Fort King George
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Fort King George State Historic Site | |
Location | McIntosh County, Georgia |
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Nearest city | Darien, Georgia |
Coordinates | 31°21′50″N 81°24′54″W / 31.36384°N 81.41493°W |
Area | 12 acres (4.9 ha) |
Built | 1721 |
Architect | Colonel John "Tuscarora Jack" Barnwell |
Architectural style | Earthen palisade |
NRHP reference No. | 71001101 |
Added to NRHP | December 9, 1971[1][2] |
Fort King George State Historic Site is a fort located in the U.S. state of Georgia in McIntosh County, adjacent to Darien. The fort was built in 1721 along what is now known as the Darien River and served as the southernmost outpost of the British Empire in the Americas until 1727. The fort was constructed in what was then considered part of the colony of South Carolina, but was territory later settled as Georgia. It was part of a defensive line intended to encourage settlement along the colony's southern frontier, from the Savannah River to the Altamaha River. Great Britain, France, and Spain were competing to control the American Southeast, especially the Savannah-Altamaha River region.
Fort King George was a hardship post for troops assigned there. A total of 140 officers (including Col. Barnwell) and soldiers died, mostly from camp diseases such as
The fort was a model for General
Operated by the state of Georgia, the fort has been reconstructed and is listed on the
Background information
For nearly 200 years before the establishment of Georgia in 1733, Europeans of various nations had struggled to claim footholds in this vast territory. At one time, it was one of the most coveted regions in all of North America. Its bountiful river systems, the Altamaha, Ogeechee, and Savannah rivers, offered valuable conduits of transportation for empire building during the Age of Mercantilism. Europeans believed they could conquer its Native American peoples. The area's coastline had a labyrinth of barrier islands, mud shoals, sandbars, and impassable rivers that afforded a great natural barrier system for whoever controlled it.
Over time, this territory would become a "debatable land" for which Europe's three mightiest countries of the time: Spain, France, and Great Britain, all competed. This international rivalry brought many outcomes. First, the Spanish founded St. Augustine, Florida in 1565 to protect their shipping lanes for treasure-laden ships sailing up from South America.[4][5]
As the French sought newer fur trade markets in the South, and ultimately the Southeast, French Louisiana was expanded in the late 17th century down the Mississippi and into the Gulf region. To curb French encroachment from the west, and to undermine Spain's traditional claims to areas north of Florida, the British colonists deemed it vital to expand and defend their southern borders, especially at the Savannah River. The resultant clash of European forces affected most of the regional Native American peoples, eventually destroying their traditional cultures and their independence.[6][7]
The imperial struggle contributed in the 1720s to the establishment of Fort King George by the British, built at the headwaters of the Altamaha River, 3 miles (5 km) inland from
The British built Fort King George as a step toward settling the Altamaha River region. The British needed to control the river systems in order to control economic activities and commerce in the Southeast, especially that pertaining to the
Contest for empire in the Southeast
The Spanish were the first to arrive in the Southeast, first with explorers, then with the settlement of
By the mid-17th century, dozens of Spanish missions controlled the southeastern coastline with thousands of Native Americans drawn into and around them. This system centered on missions accompanied with troops occupying presidios.[13]
They created four mission provinces:
Another successful mission was Santo Domingo de Talaje. Established sometime in the early 17th century, this mission was located on a large bluff 3 miles (5 km) up the north branch of the Altamaha River. Native Americans had inhabited the bluff for thousands of years. The English later used this site as the location for Fort King George in the 1720s.
