Let's Learn From the Past: Pittsburgh's Civil War fortifications

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Let's Learn From the Past: Pittsburgh's Civil War fortifications
June 20, 2013 12:05 am


By Breanna Smith / History Center communications assistant

One hundred and fifty years ago, the threat of a Confederate attack rallied the city of Pittsburgh to protect its people and its essential artillery supplies during the Civil War.

When Gen. Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army began to march north in the spring of 1863, an invasion of Pittsburgh seemed imminent. Fearful of an attack, the city banded together to build 27 fortifications across the region, including more than 10 within the city.

Numerous local companies donated their workforce to help protect the city as factories and mines shut down so workers could help build forts and produce weapons. Pittsburgh Mayor Benair Sawyer even ordered local bars and saloons to close to avert any distraction from the war effort -- although some of them refused.

One of the largest local forts was Fort Black in Greenfield on what is now Bigelow Street between Parade and Shields streets. Like the other forts, it consisted of mounds of dirt piled 5 feet high so soldiers could stand and fire at opposing armies. Several forts were also built to protect the Allegheny Arsenal in Lawrenceville.

The arsenal provided Union forces with much of their weapons and munitions. With its industrial might and strategic location at the head of the Ohio River, Pittsburgh became known as the "Arsenal of the Union."

By early July 1863, the forts were nearing completion and the city was poised for an attack. When word of the Union's victory at Gettysburg reached Pittsburgh, local residents realized their city was no longer in danger. Signal rockets were fired for five minutes from each of the 27 forts in celebration.

For the rest:

 
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A list and current status of the fortifications. The fear these people must have felt to do this.

Even without opposition, it would have taken a tremendous effort on Lee's part to even approach Pittsburgh. It kinda reminds me of the panic on the West Coast after Pearl Harbor...

Pittsburgh Civil War Defenses

(1863 - 1864), Pittsburgh area
In June 1863 feverish attempts were made to surround the city with extensive earthwork fortifications. There were a total of 18 redoubts, 16 detached batteries, and one bastioned fort, built along a 12 to 15-mile line around the city, but most were never completely finished. Only one work was ever garrisoned, and most were probably never armed. There was never a real threat from Confederate invasion. The works survived for several decades.
North of the Allegheny River were:
Fort No. One, aka Fort McKee (4), a redoubt located on "Cemetery Hill" (Uniondale Cemetery) in Manchester, on Colfax Street near Island Ave.. No remains.
Fort No. Two, aka Fort Brunot or Fort McKeever, a square redoubt located in North Side (formerly Allegheny City) along present-day Marshall Ave. on the grounds of Pressley Ridge School. Possible trace remains.
Fort No. Three, a redoubt located on "Robinson's Hill" in North Side near present-day Marshall Ave. and Perrysville Ave.. No remains.
Fort No. Four, aka Fort Fulton or Fort Childs, a 75-yard diameter circular redoubt located in Spring Hill, due east of Fort Three, south of Williams Road, south of the present-day Northview Heights housing project. Portion of walls still extant in the heavily wooded area near the base of a radio mast tower.
Fort No. Five, aka Fort Kirkwood, a redoubt located on "Lowrie's Hill" in Millvale, on Logan Street near St. Nicholas Cemetery. No remains.

South of the Allegheny River in the "East End" area were:
An unnamed redoubt located in Morningside along the river opposite Sharpsburg, north of Greenwood Street up the hill from Duffield Street. No remains. A supporting battery was to the southeast along the western ridge of the Morningside Valley, along present-day Duffield Street. No remains.
Fort Croghan (3), a battery located on "Black Horse Hill" at present-day Stanton Ave. and Morningside Street, near the Stanton Heights Shopping Center. Trace remains in wooded area.
Fort Negley, a redoubt located on "Winebiddle Hill" west of Negleystown, at present-day Hillcrest Street off North Fairmont. No remains. A supporting battery was to the southeast downhill of the fort, above present-day Negley Ave.. No remains.
An unnamed redoubt located on "Davis' Hill", above Winebiddle Street at the end of Hillcrest Street, at the present-day Fort Pitt School playground. No remains. Two supporting batteries were located to the south at Bloomfield (Winebiddle Street south of Penn Ave.), and to the southwest along present-day Penn Ave. just west of Allegheny Cemetery, now St. Francis Hospital. No remains.
Another battery was located south of present Penn Ave. near Main Street at the northern end of the Bloomfield Bridge. No remains.

In the "Uptown" area were:
Fort Herron, aka Fort Herron Hill, a strong battery located on Herron's Hill. It was completed and garrisoned by a local militia unit. The original proposed name was to be Fort Ely. The site became the Herron Hill Reservoir in 1872. Some outer trenchworks survived until the 1920's.
Fort Anderson, a battery located along the old Braddock Road, now Fifth Ave., in the Oakland area. Site now part of the "Upper Campus" of Pittsburgh University, along University Drive. No remains.
Fort Zug, a battery located in the West Oakland area, on the ridge behind the Fifth Ave. entrance to Iron City College. No remains.
An unnamed battery was located on "Gazzam's Hill", just west of present-day Robinson Street, near Burrows Street. The hill was leveled for development in the 1940's. No remains.
Another unnamed battery (or two adjacent batteries) was located above present-day Soho Street near Aliquippa Street, at the northern end of the Birmingham Bridge. No remains.
Fort Mahoney, a vague reference to this name is made for the area at Webster Ave. and Roberts Street. This location does not correspond with any known sites shown on period maps.

