Fort Clinton was an

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

fort erected by the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

on the west bank of the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

in 1776.

Protecting the chain

It was one of a pair of fortifications which straddled the confluence of

Popolopen Creek Popolopen is the name of several related landmarks mainly within the Hudson Highlands of Orange County, New York. These include a mountain, Popolopen Torne—or simply "The Torne", and a short and steep-sided nearby valley officially called H ...

, standing on the south side of Popolopen Gorge, with Fort Montgomery to the north. Adams, Arthur G., ''The Hudson River Guidebook'', Fordham Univ Press, 1996
The forts defended a huge wrought iron

chain A chain is a serial assembly of connected pieces, called links, typically made of metal, with an overall character similar to that of a rope in that it is flexible and curved in compression but linear, rigid, and load-bearing in tension. A c ...

that spanned the Hudson from Fort Montgomery to Anthony's Nose on the river's east side. The sites of both forts are in present-day

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Albania * Dukagjin Highlands Armenia * Armenian Highlands Australia *Sou ...

Orange County, New York Orange County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 401,310. The county seat is Goshen. This county was first created in 1683 and reorganized with its present boundaries in 1798. Orange ...

. Fort Clinton's garrison of 300 soldiers was smaller than Fort Montgomery's, but it was built on higher ground, and its defenses were more complete. It was commanded by General

James Clinton Major General James Clinton (August 9, 1736 – September 22, 1812) was an American Revolutionary War officer who, with John Sullivan, led in 1779 the Sullivan Expedition in what is now western New York to attack British-allied Seneca and ...

, for whom it was named (and not his brother, General George Clinton, or Sir Henry Clinton, the British Commander-in-Chief in North America and opposing general in the struggle over control of the strategically critical river).

Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery

On October 6, 1777, Forts Clinton and Montgomery were attacked by the British 63rd Regiment led by Sir Henry Clinton (a distant relative of James Clinton, according to information at the Fort Montgomery state historic site museum). The

Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery The Battle of Forts Clinton and Montgomery was an American Revolutionary War battle fought in the Hudson Highlands of the Hudson River valley, not far from West Point, on October 6, 1777. British forces under the command of General Sir Henry Cli ...

was intense but brief, with both forts being overrun within an hour and the wounded General James Clinton retreating with his men through Popolopen Gorge. The forts were razed by the British, and the iron chain they sought to defend was dismantled. The Rebels installed another

Hudson River Chain The Hudson River Chains were a series of chain booms constructed across the Hudson River at West Point by Continental Army forces from 1776 to 1778 during the American Revolutionary War. These served as defenses preventing British naval vessels ...

farther upriver. Although the ruins of Fort Montgomery survive and the site is a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

, the Fort Clinton site was destroyed in the 1920s during the construction of

U.S. Route 9W U.S. Route 9W (US 9W) is a north–south U.S. Highway in the states of New Jersey and New York. It begins in Fort Lee, New Jersey, as Fletcher Avenue crosses the US 1–9, US 46, and the Interstate 95 (I-95) approache ...

and the

Bear Mountain Bridge The Bear Mountain Bridge, ceremonially named the Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bridge, is a toll suspension bridge in New York State. It carries US 6 and US 202 across the Hudson River between Bear Mountain State Park in Orange Co ...

. Today, the Fort Clinton site lies within

Bear Mountain State Park Bear Mountain State Park is a state park located on the west bank of the Hudson River in Rockland and Orange counties, New York. The park offers biking, hiking, boating, picnicking, swimming, cross-country skiing, cross-country running, sledd ...

and is used for the Trailside Museum and Zoo.

References

External links

Twin Forts of the Popolopen
{{coord, 41, 19, 15, N, 73, 59, 17, W, display=title Clinton New York (state) historic sites Military installations established in 1776 U.S. Route 9W Hudson River Clinton New York (state) in the American Revolution Orange County, New York Ruins in the United States 1776 establishments in New York (state)