Fort DeRussy (Louisiana)
| Fort DeRussy | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Location within Louisiana | |
| General information | |
| Town or city | Marksville, Louisiana |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 31°11′02″N 92°03′16″W / 31.18380°N 92.05436°W |
| Construction started | 1862 |
| Completed | 1862 |
| Technical details | |
| Structural system | Earthen |
Fort DeRussy, located four miles (6 km) north of Marksville, Louisiana, was a Confederate stronghold during the American Civil War defending the lower Red River Valley in Louisiana.
The fort was named for Colonel Lewis G. DeRussy, the oldest West Point graduate to serve in the Confederate Army. DeRussy, a prominent engineer in civilian life, was the engineering officer in charge of the construction of the first fortifications at the fort. The remains of the Colonel were exhumed from an abandoned grave and reinterred on the grounds of the fort on September 26, 1999.[1] The fort was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.
Battles
A portion of Rear Admiral David D. Porter's Mississippi Squadron captured the fort on May 5, 1863 and destroyed on May 9, 1863 by the USS Benton.[2] The fort yielded to the Union Army, led by General A. J. Smith, on March 14, 1864.[3]
Maps & Plans
Drawn under the direction of Captain R. M. Venable, Chief of Topographical Bureau of Western Louisiana and Arkansas:[4]
- Map of Fort DeRussy and vicinity
- Plans of Fort DeRussy and obstructions of the Red River below Fort DeRussy 1864
Preservation
The property was donated to the City of Marksville in order to receive a $75,000 grant from the State of Louisiana to improve the site so that it could be accepted by the State Parks system, with Friends of Fort DeRussy in charge of spending the money for the city. A grant of $150,000 was received from the Red River Waterway Commission to purchase an additional 53 acres (210,000 m2), and 11 more acres were donated by the City of Marksville, at which time the state agreed to accept the donation of the fort and adjoining 70 acres (280,000 m2).[5]
See also
References
- ↑ Joyce Bridges. "Colonel Lewis G. DeRussy".
- ↑ Rear Admiral David D. Porter, Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, Series I, Volume 24, page 648.
- ↑ Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. "Fort De Russy Historical Marker".
- ↑ "Gilmer Civil War Maps Collection". University of North Carolina. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
- ↑ Steve Mayeux. "Saving Fort DeRussy".
External links
- Friends of Fort DeRussy
- Site photographs CivilWarAlbum.com
- Webcast Lecture on Earthen Walls, Iron Men by Steve Mayeux ISBN 9781572335769 at the Pritzker Military Library on March 9, 2008
- Model Reconstruction Photographs by John McConnell, Fall 2013
