the already powerful fort by adding earthwork batteries and other defenses. They even placed "torpedoes" (now called mines) in the ship channel leading past the fort into Mobile Bay and engineered the wires and other mechanisms needed to trigger them when enemy warships passed directly over the devices. This tactic proved deadly to the Union navy when it attacked Fort Morgan on August 5, 1864.

Main Gate of Fort Morgan

Admiral David G. Farragut lashed his ships together two by two and steamed them into the channel leading past Fort Morgan into Mobile Bay. The fort opened fire with fierce salvos of shot and shell and the Union warships responded. As the fleet surged forward, the ironclad USS Tecumseh moved into close range of Fort Morgan intending to batter it with its heavy guns. Instead it steamed directly over a "torpedo" that was triggered from the fort. The ironclad exploded up into the air, rolled over and sank, carrying dozens of U.S. sailors to the bottom with it.

Heavily Bombarded Channel Front of Fort Morgan

The stunning sight caused the other ships in Farragut's fleet to slow to a near stop, directly under the guns of Fort Morgan, as well as long-range fire from Fort Gaines across the bay. The story of what happened next is one of the most famous of the Civil War. Demanding to know what was happening, Admiral Farragut was told the lead ships had encountered torpedoes in the channel. "Damn the torpedoes. Full speed ahead!" he ordered, and the fleet again picked up speed and surged past Fort Morgan into Mobile Bay.

Spanish American War era battery at Fort Morgan

The Battle of Mobile Bay, however, was just beginning. The ironclad CSS Tennessee then steamed out from a sheltered spot behind Fort Morgan and in a heroic defense, engaged the entire Union fleet.

The Tennessee was finally battered into submission and Fort Gaines fell not long after. Fort Morgan, however, held out and did not submit until the end of a long land siege by the Federal army.

In later years new fortifications were added to the old as the U.S. again worried about the possibility of foreign invasion just before and during the Spanish American War. Fort Morgan remained an important coastal defense site until the end of World War II when it was declared obsolete and turned over to the State of Alabama.

Today the site is an intriguing historic site where visitors can explore the history of more than 100 years of coastal defense. Our newly updated Fort Morgan page is now online at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortmorgan. Be sure to take a look!

Fort Bowyer - Alabama's Forgotten Battle of the War of 1812

Fort Bowyer stood on the site of today's Fort Morgan

When history buffs think of a brave stand by outnumbered American troops and a devastating defeat of the British on the Gulf Coast, they usually think of Andrew Jackson's stunning victory at the Battle of New Orleans.

Before New Orleans, however, there was Fort Bowyer. The all but forgotten little fort stood on Mobile Point in Alabama and on September 15, 1814, the men of its garrison withstood a British onslaught to secure a victory that lifted the spirits of Americans far and wide.

Plan of Fort Bowyer

Begun in the fall of 1813 after American troops seized Mobile from the Spanish, the fort was built of earth and timber on the site where the better known Fort Morgan stands today. With a semi-circular front facing the entrance to Mobile Bay, Fort Bowyer was designed to sweep the channel with artillery fire. Its land face was bastioned as an additional defense against an infantry attack.

In anticipation of their coming move on New Orleans, the British initially planned to take Mobile. Its location and bay made the city ideal for an overland move against Baton Rouge, where the Mississippi River could be controlled to break off supplies and other commerce moving downstream to New Orleans. Such a move would make the Crescent City much easier to take.

This view shows the route of the British ships.

Having landed troops and trained Creek and Seminole Indians in Pensacola with the permission of the Spanish Governor there, the British quickly focused their attention on Fort Bowyer. Built on the shifting sands of Mobile Point and still not complete, the fort offered what was expected to be an easy target. Once the fort was taken, Mobile would of necessity capitulate soon after.