Guale was threatened by the settlement of English Carolina immediately to the north, where Charlestown was established in 1670. Through the late seventeenth century, Carolinian forces and their Indian allies were successful at destroying the Spanish mission system. Throughout the 1670s and 1680s, they attacked and destroyed missions on Saint Catherines Island, St Simons Island, Cumberland Island, and several interior missions situated close to the coast. San Joseph de Sapala on Sapelo Island was destroyed by pirates in 1683, leading to Spanish abandonment of the Guale and Mocama provinces. Likewise, the British and allied forces reduced the Apalachee mission province during the first decade of the 18th century. The surviving mission Indians retreated and aggregated farther south until their remnants were situated just north of the Saint Augustine base near the St. Johns River. During the 1680s, the Carolina colonists had effectively driven the Spanish entirely from the modern Georgia coast. This campaign intensified hostilities between the Spanish and the English. It catalyzed British interest in settling the Savannah-Altamaha River region.[16][17]
Further west, the French were moving down the
In 1702, during the
The Yamasee War of 1715–1717 broke out. This war started because of grave injustices carried out by Carolina traders against their Native American clients. For many years the traders had been systematically cheating the Indians in the fur trade by using bogus weights and measures, applying tough credit standards, severely indebting Native American suppliers, and taking Indian slaves for unpaid debts. Finally, the Yamasee turned on South Carolina and nearly destroyed the colony. Virginia's support and Cherokee warriors helped deflect the Yamasee attacks.
After the surviving Yamasee were expelled, they migrated to the St. Augustine area and cultivated a new alliance with the Spanish. South Carolina was left weak and vulnerable with no military buffer along its southern fringes, and the war alienated the Creek tribes to the west.[25][26]
During this same period, the number of slaves in the colony was growing exponentially to the point that blacks outnumbered whites. The Spanish attempted to incite revolts by offering runaway slaves freedom and land in St. Augustine. They enrolled escaped slaves into the Spanish army.[27]
In 1718, French colonists successfully attacked Pensacola, a settlement controlled by Spanish Florida. By this time, Spain and France had started the War of the Quadruple Alliance. The French success threatened Charlestown officials, who were convinced the French aimed to conquer the Southeast. They built Fort Toulouse had been built in the heart of Creek country earlier that year. The French were more active among the Creek and it appeared as though they had designs to expand further east.[28]
Frightened and upset, the colonists finally exercised their own revolt. They rebelled against the ineffective rule of the Proprietors back in England. South Carolina, being a colony that was governed by eight proprietors from across the ocean, had suffered under a proprietary rule. The economy of the colony was hampered by runaway inflation caused by reckless economic policies and unreasonable restrictions on land ownership and trade regulation. Of graver concern were the issues related to defense. The colonists and their officials wanted greater protection from the enemies on their borders. The Proprietors were not willing to fund greater military development. In 1719, the colonists finally had enough. That year they ousted governor Robert Johnson, a proprietary governor, and chose James Moore, an outspoken opponent of the proprietary rule, as his replacement. Secondly, they sent Carolina planter John Barnwell to petition British Parliament that South Carolina become a Royal colony. It just so happened that Parliament had been taking a greater interest in the colony and the prospects of bringing it under royal dominion. Though the colony was having internal economic problems, overall it was one of the most productive in producing cash crops such as rice and indigo.
Furthermore, the fur trade in the colony, creating nearly a fifth of its exports to Great Britain, was quite lucrative for merchants back in England. Finally, the Yamasee War had made many English officials realize that the preservation of South Carolina was principal in defending the British North American Empire. Without the colony and its economic activities, the empire would be significantly weakened. Therefore, the petition was granted and in August 1720, South Carolina became a
Many felt Royal control would improve defensive measures for the colony. However, things did not vastly improve, though Parliament did seem receptive to newer ideas and token measures were taken to aid the colony's defense.
