The Wilmington Star News ran a Back Then column for hundred years earlier.
The December 25, 1908 (Christmas Day) issue had an article about the Fort Fisher Survivors Association calling for a special meeting of the group in Washington, DC, to bring before Congress a call to create a national park at Fort Fisher.
The group evidently was one composed of both Confederate and Union participants of the battle as the Executive Committee (which called for the meeting) consisted of William Lamb (the fort's commander, N. M. Curtis (a Union general), Jas. A. Smith, H. C. McQueen, and R. W. Price. I am not familiar with the last three, but will look them up.
So even back then, there was an effort to turn the fort into a historical site. Today, it is part of the North Carolina State Historic sites, and the state has done an excellent job slowing down the ocean's constant attack and preserving what is left of the old dirt/sand fort. So, evidently, this effort failed.
Fort Fisher, a Great Place to Visit and a Blockade-Runner's Best Friend. --Old B-Runner
The Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C.