South of the Ohio River in the West End area was:
An unnamed battery located on a bluff ("River Hill") near the mouth of Saw Mill Run, near today's West End Overlook. No remains.

On Brunot's Island near McKees Rocks a battery was planned in December 1860 during a local crisis to prevent the shipment of heavy ordnance from the Allegheny Arsenal to the south. It may or may not have actually been emplaced. One gun was actually emplaced below the city at "Glass House Riffle" (location ?).

Located in Crafton was an unnamed redoubt sometimes referred to as the Crow's Nest, covering the Steubenville Pike approach from the Chartiers Creek Valley. Site now on a rise above East Steuben Street, bounded by Clairtonica, Round Top, and Strathmore Streets. Hollywood Street dead-ends in the interior of the former earthwork. No remains.

South of the Monongahela River in the "South Hills" area were:
Fort Robert Smalls, a circular redoubt located on "McGuire's Hill" at the mouth of Becks Run, built by the city's free blacks. Survived until the 1940's, site located in Arlington Heights area on the rise beside Devlin Street and St. Peter's Cemetery. No remains.
Fort Laughlin, aka Fort McKinley or Fort Ormsby, a circular redoubt located on "Ormsby's Hill", site now Arlington Park on Arlington Ave., bounded by Fernleaf, Salisbury, Sterling, and Fort Hill Streets. No remains.
Fort Jones, a redoubt located in Mount Oliver. Possibly also known as Fort Jackson. Razed in 1868 for St. Joseph's Church at 438 Ormsby Ave.. No remains.
An unnamed redoubt was located in the Allentown area, site now on Proctor Way between Arlington Ave. and Amanda Street. Razed soon after the war. No remains. A supporting battery was located northwest, east of Grandview Park, near present-day McLain Street and Beltzhoover Blvd.. No remains.
An unnamed redoubt was located on the hill in present Grandview Park (1879) at Beltzhoover and Bailey Aves.. Site was leveled in the 1890's to build the still extant water storage tanks. A brick powder magazine was located nearby at Washington and Beltzhoover Aves.. No remains.
Fort Mechanic, a strong battery located on "Coal Hill" in the Mt. Washington area. It was reported completed with a public flag raising on June 27, 1863. Site on Bailey Ave., just west of the Monongahela Incline (1870), behind the cell phone tower and housing complex on 122 Bailey Ave. No remains.
Fort McKnight, a redoubt located in the Mt. Washington area at old Cowanville. Razed after the war, site now the play field behind the Prospect School (1871, 1931) at Prospect and Cowan Streets. No remains.
An unnamed redoubt (Fort Wood ?) was located on "Coal Hill" in the Duquesne Heights area, site now behind the Duquesne Incline (1877) upper station, in the block bounded by Virginia Ave., Oneida, Meridan, and West Sycamore Streets. No remains.
An unnamed redoubt was located overlooking the mouth of Saw Mill Run, at the north end of present-day Fingal Street near Reese Street. Site now housing and a radio station. No remains. A supporting battery was located just south, site now a graded terrace and fill deposit behind (west of) a ballfield on Bradley Street. Possible trenchwork trace remains.
An unnamed circular redoubt (Fort Wood ? or Fort Schultz ?) was located on the back side of "Coal Hill" to cover the southern approach from the Saw Mill Run valley. The still extant earthwork is located near the south end of Fingal Street, within the Duquesne Heights Greenway, a city-owned nature reserve. This work, although overgrown, is the best remaining example of all the area defense works.

In the Greenfield area was:
Fort Black, aka Fort Chess, Fort Lytle, or Fort Squirrel Hill, a massive bastioned earthwork fort that was completed, and remained standing until demolished in 1928. Site now on Bigelow Street between Parade and Shields Streets. No remains. A brick powder magazine was built nearby on present-day Beechwood Blvd. at Alger Street (or Kaercher Street at Greenfield Road ?). No remains.

Located in Turtle Creek was an unnamed redoubt on "McKinney's Hill", behind the Braddock Cemetery off Wolff Ave.. No remains.

Camp Copeland (1863 - 1865), aka Camp Reynolds, Braddock, a regional recruitment camp located at "Braddock's Field", the site of the 1755 Battle of Monongahela. Site became a massive steel manufacturing complex in the late 19th century, but closed in the early 1980's.
Camp Howe (date ?), undetermined location.
Camp Wilkins (date ?), Pittsburgh (undetermined location).
Camp Wright (1861), Oakmont, site near the Carnegie Library at 700 Allegheny River Blvd., near the old Hulton railroad station.

(special thanks to Bill McCarthy for providing info on Pittsburgh's Civil War Defenses)

https://www.northamericanforts.com/East/pa-pitt.html#war
587

Cheers,
USS ALASKA
 
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Didn't realize there was another thread on this topic...

https://civilwartalk.com/threads/june-1863-pittsburgh-digs-in-prepares-for-war.85785/

Interactive map showing fortifications in and around Pittsburgh:

http://newsinteractive.post-gazette.com/forts0623/

The link provided by @Getty150 works and shows a good map for their locations even if the 'interactive' part doesn't seem to work.

The one thing that 95% of them have in common is the notation "no remains".

Indeed sir, since they were never armed, and no battles took place there, I guess there was really no reason to preserve them and repurpose the land. It always surprises me how much of the fortifications around D.C. remain, given the value of the real-estate in those neighborhoods.
653

Cheers,
USS ALASKA
 
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