The Bitter End

The Battle of Fort Pulaski

By Captain J. Gary "Gator" Hill

Good day once again, and as usual, strap in for a helterskelter voyage known as The Bitter End. To be honest, as I sit down to write, I’m not sure where this will end up, and as usual my article is due today. I’ve been working long hours and renovating a house I’m preparing to move into in just a matter of days, so please humor me.

Today I want to tell a story of a lighthouse, a fort, and a battle, and a bit of history concerning each. The lighthouse is Cockspur Light and the fort is Pulaski. I’m planning a more in-depth article on these two landmarks and the battles they endured later. In the last couple of days some recent finds have snagged my interest: one, a map I hadn’t seen before, and the other a rare find left over from the actual battle.

Fort Pulaski was the crown jewel of America’s fort systems when completed in 1847. Although a state-of-the-art fort, she was not being utilized when hostilities broke out in 1860 and on into the beginning of 1861. Only being manned by two Union caretakers during this time made her an easy victory for a contingent of 110 Confederate soldiers who sailed down the Savannah River to take charge of her in February of 1861. Pulaski was then considered to be of vital importance to Confederate forces due to her strategic location at the mouth of the Savannah River.

Fast forward to April 1862. After several plans were reviewed and dismissed for various reasons the final curtain call, in the form of the Battle of Fort Pulaski, was about to be set in motion. Under the command of Union General Quincy Gillmore, 10 firing batteries (a group of one or more artillery, such as canons or mortars) were moved into position, as referenced on the map above. Now bear in mind that to wrestle these heavy siege weapons into their firing placements often took as many as 250 men harnessed together and struggling through the soft mud of the marsh.

Three batteries, Totten, McClellan and Siegel, were positioned just over 1600 yards from the fort, on the point, near where I run charters for Captain Derek today. Prior to the battle, Union General Totten was quoted as saying “You might as well bombard the Rocky Mountains as Fort Pulaski,” though often this quote attributed to Robert E. Lee.

Standing between the fort and the sweep of artillery batteries was little Cockspur Lighthouse. Though I have not been able to find a number indicating how many rounds were exchanged, one could surmise several hundred, at least. After a thirty-hour barrage, our little lighthouse came through unscathed, though one cannot say the same of Fort Pulaski.

Those three closest batteries were largely responsible for breaching the southernmost corner of the fort, which led to the inevitable surrender by the fort’s commanding officer, Confederate Colonel Charles H. Olmstead.

Recently colleagues of mine found what appears to be a portion of a grape shot or canister shell in the area where the siege took place. This prompted me to go online to research the battle further, and I found the map, which I hadn’t seen before. In addition, Cockspur Lighthouse is now starting a major renovation (more to come on that later) and it all just seemed to tie in together. I can and will write much more on this subject, but I also hope to inspire and challenge you all to read more on these fantastic bits of Lowcountry history.

Till our wakes cross again, peace and love and shrimp and grits. I’ll see you on the water!

Map of the Battle of Fort Pulaski, April 1862. The purple figures indicate battry positions. Map is credited to Robert Knox Sneden, a landscape painter and map-maker for the Union Army.

Email: TheOriginalCaptainGator@gmail.com

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