Lookout Place or Fort Hill (also known as Fort Izard) 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 ...
British garrison, or earthen mound-fortress roughly 44 feet square at the top of La Tourette Hill in
Historic Richmondtown
Historic Richmond Town is an authentic town and farm museum complex in the neighborhood of Richmondtown, Staten Island, in New York City. It is located near the geographical center of the island, at the junction of Richmond Road and Arthur Kill ...
,
Staten Island, New York
Staten Island ( ) is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey b ...
. The redoubt was constructed in 1776 by
British Regulars {{no footnotes, date=August 2015
Commonly used to describe the Napoleonic era British foot soldiers, the British Regulars were known for their distinct red uniform and well-disciplined combat performance. Known famously in British folklore as the ' ...
during the occupation of Richmond County. General
William Howe planned his successful capture of New York City while encamped on the Island, along with 30,000 British and
Hessian
A Hessian is an inhabitant of the German state of Hesse.
Hessian may also refer to:
Named from the toponym
*Hessian (soldier), eighteenth-century German regiments in service with the British Empire
**Hessian (boot), a style of boot
**Hessian f ...
soldiers joining to suppress the rebellion after the arrival of his brother Admiral
Richard Howe
Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe, (8 March 1726 – 5 August 1799) was a British naval officer. After serving throughout the War of the Austrian Succession, he gained a reputation for his role in amphibious operations aga ...
. The fort overlooked a fresh water spring about 200 feet directly below (known as the Lord Howe Spring), the Old Mill Road,
Fresh Kills
Fresh Kills (from the Middle Dutch word '' kille'', meaning "riverbed" or "water channel") is a stream and freshwater estuary in the western portion of the New York City borough of Staten Island. It is the site of the Fresh Kills Landfill, forme ...
which is a tributary of
Richmond Creek, St. Andrews Church and the town of Richmond, then referred to as
Cuckoldstown, in the valley just below La Tourette Hill.
The hilltop was widely denuded of trees by the British during the war, allowing the soldiers to have unobstructed views of
Lower New York Bay
Lower New York Bay is a section of New York Bay south of the Narrows (the strait between Staten Island and Brooklyn). The eastern end of the Bay is marked by two spits of land, Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and Rockaway, Queens. The waterway b ...
and the
Arthur Kill
The Arthur Kill (sometimes referred to as the Staten Island Sound) is a tidal strait between Staten Island (also known as Richmond County), New York and Union and Middlesex counties, New Jersey. It is a major navigational channel of the Port of ...
. It is now the
La Tourette Golf Course.
Extensive archeological digs have taken place at the beginning of the 20th century, revealing all manner of British accuetrament, from remnants of weaponry to soldier coat buttons, shoe buckles and pottery fragments.
[New York Times, November 2, 1919]
Robert Rogers Robert Rogers may refer to:
Politics
* Robert Rogers (Irish politician) (died 1719), Irish politician, MP for Cork City 1692–1699
*Robert Rogers (Manitoba politician) (1864–1936), Canadian politician
* Robert Rogers, Baron Lisvane (born 1950), ...
created a new unit while encamped at Richmondtown called The
Queen's Rangers
The Queen's Rangers, also known as the Queen's American Rangers, and later Simcoe's Rangers, were a Loyalist military unit of the American Revolutionary War. Formed in 1776, they were named for Queen Charlotte, consort of George III. The Queen' ...
named after Charlotte, wife of
King George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...
.
References
* Bayles, Richard M. 1887. History of Richmond County (Staten Island), New York: from its discovery to the present time. New York: L.E. Preston.
* Morris, Ira K. 1898. Morris's Memorial History of Staten Island, New York. New York: Memorial Pub. Co.
* Papas, Phillip. 2007. That ever loyal island: Staten Island and the American Revolution. New York: New York University Press.
{{coord, 40.58061, -74.14599, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NY, display=title
1776 in the United States
New York (state) in the American Revolution
Buildings and structures in Staten Island