Back in the Jetta we drove past yesterday’s exit on up to Savannah to Fort Pulaski, which guarded the 20,000 seaport city. We got a total emerge treatment at the National Monument on the Civil War. (It’s interesting to note that when local plaques in parks speak of the war, it’s referred to as the “War Between the States” and not the “Civil War”). This fort was the state of the art when built with 7 foot thick walls made of 25 million bricks. It had places for 140 cannon firing positions on the fort walls as well as a lower tier. The entire compound was surrounded by a 7 foot dept moat. It could not be touched so the South thought. The North brought in artillery to a neighboring island well outside of cannon range. However among the Union’s cannons were 10 experimental cannons that had rifled barrels.
After 30 hours of cannon exchange, the Confederate surrendered Fort Pulaski to the Union because these new cannons were making Swiss cheese out of the brick fort. One corner of the fort collapsed exposing the Confederate’s 40,000 pound ammunition magazine. Col. Olmstead didn’t want to have his men blown to pieces if shell set the magazine off. This was the end for this type of fort. Savannah was evacuated as soon as the fort fell to the Union.
From forts to river fronts. We next concentrated on historic Savannah with its horse carriage tours, tour trains, tour buses. After an hour and a half, we slipped back out of the city under the cover of a green VW.
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