Fort McNair (Buzzard Point, District of Columbia)
Buzzard Point · District of Columbia · Civil War
History & Significance
Originally designated as a military fort by Pierre L'Enfant in 1791, the Fort McNair Historic District has remained in continuous use as a U.S. military installation for 230 years. The military reservation was established in 1791 on about 28 acres of what then was called Greenleaf Point, which L'Enfant included in his plans for "Washington, the Federal City," as a major site for the defense of the capital.
An arsenal first occupied the site in 1801; earthen defenses had been there since 1791. The fortifications did not halt the invading British in 1814; soldiers evacuated north with as much gunpowder as they could carry, hiding the rest in a well, and about 45 British soldiers were killed and wounded from an accidental explosion when a spark ignited an open barrel of black powder.
During the Civil War, the arsenal housed 1,000 beds for care of the wounded and also manufactured large quantities of ammunition for the war effort. On June 17, 1864, an explosion occurred when flares left to dry ignited in the sun; 21 of the 108 women staffing the warehouse at the time died, mostly Irish immigrants.
Mary Surratt, the first woman ever executed under federal orders, was among those hanged at what would become Fort McNair in 1865 following her conviction in the Lincoln assassination conspiracy. Maj. Walter Reed worked at a general hospital located at the post from 1898 until 1909 and found the area's marshlands an excellent site for his research on malaria. The post was renamed in 1948 to honor Lieutenant General Lesley J. McNair, commander of Army Ground Forces during World War II.
Key Facts
Map
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Sources
- https://historicsites.dcpreservation.org/items/show/207
- https://www.dcmilitary.com/base_guides/joint_base_myer-henderson/history/a-little-history-fort-mcnair/article_fda59117-0fec-5dae-b08a-29501705d959.html
- https://www.cultural-landscapes.org/fort-mcnair
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Lesley_J._McNair
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1864_Washington_Arsenal_explosion
- https://home.army.mil/jbmhh/
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