timber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, w ...
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C.
In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
.
Built in the weeks following the Union defeat at Bull Run, Fort Worth was situated on a hill north of
Hunting Creek
Hunting Creek is a cove and tributary stream of the Potomac River between the City of Alexandria and Fairfax County in Virginia. It is formed by Cameron Run flowing from the west. The community of Huntington takes its name from the creek. Jones ...
, and Cameron Run, (which feeds into it). From its position on one of the highest points west of Alexandria, the fort overlooked the
Orange and Alexandria Railroad
The Orange and Alexandria Railroad (O&A) was a railroad in Virginia, United States. Chartered in 1848, it eventually extended from Alexandria to Gordonsville, with another section from Charlottesville to Lynchburg. The road played a crucial rol ...
, the
Little River Turnpike
State Route 236 (SR 236) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 29 and US 50 in Fairfax east to SR 400 in Alexandria. SR 236 is a major suburban arterial highway that connects the inde ...
, and the southern approaches to the city of Alexandria, the largest settlement in Union-occupied Northern Virginia. In modern times, the site of Fort Worth sits within the boundaries the City of Alexandria (the land west of Quaker Lane, was annexed from Fairfax County in the 1950s) just off Seminary Road. Fort Worth Ave, a residential street approximates Fort Worth's Civil War location.
It was named for
William Jenkins Worth
William Jenkins Worth (March 1, 1794 – May 7, 1849) was an American officer during the War of 1812, the Second Seminole War, and the Mexican–American War.
Early military career
Worth was commissioned as a first lieutenant in March 1813, s ...
.
Occupation of Alexandria
The occupation of Northern Virginia was peaceful, with the sole exception of the town of Alexandria. There, as
Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...
Elmer E. Ellsworth
Elmer Ephraim Ellsworth (April 11, 1837 – May 24, 1861) was a United States Army officer and law clerk who was the first conspicuous casualty and the first Union officer to die in the American Civil War. He was killed while removin ...
, commander of the New York Fire
Zouaves
The Zouaves were a class of light infantry regiments of the French Army serving between 1830 and 1962 and linked to French North Africa; as well as some units of other countries modelled upon them. The zouaves were among the most decorated unit ...
(
11th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 11th New York Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment of the Union Army in the early years of the American Civil War. The regiment was organized in New York City in May 1861 as a Zouave regiment, known for its unusual dress and drill sty ...
), entered a local hotel to remove the
Confederate flag
The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...
flying above it, he was shot and killed by James Jackson, the proprietor. Ellsworth was one of the first men killed in the American Civil War. Throughout the remainder of the war, Alexandria would lean strongly towards the Confederate government, necessitating continued occupation by a Union
garrison
A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...
.
Washington D.C. Fortifications
Over the seven weeks that followed the occupation of northern Virginia, forts were constructed along the banks of the Potomac River and at the approaches to each of the three major bridges ( Chain Bridge, Long Bridge, and Aqueduct Bridge) connecting Virginia to Washington and Georgetown.
While the Potomac River forts were being built, planning and surveying was ordered for an enormous new ring of forts to protect the city. Unlike the fortifications under construction, the new forts would defend the city in all directions, not just the most direct route through Arlington. In mid-July, this work was interrupted by the
First Battle of Bull Run
The First Battle of Bull Run (the name used by Union forces), also known as the Battle of First Manassas
. As the
Army of Northeastern Virginia
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
marched south to Manassas, the soldiers previously assigned to construction duties marched instead to battle. In the days that followed the Union defeat at Bull Run, panicked efforts were made to defend Washington from what was perceived as an imminent Confederate attack. The makeshift trenches and earthworks that resulted were largely confined to Arlington and the direct approaches to Washington.
On July 26, 1861, five days after the battle, Maj. Gen.
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...
was named commander of the military district of Washington and the subsequently renamed
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confede ...
. Upon arriving in Washington, McClellan was appalled by the condition of the city's defenses.
In no quarter were the dispositions for defense such as to offer a vigorous resistance to a respectable body of the enemy, either in the position and numbers of the troops or the number and character of the defensive works... not a single defensive work had been commenced on the Maryland side. There was nothing to prevent the enemy shelling the city from heights within easy range, which could be occupied by a hostile column almost without resistance.
To remedy the situation, one of McClellan's first orders upon taking command was to greatly expand the defenses of Washington. At all points of the compass, forts and entrenchments would be constructed in sufficient strength to defeat any attack. Alexandria, which contained the southern terminus of the
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, abbreviated as the C&O Canal and occasionally called the "Grand Old Ditch," operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River between Washington, D.C. and Cumberland, Maryland. It replaced the Potomac Canal, ...
and one of the largest ports in the Chesapeake Bay, was an object of "anxious study."
Planning and construction
In August 1861, Gen. McClellan assigned Gen. John G. Barnard to take charge of construction to begin creation of a complete system of defenses.
Gen.
Horatio Wright
Horatio Gouverneur Wright (March 6, 1820 – July 2, 1899) was an engineer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He took command of the VI Corps in May 1864 following the death of General John Sedgwick. In this capacity, he ...
, who had overseen the construction of Fort Ellsworth, and Gen.
John Newton
John Newton (; – 21 December 1807) was an English evangelical Anglican cleric and slavery abolitionist. He had previously been a captain of slave ships and an investor in the slave trade. He served as a sailor in the Royal Navy (after forc ...
, who was in charge of the forts south of Four Mile Run, supervised the construction and managed the flow of men and materials.
The fort was constructed upon
Vaucluse
Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.100-pound Parrott rifle.
My dearest L : I received your lovely letter, and would have answered it immediately, but that I was taken sick the day after I got it, and have been sick ever since. We received orders late Wednesday night to move our two companies which had been guarding Fort Ellsworth to Fort Worth, the next morning, Thanksgiving Day. So we were obliged to give up our comfortable quarters, and take up our line of march for an unfinished earthwork, on the outskirts of our line of fortifications; where instead of spending our time drilling on the guns, and teaching our men something useful, we are forced to take up our axes and shovels, and go to work upon the Fort. In Ellsworth we had very nice quarters within the works, and everything convenient, and were able to crib a little time every day to ourselves. Here we are encamped on a side hill, outside the work, the mud about eight inches deep, very little to eat, and plenty of work. If you could just look in upon us now, and see how I live, you would scarcely believe your eyes. Major Doull has not, as yet, received his tents, and he and I have to occupy the same tent, which of course is pitched right in the mud, such things as boards for flooring being quite unheard of, and it is so full of trunks, cooking utensils, our beds, etc., besides our saddles, which we have to keep there, having no stable, that it is almost impossible to move around. We almost froze the first night, and as I was sick in bed, and felt the cold very much, we foraged around and found a little cast-iron stove, which we rigged up in the tent, and except that we were smoked out like two woodchucks nine or ten times in twenty-four hours, we were more comfortable. Then our "Bill of Fare," my I told the boys this morning when we succeeded in getting our morning meal (a piece of government beef and a tin cup of coffee) at one o'clock, after running around in the cold and snow for three or four hours, that I thought I would give about one month's pay to have one good meal at home. You must not think that we complain, however.
They moved on to Fort Blenker, on Friday January 17, 1862.
Fort Blenker, January 19, 1862.
.... On Friday morning, while we were all hard at work in Fort Worth, Major Doull received orders to march, immediately to this post with two companies. In less than two hours' time, we had torn down our nice winter quarters, which we had built with so much trouble; left our nice log cook-houses and stables, and were on the march; I, in command of the troops, Doull having gone ahead to arrange for our relieving the troops at Blenker.