Fort Jefferson
Dry Tortugas N.P. - Florida

Fort Jefferson was first conceived by the government of the United States as part of a system of coastal defense after the War of 1812. The U.S. Army of Engineers considered that the Dry Tortugas had a strategic location in the control of the shipping routes to and from the ports of the United States in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

In 1846, U.S. Army Lt. Horatio Wright landed on Garden Key and began directing the construction of the new fort. The plans for the massive fortress were ambitious and demanded heavy manpower and the transportation of building materials and equipment to this remote location 68 miles west of Key West. The six-sided fort extends more than half-mile and covers 11 of the 16 acres of Garden Key. The work was performed during the early years largely by slaves from Key West. Construction of the fort continued for over 30 years, however, it was never completed. The techonological military advances and the development of new weapons made the fort obsolete and its construction was abandoned on 1862.

The fort walls rise 50 feet and 8 feet thick. They form a two-leveled system of archways, passages and galleries with more than 2,000 arches.

The building of this massive fortification required an estimated of 16 million bricks. Ft. Jefferson is the largest all-brick structure in North America. Below the fort there is a complex system of 109 cisterns with originally had the purpose of collecting rainwater for the supply of fresh water to the personnel stationed in the fort.

Visitors are most impressed with the symmetry and simple beauty of Fort Jefferson archways. They provide to the ammateur and professional photographers a continous extraordinary photo views with the change of light and the countles of angles offered by the thousands of columns and arches throught the fort. The limited of number of visitors in the park at any given time contributes to this magnificent photographic opportunities.

During the Civil War, the Army used it as a prison for captured deserters. The most famous inmate was Dr. Samuel Mudd. Dr. Mudd was among the four "Lincoln Conspirators" imprisioned at Fort Jefferson in 1865 convicted of complicity in President Abraham Lincoln's assassination. Dr. Mudd had set the broken leg of Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth, although he always claimed he was not aware of the crime committed by his patient. During his imprisionment, Dr. Mudd fought against the epidemic outbreak of yellow fever that was reducing the army forces. In consideration for his efforts he was pardoned four years later in 1869.

Fort Jefferson was abandoned by the Army in 1873 after a severe hurricane. It was briefly commissioned again for military purposes during World War II. Some of the internal walls in the parade grounds show the marks caused by the soldiers shooting their rifles while stationed here during this short period. In 1908 the area became a wildlife refuge to protect the sooty tern rookery from egg collectors. On January 4, 1935 it was proclaimed as Fort Jefferson National Monument and on October 26, 1992 became the centerpiece of Dry Tortugas National Park.

The visitor that stands in the middle of the old parade grounds can appreciate the size of this fort as he or she looks toward the surrounding walls. From the ground one can observe also the black lighthouse on top of the eastern walls.

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