The Civil War Battles for Fort Fisher
by John Moseley, Interpreter III, Fort Fisher State Historic Site
The Gibraltar of the South
Construction of defensive works on Federal Point commenced in the spring of 1861 as a series of batteries about a mile north of New Inlet. On July 4, 1862, Colonel William Lamb assumed command and recognized the importance of Fort Fisher to the defense of the Cape Fear and of Wilmington. Under his direction and design, expansion of the fortress began.
The sea face, equipped with 22 guns, consisted of a series of 12-foot-high batteries bounded on the south end by two larger batteries 45 and 60 feet high. The land face was equipped with 25 guns distributed among its 15 mounds. Each mound was 32 feet high with interior rooms used as bombproofs, or powder magazines. Extending in front of the entire land face was a nine-foot-high palisade fence and a minefield.
Lamb’s plans were to build Fort Fisher from mostly of earth and sand. Unlike older fortifications built of brick and mortar, this type of construction technique was ideal for absorbing the explosive impact of the higher velocity and the heavier shot from the new rifled cannons.
The Plan to Close Wilmington
Confederate General Robert E. Lee never doubted the importance of preserving Wilmington and his army's "lifeline" via the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad. Whatever merit lay in the strength of the Cape Fear River defenses, the continued success of Wilmington and its contraband shipping trade was due largely to neglect afforded by Northern attention being focused elsewhere. But by the summer of 1864, North Carolina's thriving little port had taken on new political significance in the eyes of policy makers in Washington. By mid-October 1864 it finally became clear to authorities in Richmond that Wilmington would probably be the target of a Federal assault.
The December 1864 Attack
Federal forces concocted an ambitious scheme to blow down the walls of Fort Fisher and stun its garrison into submission by means of a giant floating bomb. In the early morning hours of December 24, the "powder vessel," USS Louisiana, exploded harmlessly doing no damage to Fort Fisher.
On Christmas morning, Federal troops hit the beach and strove to secure a beachhead. As Confederate infantry retreated, the leading elements of Federal infantry pushed to within 75 yards of Shepherd's Battery. But due to a disagreement over the strength of the fort and the capability of the attacking force, Federal troops were ordered to return to their transports. With the weather deteriorating, more than 600 Federal troops and several hundred Rebel prisoners were stranded on the beach for the next two days. As the Union fleet sailed away, Colonel Confederate gunners at Fort Fisher fired a defiant parting volley toward the "beaten" enemy.
The January 1865 Attack
On the morning of January 13, Federal troops began their second amphibious landing on Feder- al Point. Forty percent of the Federal army at- tacking Fort Fisher were freed Africans formed into the United States Colored Troops, or USCTs. As thousands of Federal troops poured ashore, Federal ironclad gunboats opened the second massive bombardment of Fort Fisher. Two days later, with nearly all the land face guns in ruins, Federal forces determine that conditions are favorable for an infantry assault.
The Federal naval landing party, without waiting to coordinate the assault with Federal army attacked. As it rushed headlong to the Northeast Bastion, armed only with revolvers and cutlasses, the attackers were mauled severely, and forced back up the beach in a perfect rout. But more than 3,000 Union troops were crowding the base, slopes, and walls of Shepherd’s Battery and pouring onto the parade ground behind the fort. Con- federate defenders along the Northeast Bastion were stunned to see several large Union flags waving over Shepherd’s Battery.
The Confederates were outnumbered and in desperation, the Confederates unleashed a long-range fire from guns along the sea face and at Battery Buchanan that killed and maimed friend and foe alike. Two Confederate counter- attacks failed to drive the Federal troops out of the fort. As Federal mop-up operations are underway, the 27th USCT marched southward down the peninsula, along the sea.
The Aftermath
The exact number of casualties in the battles for Fort Fisher will never be known. Confederate records are sketchy, and wide discrepancies exist between the various Federal numbers published. The best estimate for Federal troops is 347 killed, 1308 wounded, and 57 missing soldiers, sailors and Marines. Since there were no reports detailing Confederate causalities the best estimates are 494 killed, 364 wounded and about 1500 prisoners. For their actions during the sav- age fighting at Fort Fisher, 72 Medals of Honor were award- ed to Federal soldiers, sailors and Marines.
After the war, Federal troops were stationed at Fort Fisher until called to western duty stations in 1868. By 1871 to keep the Cape Fear River from silting up, the Army Corps of Engineers closed off New Inlet but building a dam called “the Rocks.” In 1932, the United Daughters of the Confederacy dedicated a monument to the Confederate defenders in “battle acre” the location of Colonel Lamb’s headquarters.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
1. Browning, Jr. Robert M. From Cape Charles to Cape Fear: The North Atlantic Blockading Squadron during the Civil War. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press. 1993
2. Fonvelle, Jr., Chris. The Wilmington Campaign: Last Rays of Departing Hope. Mason City: Savas Publishing. 1997.
3. Gragg, Rod. Confederate Goliath: The Battle of Fort Fisher. New York: HarperCollins. 1991
4. Moore, Mark A. The Wilmington Campaign and the Battles for Fort Fisher. Mason City: Savas Publishing. 1999.
5. Wise, Stephen R. Lifeline of the Confederacy: Blockade Running during the Civil War. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press. 1991
