Acushnet Fort (New Bedford, Massachusetts)

New Bedford · Massachusetts · American Revolution, War of 1812

Quick BriefAcushnet Fort existed from 1776 to around 1820 on Eldridge Point in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Originally built with Commonwealth resources during the American Revolution in 1776 with ten guns, it was rebuilt in 1808 under the federal second system of fortifications with capacity for 40 men, six guns, and a magazine.

Coastal defense

History & Significance

Two forts were built in the New Bedford area in the American Revolution: a 6-gun (possibly 11-gun) unnamed fort (later named Fort Phoenix) in 1775 in what is now Fairhaven, and the 10-gun Acushnet Fort in 1776 at an uncertain location, possibly on Clark's Point at the site of the later Fort Rodman. The fort's exact location, especially in the Revolution, is uncertain.

The "two miles below the town" implies the fort was at or near Clark's Point, later the site of Fort Rodman. Another possibility is the area of Fairhaven known as Poverty Point or Oxford Point, part of which was once owned by the Eldredge family, although this is north of the harbor entrance.

The fort appears in the Secretary of War's reports for 1808 and 1811; thus it was a federal fort at that time. Fort commanders included Captain James Thomas of the Dragoons in 1810–1811, followed by 1st Lt. Henry Whiting, also of the Dragoons, in 1811–1812. By the time Fort Rodman was built in the 1850s, the fort no longer existed.