| What makes it beautiful? |
Before Governors Island got more than doubled in size to become a recreation destination, it was a small, egg-shaped island used for fishing by the Lenape. The New York colonial militia took over and set up a star-shaped fort, called Fort Jay, in 1775, but it didn’t stay in colonial control for long! The British took it over and held it until 1783!
After the Revolution, the fort fell into disrepair, but in the years before the War of 1812, Congress approved a Second American System of fortifications to beef up security in New York Harbor. This was because most of America’s old forts were built by French engineers, but the US had declared neutrality in European affairs and let their alliance with France fade away! So, it was time for the US to fix up its own forts! Under the new system of fortifications, Fort Jay got a three-year makeover and a new sibling: Castle Williams, which was completed in 1811!
By the time war did break out, New York Harbor was so well fortified that the British left it alone and chose to invade through Baltimore instead! So Castle Williams never saw battle and was eventually used as a prison, a community center, a Coast Guard base, and finally, a scenic landmark in the National Park system! |