Colonel John "Tuscarora Jack" Barnwell had come to South Carolina in 1699 from northern Ireland. He was a man of considerable talent and leadership skills. He gained a reputation during his successful fight against the
During his visit to Parliament in 1720, Barnwell petitioned the British Board of Trade to help implement his plan. He emphasized the French threat as opposed to the Spanish one, since at the time the French seemed to be gaining considerable ground in the Southeast. Before the Board, Barnwell argued the strong possibility of a French attack on the colony and possible takeover of its southern borders, especially at the headwaters of the Altamaha River (called the River May by the French). To secure this area from French encroachment, his first proposal was for a fort to be built along the Altamaha River. The British Board of Trade approved of his plan in building this fort.[32][33][34]
Due to the
With the land allotments, tools, and farming implements, the soldiers were expected to establish a new settlement around the fort. This was the first British attempt to populate the Altamaha River region. It planned to have other settlers follow to the fort. Fort King George was highly significant in that it represented the culmination of a nearly 200-year European struggle to control the Southeast. By constructing the fort, the British dominated the river and its surrounding territory. It started a diplomatic feud with the Spanish, eventually leading to war between the two nations. The feud ended with the British success at the Battle of Bloody Marsh on St. Simons Island in 1742, several years after the fort had been abandoned. Though the fort was considered a failure in the near term, it ultimately contributed to Georgia's establishment and early success.[41]
The Fort's construction and demise
From the time of its construction in 1721 to its abandonment in 1727, Fort King George was beset by one miserable experience after another. When the Independent Company embarked from London in November 1720, there may have been some room for optimism among the soldiers. Each was to receive many acres of land surrounding the fort, something unimaginable in the class-driven societies of England. Additionally, they would be given cattle and seed for growing crops to develop farms. Also, resources necessary for developing new homes and farms would be available. However, such possible optimism probably soon faded beneath a very harsh reality. All the soldiers contracted scurvy on the voyage over to South Carolina. Immediately upon landing the following March, the soldiers were placed in a hospital in Port Royal, South Carolina, where they would spend time recovering throughout the remainder of that year.[42]
Left with no troops, Colonel Barnwell's only option was to enlist Coastal Scouts and civilians to help him construct the fort. Coastal Scouts were hardened seamen whose organization dated all the way back to the early 18th century in South Carolina. They were formed to establish some semblance of a
In one incident, during a bout of drunkenness, one prankster scout actually picked Barnwell up and heaved him over his shoulder pretending to carry Barnwell to his boat. Instead, he dropped the colonel in the water, forcing Barnwell to lie all night in wet clothes on his boat, something Barnwell later attributed to a sickness he soon contracted. Barnwell, ill-tempered, no doubt got his revenge somehow, but the incident goes to show there was little formal discipline in the wild frontiers of South Carolina. Barnwell needed the scouts to get the fort underway, and they were noted for being highly prone toward dissension and possible mutiny. Given the proximity to St. Augustine and the likeliness of desertion Barnwell, no doubt, had to be quite a bit more tolerant than most Colonels dealing with troops on the front lines of Europe.[42][43][44]
Although their relationship was rough, Barnwell did manage to gain some progress during construction of the fort that summer in 1721. The fort's blockhouse was completed by the fall. The men had to go 3 miles (5 km) upriver to find adequate cypress trees to cut for the blockhouse's framework and siding. They nearly mutinied so Barnwell had to offer extra pay, and probably extra rum rations, to provide incentives for the men to go back out to cut more trees. Also, in addition to these accomplishments, Barnwell managed to sound out much of the river and charted a route down the coast to St. Simons Island. He was impressed with the obvious logistical advantage of this island and decided to propose moving the fort there. He was repeatedly denied by the legislature due to cost prohibitions.[45]
By early 1722, the Independent Company was stationed at Fort King George. Within a year nearly half of them had died, mostly from diseases such as dysentery and malaria. The fort's officers periodically intimated in letters that the men were not well motivated. They had difficulty getting the men to tend to their lots, to build fences in order to entrap roaming cattle supplied for the troops and to grow crops. A lack of development made life even more miserable. A few soldiers deserted to St. Augustine. Still, others stayed through death from the elements was nearly a certainty. By later that year the fort's guardhouse was being called a hospital for "treating the sick".[46][47][48][49]
Some excitement did occur periodically. In 1722, Indian agent Theophilus Hastings reported to the legislature that 170 Yamasee Indians were prepared to attack Fort King George. It seems, he indicated, that the Spanish "were playing their old game". Apparently, it was presumed that the Spanish were inciting the attack to test the fort's defensibility. Unfortunately, the records do not indicate whether or not the attack actually happened, however, if it did the fort must have survived unabated.[50]
Later on that year, some unexpected visitors arrived at the fort. A company of "Switzers", Swiss soldiers, had deserted a settlement on the Mississippi River and had made their way to Fort King George where they sought asylum. Switzers were under the employ of the French government in their colony of Louisiana. These men were charged with the toilsome duty of digging canals and were often overworked and mistreated. This was probably the reason for their desertion. It also indicates that the French were quite aware of Britain's occupation at the mouth of the Altamaha and were apparently discussing it openly among all Louisiana settlers. Even though Carolina officials were having a hard time getting much-needed recruits at the fort, to replace the dying soldiers, they did not let all the Switzers stay there.
