Fort William and Mary was a colonial fortification in Britain's worldwide system of defenses, defended by soldiers of the

Province of New Hampshire The Province of New Hampshire was a colony of England and later a British province in North America. The name was first given in 1629 to the territory between the Merrimack and Piscataqua rivers on the eastern coast of North America, and was na ...

who reported directly to the royal governor. The fort, originally known as "The Castle," was situated on the island of New Castle,

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

, at the mouth of the

Piscataqua River The Piscataqua River ( Abenaki: ''Pskehtekwis'') is a tidal river forming the boundary of the U.S. states of New Hampshire and Maine from its origin at the confluence of the Salmon Falls River and Cochecho River. The drainage basin of the ri ...

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

. It was renamed Fort William and Mary circa 1692, after the accession of the monarchs William III and

Mary II Mary II (30 April 166228 December 1694) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England, List of Scottish monarchs, Scotland, and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland, co-reigning with her husband, William III of England, William III & II, from 1689 unt ...

to the British throne.Roberts, pp. 498-499 It was captured by Patriot forces, recaptured, and later abandoned by the British in the Revolutionary War. The fort was renamed Fort Constitution in 1808 following rebuilding. The fort was further rebuilt and expanded through 1899 and served actively through World War II.

Colonial period

First fortified by the British prior to 1632, the fort guarded access to the harbor at

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is admi ...

and served as the colony's main munitions depot. The fort also served to protect

Kittery, Maine Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals. The southernmost tow ...

, on the opposite shore, which was raided numerous times by the tribes of the

Wabanaki Confederacy The Wabanaki Confederacy (''Wabenaki, Wobanaki'', translated to "People of the Dawn" or "Easterner") is a North American First Nations in Canada, First Nations and Native Americans in the United States, Native American confederation of four prin ...

during the

French and Indian Wars The French and Indian Wars were a series of conflicts that occurred in North America between 1688 and 1763, some of which indirectly were related to the European dynastic wars. The title ''French and Indian War'' in the singular is used in the ...

. Shadrach Walton commanded the fort during different periods at the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th century.

American Revolution

In 1774, it was the only permanently occupied military post in New Hampshire.

1774 Raid

On December 14, 1774, local Patriots from the Portsmouth area, led by

John Langdon John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, stormed the post (overcoming a six-man

caretaker detachment A military caretaker or caretaker detachment is a group of one or more personnel assigned to maintain for future use a military base, fortification, or other facility that is ungarrisoned but not abandoned. Naval reserve fleets and military aircraf ...

) and seized the garrison's powder, which was distributed through several New Hampshire towns for potential use in the looming struggle against Great Britain. On December 15, 1774, patriots led by John Sullivan again raided the fort, this time seizing numerous cannon.

Fort Constitution

Following the Revolution, the fort was called Castle Fort or Fort Castle. The state gave Fort Point, on which the fort stood, to the federal government in 1791. In 1800, the

Portsmouth Naval Shipyard The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, often called the Portsmouth Navy Yard, is a United States Navy shipyard in Kittery on the southern boundary of Maine near the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Founded in 1800, PNS is U.S. Navy's oldest continu ...

was established upriver on Fernald's Island (now part of

Seavey's Island Seavey's Island, site of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, is located in the Piscataqua River in Kittery, Maine, opposite Portsmouth, New Hampshire. It encompasses . History What is today called Seavey's Island was originally five separate islands c ...

), and the fort was rebuilt under the Second System of US fortifications. Walls were doubled in height and new brick buildings were added. Work was completed in 1808 and the defense renamed "Fort Constitution".Weaver, pp. 101–103 On July 4, 1809, an accidental explosion marred

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...

celebrations at the fort, killing a number of soldiers and civilians. The

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

's report on fortifications for December 1811 describes Fort Constitution as "an enclosed irregular work of masonry, mounting 36 heavy guns... (with) brick barracks for two companies..." During the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It ...

the fort was occupied and expanded with Walbach Tower, a

Martello tower Martello towers, sometimes known simply as Martellos, are small defensive forts that were built across the British Empire during the 19th century, from the time of the French Revolutionary Wars onwards. Most were coastal forts. They stand u ...

with a single 32-pounder

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder duri ...

, being built in 1814.Fort Constitution
from American Forts Network During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polic ...

, Fort Constitution was projected to be rebuilt as a three-tiered

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies und ...

fort under the Third System of US fortifications. However, advances in weaponry, particularly armored, steam-powered warships with heavy rifled guns, rendered the masonry design obsolete before it was finished. The fort's construction was abandoned in 1867 with the Second System fort largely intact and two walls from the Third System built around parts of it. At some point in the Civil War era, four 100-pounder (6.4 inch, 163 mm)

Parrott rifle The Parrott rifle was a type of muzzle-loading rifled artillery weapon used extensively in the American Civil War. Parrott rifle The gun was invented by Captain Robert Parker Parrott, a West Point graduate. He was an American soldier and inv ...

s were mounted at the fort, and remained there at least through late 1903. In 1897 construction began on Battery Farnsworth, located under the hill on which the ruins of Walbach Tower stand, as part of the large-scale Endicott Program of seacoast fortifications. It was part of the

Coast Defenses of Portsmouth The Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth was a United States Army Coast Artillery Corps harbor defense command. It coordinated the coast defenses of Portsmouth, New Hampshire and the nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine from 1900 to 1950, ...

