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Fort Caroline, on the St. John's River near Jacksonville, Florida, was one of the very first forts here and was built by the French Huguenots in 1564. In 1565 the Spanish (Spain in the New World to 1600) captured it, but in 1568 the French got their revenge by completely destroying it.
National Park Service web site about Fort Caroline (información en español). Check the "in-depth" report.National Register of Historic Places: Fort Caroline.Fort Caroline National Memorial
In 1607 the English built the large fort at Jamestown, Virginia, at the James River. The local "Indians" were understandably hostile toward the invaders from across the sea and repeated attacks drained the English of their munitions and strength. That, the failure of crops and disease reduced the community of 500 (mostly men) to 60 in the winter of 1609-1610. But reinforcements arrived in the Spring and the colony began to recover and expand.
Fort at Jamestown,
The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.An
overview of the excavation of the original fort
at Jamestown Island. A Quicktime 360° view. This wasn't working too well the last time I checked it on Feb 7, 2003.Jamestown Rediscovery, the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities' Jamestown Rediscovery archaeological project, investigating the remains of 1607-1698 Jamestown in Virginia.
Jamestown 1607-1630 developed by Ginny LoDuca.History of Jamestown Fort, Study Guide for Kids.James Fort Found, ARCHAEOLOGY newsbrief, 1996, by Jessica E. Saraceni.Some great pictures.
When the Pilgrims landed in Plymouth in 1620, Miles Standish saw to it that a basic stockade was erected to protect the living quarters and garden plots. This was soon replaced by a better, stronger wall constructed with spiked planks. A considerable blockhouse was built on the hill overlooking the bay and the surrounding acreage. The stockade was built out to incorporate the blockhouse. The Pilgrims were lucky that any weakness in their defense system was never discovered since no offensive attacks occured.
Plimoth Plantation, The 1627 Pilgrim Village.A Walking Tour of Plimoth Plantation.The Plymouth Colony Archive Project
. Images of History from
The Romantic Story of the Mayflower Pilgrims
by Albert Christopher Addison, 1911.Plymouth's Mighty Rock, by Carol McCabe for the Historic Traveler.Return to the AmericanWest Forts Page.
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