Instead, they allowed them to "disperse themselves into the colony as they pleased". However, they did request that any skilled Switzers, up to six total, stay behind to assist with construction. One of them obviously was a skilled artist and penned one of the fort's most descriptive drawings entitled, "A Plan of Fort King George at Allatamaha South Carolina". The drawing clearly displays intentions for the fort to be a triangular-shaped structure with only one bastion jutting out on the northwestern side, the only direction in which the fort could most likely be attacked by land. The eastern and southern sides of the fort were fully protected by natural wetlands thus making a land assault from those directions impossible. Also, the fort was designed to include a barracks, ninety feet long and fourteen feet wide, a guardhouse, an officers’ quarters, several indigenous huts, a very impressive parapet, a house of office (privy), and a dock for the scout boat, in addition to the blockhouse discussed previously.[51]
The Spanish had been protesting the British occupation of the Altamaha ever since Fort King George was first built. In 1724, some Spanish envoys came to address grievances over the construction of the fort. However, they were not allowed to enter Fort King George because the Governor and commanders were worried that if they were to enter and inspect, the fort's security could be compromised. As such, the envoys were diverted to Charlestown where they had to express their grievances. Although Governor Nicholson welcomed them and treated them graciously, he did not accept their arguments and maintained the right of the British to settle the Altamaha River region. The Spanish were infuriated and over the next several years an intense game of diplomatic jousting ensued.[52][53][54][55][56][57][58]
More drawings of the fort indicate that the fort was developing even though hardships seemed abundant. A 1726 drawing reveals the fort was fortified with a parapet that, in critical places, consisted of firing steps, a firing wall held against a breastwork made of earth, a palisade fence, and a moat. Fronting the river to the south, the fort was protected from naval assault by nine cannon emplacements. Each emplacement had a six-pounder cannon mounted on it. Also, several swivel guns were positioned throughout the fort, primarily around the gates. Most important, the fort was positioned on the closed end of a horseshoe-shaped bend in the river. Typical of the time period, this positioning prevented passing enemy ships a convenient firing off broadsides on the fort.
Instead, all ships would have to approach the fort bow (nose) first, thus making it harder for enemy sailors to position the boat sideways so as to fire through cannon ports at the fort. The fort was by all appearances a standard "pallisado" fort very typical of the type built on frontiers during the time period. They were primarily designed to be temporary until something more substantial could be built. Such forts, made from earthen materials and indigenous wood, were very practical for frontier defense as the materials were relatively easy to gather and transport to site. Also, these fortifications could easily be repaired if damaged, as materials were relatively available and indigenous to the area.