Sailing west from Pensacola in early September, British commander Captain William H. Percy put ashore 60 men from the Colonial Royal Marines under Lieutenant Colonel Edward Nicolls. Supported by 120 or so Indians under Captain George Woodbine, this force moved to block land access to Fort Bowyer and Nicolls directed his Marines, almost all of whom were free blacks, to emplace a 5 1/2 inch howitzer on a high sand dune near the fort.

Cannon on display in Fort Bowyer exhibit at Fort Morgan Museum

Nicolls became sick with dysentery after achieving this objective and went back aboard the flagship HMS Hermes for treatment. While he was suffering on board ship, Captain Percy moved forward to attack Fort Bowyer.

On the afternoon of September 15, 1814, the four British warships, led by the 20-gun Hermes formed in a line and closed in on Fort Bowyer. Major William Lawrence and his garrison from the 2nd U.S. Infantry stood to their guns on the walls of the fort and, when the British came into range at around 4:15 p.m., opened fire.

HMS Hermes in Action

The following battle was one of the fiercest land and sea battles of the War of 1812. The rumble of cannon fire shook the ground for miles around as fire and smoke covered both the fort and the leading ships of the squadron. The sick Colonel Nicolls, already known in Great Britain as "Fighting Nicolls" leaped into action on the Hermes, helping Captain Percy direct the fire of the guns. A cannon shot from Fort Bowyer sent a shower of lethal splinters across the deck where Nicolls was standing, wounding him in the legs and head. He went below for treatment but then came back up to continue the fight.

For hours the Battle of Fort Bowyer raged at virtually the same site of the later and better known Battle of Mobile Bay during the Civil War. To learn more about the fight, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortbowyer.

Forts of Mobile Bay, Alabama - Fort Morgan

Built on the site of two critical battles of the War of 1812, historic Fort Morgan has guarded the entrance to Mobile Bay since even before its completion in 1833.

Mobile Point, the site of the fort, is a long narrow peninsular that stretches west from Gulf Shores, Alabama, until it ends abruptly at the channel leading into the bay. American forces built Fort Bowyer here during the War of 1812 and the fort and its plucky little garrison held back one major British attack in 1814 before falling to a second early the following year.

Recognizing that Mobile Point and Dauphin Island across the channel were the keys to defending the bay, the U.S. Government moved quickly after the end of the war to authorize the construction of massive forts on both. The smaller of these works, Fort Gaines, was built on the eastern tip of Dauphin Island, while a much larger construction project was launched on the site of Fort Bowyer in 1819.

Named for General Daniel Morgan, the hero of the Battle of Cowpens during the American Revolution, Fort Morgan took 14 years of constant labor to complete. The fort was an important stop on the Trail of Tears as U.S. authorities forced the Creek Indians from Alabama in 1836-1837. After 1842, however, it was placed in caretaker status due to budget restraints and was not again garrisoned until Southern forces seized it in 1861.

Fort Morgan played a critical role in the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864, when Admiral David G. Farragut brought his fleet storming past the firestorm brought to bear on his ships from Forts Morgan and Gaines. The famed battle between Farragut's fleet and the Confederate ironclad C.S.S. Tennessee took place within sight of the walls of Fort Morgan.

Although Farragut's victory ended Confederate use of Mobile Bay, Fort Morgan held out through a two-week attack that saw more than 3,000 shells fired into its walls. Deciding that their situation was hopeless, the garrison surrendered on August 23, 1864.

The fort was later modified by the addition of concrete batteries and other installations due to the threat of foreign attack during the Spanish-American War. It remained an important military post well into the 20th century, but his now a fascinating historic site that is open to the public daily. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortmorgan.

The Battle of Mobile Bay, Alabama

One of the most dramatic battles of the Civil War took place on Alabama's Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864. The Union fleet of Admiral David Farragut steamed into the mouth of the bay, ending Mobile's three year status as one of the most successful ports for blockade runners in the Confederacy.

The Battle of Mobile Bay is remembered today at Fort Gaines and Fort Morgan at the entrance to the bay and on an extended driving tour of Civil War sites in the bay area.

