Fort Wolcott facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fort Wolcott |
|
|---|---|
| Goat Island, Rhode Island | |
 Fort Wolcott
|
|
| Coordinates | 41°29′07″N 71°19′41″W / 41.4852°N 71.3280°W |
| Site information | |
| Controlled by |  Kingdom of England Kingdom of Great Britain United States |
| Site history | |
| Built | c. 1702 |
| In use | 1702-1960s |
| Events | Attacks on HMS St John and HMS Liberty |
Fort Wolcott was an old fort built on a tiny island called Goat Island. This island is in Newport Harbor, Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. It's less than a mile west of the city of Newport, Rhode Island. Important events happened near this fort, like attacks on British ships named HMS St John and HMS Liberty.
Contents
Fort Anne: The First Fort
The very first fort on Goat Island was built around 1702 or 1703. It was made of earth and called Fort Anne. This happened during the War of the Spanish Succession, a big war in Europe. The fort was named after Anne, Queen of Great Britain. It had 12 guns and was used until 1724.
Fort George: A New Name
In 1730, the fort was used again with a new name: Fort George. It was named after King George II of Great Britain. By 1738, people in Rhode Island built a stronger stone fort on the same spot. This new fort might have had as many as fifty guns!
In 1764, people from Newport took control of Fort George. They even fired shots at a British ship called St John. The ship's crew was accused of stealing from local shops. In another early act of rebellion, Rhode Islanders burned the British ship Liberty in 1769. This happened when the ship drifted near Goat Island.
Fort Liberty: American Revolution
When the American Revolution started in 1775, the fort was renamed Fort Liberty. In 1776, American patriots put 25 guns at Fort Liberty. They also built defenses to protect the city of Newport.
In December 1776, the British army took over Newport without a fight. They renamed the fort "Fort George" again. The British left Newport in November 1779. Then, the French army, led by Count de Rochambeau, used the fort. They kept it as part of their defenses until they left in 1781.
Fort Washington: Honoring a Hero
In 1784, Rhode Islanders fixed the fort and renamed it Fort Washington. It was named after General George Washington. The fort was armed with 28 guns.
In 1794, the city of Newport sold Goat Island to the United States government for $1,500. This was so the government could keep a fort there to protect Newport Harbor. Control of Fort Washington then went from the Rhode Island state militia to the United States Army. The Army rebuilt Fort Washington and gave it 38 guns.
The first U.S. Army officer to command the fort was Captain William Littlefield. He was from Newport and fought in the American Revolution. Captain Littlefield started his job in 1794. This marked the beginning of the United States Armed Forces being present in Newport, which continues today. Only West Point, New York, has had the U.S. Armed Forces present for a longer time.
Fort Wolcott: A Stronger Defense
The Army rebuilt the fort again in 1798. This was part of a plan to create strong coastal defenses for the United States. They renamed it Fort Wolcott. This name honored Oliver Wolcott, a general from Connecticut. He was also a member of the Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence.
Captain John Henry, who later helped start the War of 1812, was stationed at Fort Wolcott in the late 1790s. From 1798 to 1800, the fort's earth defenses were rebuilt. After 1802, Fort Wolcott became the main fort defending Newport Harbor. It worked with the smaller Fort Adams, which started in 1799.
The Army repaired Fort Wolcott in 1808. In 1809, a report showed that Fort Wolcott had 12 guns inside. It also had 18 more guns on batteries to the north and south. By 1811, Fort Wolcott was described as a "small enclosed work" with "open batteries." It had 38 heavy guns and barracks for soldiers.
During the War of 1812, Fort Wolcott helped defend Newport Harbor. It worked with other forts like Fort Adams, Fort Greene, and Fort Hamilton. Fort Wolcott was built of stone and had a brick-and-stone magazine (where ammunition was stored). It also had a sally-port (a hidden exit), a ditch, a furnace, and bomb-proof barracks. It had five long-range 32-pounder guns.
President James Monroe visited the fort on June 28, 1817, and was impressed. By 1818, Fort Wolcott had 28 guns. After 1821, soldiers from other forts in Rhode Island moved to Fort Wolcott. It became the only army base in the state that was always active. Weather observations began there in 1822. In 1823 or 1824, the first Newport Harbor Lighthouse was built at the north end of Goat Island.
Decommissioning the Fort
The Army moved the soldiers from Fort Wolcott on May 22, 1836. They went to fight in the First Seminole War. This meant Rhode Island didn't have an active fort to defend its coast until the new Fort Adams opened in 1841.
The current Goat Island Lighthouse was built in 1842 at the northern tip of the island. It replaced an older lighthouse that had been moved.
During the American Civil War, Goat Island hosted the training ships for the United States Naval Academy. Even in the 1870s, an ordnance sergeant (a soldier who takes care of weapons) was still at the fort to maintain its artillery.
In 1869, the United States Navy started a Naval Torpedo Station where Fort Wolcott used to be. This Navy base grew a lot over the next century. The Navy Torpedo Factory on Goat Island made many torpedoes for the Navy during World War I and World War II. However, the Navy closed the torpedo station in 1951. They then created the Naval Undersea Warfare Center at the nearby Newport Navy base.
United States Coast Guard
Besides the lighthouse, the United States Coast Guard has kept a cutter (a type of boat) at Goat Island since the late 1960s. The Point-class cutter USCGC Point Turner was stationed there for 31 years, from 1967 to 1998. The tradition of having a Coast Guard cutter at Goat Island continued when the Marine Protector-class patrol boat USCGC Tiger Shark started service in 2005. The Tiger Shark was based at Goat Island until about 2013. Then, its dock was moved to Naval Station Newport.
Privatization of the Island
In the 1960s, the federal government sold most of Goat Island to a private company called Globe Manufacturing. This company tore down most of the old fort buildings. Over the next few decades, Globe built a hotel and apartments on the island. They also turned the only remaining Navy building into a marina for boats.