In 1724, Colonel Barnwell died at his plantation in Beaufort due to failing health, probably brought on by hardships during his tenure at the fort. Earlier, he had been declared to be Governor of the territory in addition to being the fort's commander. Though his dreams of seeing South Carolina bounded by a barrier of defensive settlements had been initiated, by the time of his death the reality of its successful fruition seemed bleak. Though dead, his legacy lived on later through General James Oglethorpe who borrowed heavily from Colonel Barnwell's ideas.[59][60][61]
In late 1725 or early 1726, the fort burned under mysterious circumstances. It was suggested by the fort's reporting officer, Capt. Edward Massey, that the men stationed there may have been responsible for it, or at least, they did not rush to put the fires out "in hopes by the destruction of the Fort (sic) they should be delivered from the Miseries (sic) they had so long suffered."[62][63] The soldiers probably desperately wanted to go back home or anywhere but Fort King George, three days away from Beaufort. If this was the case, their wishes did not come true. The fort was ordered rebuilt, this time with inferior cypress deal planking. Life did not improve.[64]
Finally, in 1727, British Parliament ordered that Fort King George be abandoned and that the Independent Company be moved to Port Royal, South Carolina. In all, one hundred and forty soldiers and officers lost their lives at the fort, probably mostly from the diseases. The fort's officer, Lt. Emmenes, writing the justification of the fort's evacuation, set the unwholesome climate and the ineffectiveness of the fort's location. He stated that the fort would be no more useful to the safety of the colony if it had been "placed in Japan." Writing with a clear hint of indignation, Massey complained about the poor provisions and indicated grave concern that the men may mutiny if "they have no hopes of being relieved." Also, the fort was prone to periodic flooding which worsened conditions. Yamasee Indian raids were still occurring along the southern borders thus illustrating the failure of Fort King George's intent to secure the southern border.[65][66]
Six years after its establishment the fort was abandoned with two lookouts left behind. South Carolina colonists and officials were gravely disappointed and even more so alarmed by the diplomatic sensitivities it had flared. Until Georgia was settled, expansionists were determined to re-establish some settlement on the Altamaha. By 1730, the issue of southern border defense had become an even more vexing and contentious one. Around this time, Governor Robert Johnson ordered that several towns be settled along the Altamaha in order to maintain Britain's claim to the area. Also, the South Carolina legislature relayed desires to have another fort or settlement built along the Altamaha. However, these measures never came to fruition. The demise of Fort King George once again brought an increase in anxieties over South Carolina's security.[67][68][69][70]
Though the outlook may have seemed disappointing, there were a few silver linings. Fort King George actually did serve the colony well, not for its effectiveness, because it was largely ineffective, but for what it taught British imperialists. First, the hardships suffered by the Company of "Invalids" at Fort King George taught imperialists the necessity of peopling the Altamaha with a young, tough, and hardy people. It was a harsh, dangerous environment that could not be tamed by the weak-of-heart or faint-in-design. Settlers there would have to be able to withstand a harsh seasoning period. Also, being so far removed from
Fort King George's legacy for Georgia
During Fort King George's existence and demise, the South Carolina Legislature, Governor, and other imperialists started developing other alternatives for defending the colony's vulnerable southern border. During the 1720s, a Swiss gentleman, entrepreneur, and colonial adventurer
This issue of defense coincided with a period of intense philanthropy in England. Certain members of Parliament and society aimed to improve the conditions of prisons in the country. One such gentleman, Sir James Edward Oglethorpe, while in Parliament, served on a committee to investigate conditions at prisons in the country. What he and his committee uncovered were horrific conditions. Many prisoners were released as a result but left with no employment and bereft of any livelihood. Oglethorpe was also interested in colonization and in defending Great Britain's vast holdings in North America.
From these two interests, the idea Georgia was spawned. Once a group of
The colony had many early growing pains that included a harsh seasoning period when many settlers died, struggles over whether to admit slaves, conflicts with South Carolina over fur trading rights, and disputes over everything from legalization of rum consumption to land rights. Still, Oglethorpe was quite adept at using his Native American neighbors to facilitate the colony's initial success.[74]
He was also quite savvy at using the previous history as a guide. Oglethorpe knew he had to establish a successful settlement on the Altamaha and the surrounding areas. In 1735 he had Captain George Dunbar visit the ruins of Fort King George. Though his report on the site is vague (it only talks about surveyor lines being laid out, probably done so by the soldiers earlier at Fort King George), Oglethorpe's later actions demonstrate his unhappiness with the site.[75]
Oglethorpe ordered the Highlanders to land at "Barnwell's Bluff", but later moved the settlement about 1 mile (2 km) farther up-river, probably due to the periodic flooding of the bluff and its proximity to the marsh, something attributable to malaria outbreaks in this time period Also, though it is not stated in records, it stands to reason that Oglethorpe was familiar with the earlier hardships endured at Fort King George. He may even have read Barnwell's journal and other records indicating the difficulties of settling the site on the Altamaha. The intense climate and harsh natural surroundings along the Altamaha, coupled with history, compelled Oglethorpe to seek a resilient group of people to settle the area. Also, he knew he had to use good logistics in how he established his fortification system along this vast stretch of coast, and that the Altamaha settlement would be a crucial cornerstone of his system.[76]
The Georgia coast was as