The battle began at 6:30 a.m. when the ships of Farragut's fleet, lashed together in pairs and guided by four ironclad monitors, steamed within range of the Confederate guns at Fort Morgan. The Southern artillery opened fire, the Federal ships responded and the battle was under way.

The Confederates had planted mines or "torpedoes" (as they were known in those days) in the main channel leading from the Gulf of Mexico into Mobile Bay. As the ironclad monitor U.S.S. Tecumseh steamed into the bay, Southern troops on shore set off one of their torpedoes. It exploded directly under the Tecumseh, which then capsized and sank to the bottom of the bay with dozens of sailors still on board.

The shocking sight caused the fleet to stall while still in point blank range of the cannon in Fort Morgan. Seeing what had happened, Admiral Farragut gave his famed orders to "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" The ships began to move faster and soon passed out of the range of the dangerous Confederate guns. Had they not done so, the Battle of Mobile Bay might have ended in disaster for the U.S. Navy.

Once in the bay, however, the ships were challenged by the Confederate ironclad C.S.S. Tennessee and a few small wooden gunboats. Although the Federals easily drove away the wooden boats, the Tennessee was a different matter. Admiral Franklin Buchanan steamed the ship directly into the midst of the Union fleet in a courageous but hopeless fight against overwhelming odds.

At one point, the Tennessee fought seven Union warships at once. In the end, however, the vessel was battered into submission. Immobile and barely able to return fire, she surrendered about one mile north of Fort Gaines.

The battle effectively ended the use of Mobile Bay by blockade runners. It would take months of fighting and a major campaign before the city itself fell, but the Battle of Mobile Bay was one of the most dramatic naval battles of the Civil War.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/mobilebay.

Fort Morgan - Mobile Bay, Alabama

In the last post I told you a little about the history of Fort Gaines, Alabama. Located at the entrance to Mobile Bay, it was one of two forts that played pivitol roles in the 1864 battle for control of the Gulf Coast port. The other was Fort Morgan.

Located on Mobile Point about a half hour's drive from Gulf Shores, Fort Morgan Historic Site preserves the battle-scarred remains of the old fort, the site of War of 1812 battles and a series of fortifications that remained in use by the military through World War II.

The primary fort was begun in 1819 on the site of a War of 1812 work named Fort Bowyer. A massive masonry structure with an interior citadel and additional outer defenses, the new structure was named Fort Morgan after General Daniel Morgan, hero of the Battle of Cowpens during the American Revolution.

Seized by state troops from its caretaker in 1861, Fort Morgan became a major Confederate citadel. Along with Fort Gaines across the bay, it proved such an intimidating defense that it was not until the summer of 1864 that the Union navy launched a serious effort to take control of Mobile Bay.

On August 5, 1864, Union Admiral David Farragut steamed his fleet of warships into range of the guns of Fort Morgan, initiating the Battle of Mobile Bay. The fort opened fire with barrages of artillery that shook the ground for miles. A mine or "torpedo" triggered by Confederates in Fort Morgan sank the ironclad U.S.S. Tecumseh and almost turned the Union attack into a total disaster. The Union warships paused under heavy fire from the fort and likely would have been severely damaged had Admiral Farragut not ordered "Damn the torpedoes. Full speed ahead!" The fleet passed into the bay, engaged the courageous crew of the Confederate ironclad C.S.S. Tennessee and by noon claimed victory.

Fort Gaines fell three days later, but Fort Morgan held out. Thousands of Union troops were landed to the rear of the fort and began regular siege operations. It would take weeks and a final day in which more than 3,000 shells were fired into the fort before the Confederates finally spiked their remaining guns and surrendered.

A fascinating historic site, the weathered old fort still bears the scars of the Civil War. It is open to the public daily and is well worth the drive along the sugar white sands of the Alabama beaches. For more information, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortmorgan.