One Really Big Fort-- Fort Rosecrans-- Part 3

Construction of the fort involved the use of many Negroes as well as a lot of blasting. Land and materials were often taken without permission. Wood was taken from homes which were pulled down indiscriminately.

One local person wrote of one homeowner complaining to a Federal officer about the destruction of his home and was told "he is a d-d 'secesh' and ought not to have a house. Not to mention taking his outhouse,"

Confederates did one time threaten the fort in October 1863, but decided not to attack because of its strength.

After the war, the fort remained basically the same until the town started to grow. Stones River national Battlefield was established in 1932 and a small portion of the fort was included in it. Of 14,000 feet of earthworks, only 3,00 remain.

Of the four interior forts, only Redoubt Brannon remains.

On October 31, 1994, Fortress Rosecrans was dedicated and opened to visitors.

Supply Base of Fort? --B-R'er

One Really Big Fort-- Fort Rosecrans, Tn.-- Part 2

Back on December 8th, I had an entry on Fort Rosecrans located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. I was interested in the history of the fort and delved deeper into it. I found an article called "Building Fort Rosecrans was 'Un-Civil'" by Shirley Farris Jones.

The fort was built on the outskirts of the town and remained in Union control for the rest of the war. It was built because Union General Rosecrans intended to press the Confederates back to Chattanooga and his supply base at Louisville was too far away, so he determined to make one closer at what became Fort Rosecrans, which he named after himself.

Construction began in January 1863 and continued until June. The fort, actually more of a heavily protected base, had a perimeter of three and a half miles. It included part of the Nashville Turnpike, the railroad and Stones River since transportation was to be of utmost importance.

There were numerous gaps in the walls as it was more of a series of semi-independent earthworks rather than one continual walled fortress. Inside were hospitals, warehouses, saw mills and interior forts.

Old Rosy Fort. More to Come. --Old B-Runner

Largest Civil War Earthen Fort in Tennessee

It was the largest built during the war, but was not intended for defense as much as it was a supply depot.

The Nov. 22nd Murfreesboro (Tn) Post had an article about Fort Rosecrans which was built shortly after the battle of Stones River, Tennessee. The supply base contained inside the walls covered 200 acres and was the scene of much activity throughout the war.

After the war. most of its land reverted to agricultural use, but the west wall and one redoubt survived and acquired by the city. It was transferred to the National Park Service in 1993 and became a part of the Stones River National Battlefield.