Gulf Islands National Seashore: Fort Pickens: Tower

Fort Pickens was one of only four forts in the South to be held by the U.S. Army during the entire Civil War. In November of 1861, Union held Fort Pickens exchanged 6000 rounds of cannon fire for two days with Confederates at Fort Barrancas and Fort McRee. Both Confederate held forts were heavily damaged and the Confederates abandoned the area in May of 1862. The Pensacola Navy Yard dates to 1825, and the Army began building forts to protect the yard and Pensacola Bay in 1829. Beginning with Fort Pickens, the Army built harbor forts off and on through World War II, all of which are within Gulf Islands National Seashore, a unit of the National Park System.