View attachment 9200
When many of us think of the defenses of Wilmington, North Carolina or the Cape Fear River during the ACW Fort Fisher comes to mind however there was another significant fortification nearby called Fort Caswell. Fort Caswell was a pentagon shaped masonry fortification at the mouth of the Cape Fear River on Oak Island. The fort was constructed between 1826-1836 and named after Richard Caswell who was the first governor of North Carolina.
Fort Caswell was under caretaker status when North Carolina militia took the fort without a fight in 1861. During the war the guns at Caswell would serve as a safehaven to blockade runners headed for Wilmington. The fort's gunners would also occasionally duel with ships on blockade duty that were within range. When Fort Fisher fell in early 1865 Confederate forces saw Fort Caswell would be next and promptly abandoned the fort on January 17, 1865. Before leaving the position Confederate forces burnt a majority of the structures within and around the fort. One of the 5 walls of the forts was nearly destroyed by a magazine explosion after southern forces lit the magazine on fire to prevent its stores from falling into Union hands. However, mutiple guns were captured when Union troops arrived to garrison the fort which would remain in their hands for the rest of the war.
View attachment 9201
The fort would continue its service during the Spanish-American war as a coastal defense position with new batteries being constructed on the island. These batteries would continue to serve all the way through World War II when the position served as a submarine lookout post and supply depot for the U.S. Navy.
View attachment 9202
Following World War II the ground the fort sat on was sold to the North Carolina Baptist Convention who founded the North Carolina Baptist Assembly on Oak Island. Today the assembly runs the location as a retreat for various youth summer camps and also has a convention center on the site. From doing some research online I've found the site is off limits to the public however if you get in touch with the NCBA and let them know you're interested in the fort and genuinely interested in its historical value they can arrange a time for you to tour the site. The site still houses the ruins of the original fort, multiple Endicott period batteries, and buildings built by the military. If you search "Fort Caswell" on Google Earth the forts remains can easily be seen.
http://www.fortcaswell.com/home/
http://fortwiki.com/Fort_Caswell