Fort Proctor facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Fort Proctor
|
|
Fort Proctor from 600 feet over Bayou Yscloskey, in 2008
|
|
| Nearest city | Shell Beach, Louisiana |
|---|---|
| Built | 1856 |
| Architect | J.G. Totten, et al. |
| Architectural style | Renaissance |
| NRHP reference No. | 78003067 |
| Added to NRHP | September 20, 1978 |
Fort Proctor is an old, ruined fort from the 1800s. It is located in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana, USA. People also call it Fort Beauregard or Beauregard's Castle. This name comes from P. G. T. Beauregard, who helped build it. He worked with the architect Joseph Gilbert Totten.
The fort sits on the shore of Lake Borgne. It is just north of a waterway called Bayou Yscloskey. When it was built in the 1850s, there was a nearby railroad port. This port was named "Proctorville."
About Fort Proctor
Fort Proctor was meant to protect important water routes. These routes led to the city of New Orleans. In 1814, the British Army attacked New Orleans. Their navy sailed up Lake Borgne. They defeated some small boats from the United States Navy. This event was called the Battle of Lake Borgne.
A Fort Never Used
Building the fort took a long time. There were delays because of damage from hurricanes. Then, the American Civil War began. Because of these delays, soldiers never used the fort. It was never fully ready for battle.
By the end of the Civil War, cannons had become much stronger. This meant the fort's design was no longer useful. It was considered "obsolete," meaning it was outdated.
Fort Proctor Today
In the 1940s and 1950s, Fort Proctor was a popular spot. Teenagers would gather there to hang out. It was a place where they could be unsupervised. Back then, the fort was not completely surrounded by water.
In the 1960s, the Mississippi River–Gulf Outlet Canal was built. This canal cut off all land access to the fort. Now, you can only see it from a distance. You can spot it from Shell Beach, Louisiana.
In 1978, Fort Proctor was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the fort is mostly surrounded by water. The water is usually about one foot deep. Before Hurricane Katrina, there was a small piece of dry land inside the fort.
The fort had some unique features for its time. It included comfortable living areas with bathrooms. It also used a lot of strong iron in its construction. This was unusual for forts back then.
