Civil War Surfside

If there’s a Civil War site within 100 miles of where we are Don will find it. This was one actually pretty easy. Fort Fisher is located where the Atlantic Ocean and the Cape Fear River meet. It was built by the Confederacy to protect the blockade runners and allow them to get to the port of Wilmington which was the last major southern port that remained open and able to supply the Confederate army. A major land-sea battle occurred and the Union captured it pretty much sealing the fate of the Confederacy.

The Visitors Center has a short film, an electric map (Don loves those) and displays of artifacts that were brought up from the numerous shipwrecks that occurred in the area. There was an interesting kiosk that told about the commanding officer’s wife. She had written a collection of letters to her mother in Providence, RI and it gave such a personal insight into her life. She was expecting a child when she moved here and her youngest daughter had been sick and finally died at the age of 1 year. When she had the baby, she sent him to live with her mother and it was heartbreaking to hear her write of how much she missed him and treasured the photographs her mother sent to her.

 

Damian found the wildlife fascinating. We saw all these little crabs. . . on the trees! I’ve never seen crabs in trees.

There was a walking tour that took you all around what was the fort. You were able to see the earthworks that protected the cannons because they still exist! A wooden walkway took you around the river side.

Today there is an Air Force recreation area a little further upriver. There was a free concert there last night. This was definitely one Civil War site I didn’t mind be dragged to see. There is also the North Carolina State Aquarium located there. Luckily, we were able to complete the tour before the rains came. I bet it’s wet at the campgrounds. My room is dry. 😉