Fort Clinch is a 19th century brick fortress located on a peninsula near the northernmost point of
Amelia IslandAmelia Island is one of the southernmost of the Sea Islands, a chain of barrier islands that stretches along the east coast of the United States from South Carolina to Florida. It is long and approximately 4 miles wide at its widest point. Amelia Island is situated south of Cumberland Island,...
, along the Amelia River. The fort lies to the northeast of
Fernandina BeachFernandina Beach is a city in Nassau County in the state of Florida in the United States of America and on Amelia Island. The area was first inhabited by the Timucuan Indian tribe...
at the entrance to the Cumberland Sound and lies within
Fort Clinch State ParkThe Fort Clinch State Park is a Florida State Park, located on a peninsula near the northernmost point of Amelia Island, along the Amelia River. Its include the 19th century Fort Clinch, sand dunes, plains, maritime hammock and estuarine tidal marsh...
.
The site of Fort Clinch has been occupied by various military troops since 1736. Construction of a fort, later named Fort Clinch, was begun in 1847 after the end of the
Second Seminole WarThe Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between various groups of Native Americans collectively known as Seminoles and the United States, part of a series of conflicts called the Seminole Wars...
.
Fort Clinch is a 19th century brick fortress located on a peninsula near the northernmost point of
Amelia IslandAmelia Island is one of the southernmost of the Sea Islands, a chain of barrier islands that stretches along the east coast of the United States from South Carolina to Florida. It is long and approximately 4 miles wide at its widest point. Amelia Island is situated south of Cumberland Island,...
, along the Amelia River. The fort lies to the northeast of
Fernandina BeachFernandina Beach is a city in Nassau County in the state of Florida in the United States of America and on Amelia Island. The area was first inhabited by the Timucuan Indian tribe...
at the entrance to the Cumberland Sound and lies within
Fort Clinch State ParkThe Fort Clinch State Park is a Florida State Park, located on a peninsula near the northernmost point of Amelia Island, along the Amelia River. Its include the 19th century Fort Clinch, sand dunes, plains, maritime hammock and estuarine tidal marsh...
.
History of the Fort
The site of Fort Clinch has been occupied by various military troops since 1736. Construction of a fort, later named Fort Clinch, was begun in 1847 after the end of the
Second Seminole WarThe Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between various groups of Native Americans collectively known as Seminoles and the United States, part of a series of conflicts called the Seminole Wars...
. The actual compound is pentagonal in shape, with both inner and outer walls, and consists of almost five million bricks. There are corner
bastionA bastion is a structure projecting outward from the main enclosure of a fortification, situated in both corners of a straight wall , facilitating active defense against assaulting troops...
s and
embrasureThe term embrasure, in military architecture, refers to the opening in a crenellation or battlement between the two raised solid portions or merlons, sometimes called a crenel or crenelle...
s in the outer walls and several structures in the interior courtyards, including a 2-story barracks. The fort was named in honor of General
Duncan Lamont ClinchDuncan Lamont Clinch was an American army officer and served as a commander during the First and Second Seminole Wars. He also served in the United States House of Representatives, representing Georgia....
after his death in 1849. General Clinch was an important figure in the First and Second
Seminole WarsThe Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between various groups of Native Americans, collectively known as Seminoles, and the United States. The First Seminole War was from 1817 to 1818; the Second Seminole War from 1835 to 1842; and the Third Seminole War...
who also fought in the
War of 1812The War of 1812, between the United States of America and the British Empire , lasted from 1812 to 1815. It was fought chiefly on the Atlantic Ocean and on the land, coasts and waterways of North America.There were several immediate stated causes for the U.S...
.
The fort was seized by Confederate forces in early 1861 and provided a safe haven for Confederate blockade runners during the first year of the
Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
. However, its recapture by Federal troops in early 1862 gave the Union control of the adjacent Georgia and Florida coasts and it served as the base of Union operations in the area throughout the Civil War. The fort was placed on caretaker status in 1869 and remained so until 1898 when it was occupied during the
Spanish-American WarThe Spanish–American War was an armed military conflict between Spain and the United States that took place between April and August 1898, over the issues of the liberation of Cuba. The war began after American demands for the resolution of the Cuban fight for independence were rejected by Spain...
, but abandoned afterwards.
The
Civilian Conservation CorpsThe Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program for unemployed men, providing vocational training through the performance of useful work related to conservation and development of natural resources in the United States from 1933 to 1942. As part of the New Deal legislation...
(CCC) began restoration during the 1930s, and in 1935, the State of Florida bought that included the then-abandoned fort and the surrounding area.
Fort Clinch State ParkThe Fort Clinch State Park is a Florida State Park, located on a peninsula near the northernmost point of Amelia Island, along the Amelia River. Its include the 19th century Fort Clinch, sand dunes, plains, maritime hammock and estuarine tidal marsh...
including the fort, opened to the public in 1938. The fort itself was closed to the public during World War II and used as a communications and security post, but re-opened after the war ended. The fort was placed on the
National Register of Historic PlacesThe National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1972.
State Park personnel reenact military life at the fort, which is open from 8:00am till sundown, year-round.
External links