, along with

Fort Stark Fort Stark is a former military fortification in New Castle, New Hampshire, United States. Located at Jerry's Point (also called Jaffrey's Point) on the southeastern tip of New Castle Island, most of the surviving fort was developed in the e ...

and

Fort Foster Fort Foster (now known as Fort Foster Historic Site) is a Second Seminole War era fort in central Florida, located south of current-day Zephyrhills in Pasco County. Fort Foster was originally built in December 1836 under the direction of Lieut ...

. The battery was completed in 1899. Named for Brigadier General

Elon J. Farnsworth Elon John Farnsworth (July 30, 1837 – July 3, 1863) was a Union Army captain in the American Civil War. He commanded Brigade 1, Division 3 of the Cavalry Corps (Union Army) from June 28, 1863 to July 3, 1863, when he was mortally wounded and die ...

, the installation included two 8-inch (203 mm) M1888 guns on

disappearing carriage A disappearing gun, a gun mounted on a ''disappearing carriage'', is an obsolete type of artillery which enabled a gun to hide from direct fire and observation. The overwhelming majority of carriage designs enabled the gun to rotate bac ...

s.Fort Constitution at FortWiki.com
/ref> The battery was accompanied in 1904 by Battery Hackleman, with two 3-inch (76 mm) M1903 guns on pedestal mounts. A mine casemate for an underwater minefield in the harbor was built; Battery Hackleman was built primarily to defend this minefield against

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

s. After the

American entry into World War I American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

in early 1917, many guns were removed from coast defenses for potential service on the Western Front. Both 8-inch guns of Battery Farnsworth were removed for use as

railway artillery A railway gun, also called a railroad gun, is a large artillery piece, often surplus naval artillery, mounted on, transported by, and fired from a specially designed railway wagon. Many countries have built railway guns, but the best-known are ...

in October 1917 and were not returned to the fort. In 1920 a mine casemate was built next to Battery Farnsworth to replace a similar facility at

. In World War II Battery Hackleman's 3-inch guns were sent to a new battery of the same name at Fort H. G. Wright on

Fisher's Island, New York Fishers Island (Pequot: ''Munnawtawkit'') is an island that is part of Southold, New York, United States at the eastern end of Long Island Sound, off the southeastern coast of Connecticut across Fishers Island Sound. About long and wide, it ...

. They were replaced by two 3-inch (76 mm) M1902 guns from Battery Hays at nearby

. In 1940-1944 the

Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth The Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth was a United States Army Coast Artillery Corps harbor defense command. It coordinated the coast defenses of Portsmouth, New Hampshire and the nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine from 1900 to 1950, ...

were garrisoned by the 22nd Coast Artillery Regiment. Also, a mine observation station was built atop Battery Farnsworth. Battery Hackleman was disarmed by 1948 and the fort was turned over to the Coast Guard. Battery Hackleman was demolished, but Battery Farnsworth can still be seen. Given back to the state in 1961, Fort Constitution State Park was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...

in 1973 and is today open to the public.

The lighthouse

Since 1771 the fort has been home to a lighthouse. The current installation, the

Portsmouth Harbor Light Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse is a historic lighthouse located within Fort Constitution in New Castle, New Hampshire, United States. History The station was established in 1771 and was the 10th of 11 light stations established prior to the Amer ...

, was completed in 1878. Its Fourth Order

Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens developed by the French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788–1827) for use in lighthouses. It has been called "the invention that saved a million ships." The design allows the ...

remains a valuable aid to navigation. The tower and the grounds immediately around it are open for scheduled tours.

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

Fort Constitution Historic Site
New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources

from American Forts Network

Additional information at the University of New Hampshire

Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse History

List of all US coastal forts and batteries
at the Coast Defense Study Group, Inc. website
FortWiki, lists most CONUS and Canadian forts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fort William And Mary Forts in New Hampshire, William and Mary

William and Mary William and Mary often refers to: * The joint reign of William III of England (II of Scotland) and Mary II of England (and Scotland) * William and Mary style, a furniture design common from 1700 to 1725 named for the couple William and Mary may ...

Landmarks in New Hampshire New Hampshire in the American Revolution

1774 in the Thirteen Colonies Buildings and structures in Rockingham County, New Hampshire

National Register of Historic Places in Rockingham County, New Hampshire New Castle, New Hampshire American Revolution on the National Register of Historic Places