After we spent some time on Kure Beach, we went further south toward Fort Fisher, following the recommendation of our Airbnb host, Marsha. When we arrived at Fort Fisher State Historic Site, it was hot. Fry-your-eyes-in-your-skull hot. So we went into the visitor center to cool off and learn about the fort, which we discovered originated in the American Civil War but also played an important part in later U.S. wartime efforts. Being almost totally ignorant of the details of the Civil War (Over slavery? States’ rights?), we learned a lot.
Fort Fisher was the last bastion of the Confederates’ maritime power after the Union blockade had cut off the rest of their shipping routes. The fort provided artillery support for blockade runner ships trying to slip past the Union ships sitting offshore. Eventually, in the epic Second Battle of Fort Fisher, the Union successfully captured the fort and struck a devastating blow to the Confederate war effort, cutting off the supply line to Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia.
The fort we saw was a partial reconstruction of the original structure, with examples of the palisade walls that had proved so deadly to Union soldiers, and huge soil mounds that had absorbed heavy ordinance and cradled the defending artillery batteries. We ended our time at the historic site with a visit to the beach face that the fort had been tasked with protecting, and tried to imagine what it would have been like to see dozens of ships out on the water trying to take our heads off. Highly recommended!
