Can you identify this imposing structure, today’s Mystery Photo. Tell us about it, and where it’s located and why. Send your answer to elliott@brack.net, and include your hometown.
George Graf, Palmyra, Va. wrote of the last Mystery Photo: “The mystery photo shows the underground of Fort Pulaski National Monument, located on Cockspur Island between Savannah and Tybee Island, Ga.
“Little is known about the architect of Fort Pulaski, General Simon Bernard. He was born at Dôle, France, on April 22, 1779 and educated at the Polytechnic School and entered the Engineer School when all Europe was an armed camp.
“Bernard rose through the various grades to that of field marshal of France in 1814 and was a trusted adviser to Napoleon and became his aide-de-camp. After Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo and exile to Elba, King Louis XVIII forgave Bernard and allowed him to maintain his rank in the King’s army. However, the Minister of War advised Bernard to gather his things and get out of France. He took all his engineering plans with him which were the most comprehensive in all of Europe and sailed to the American Colonies.
“At the same time, during the War of 1812 (peace obtained in 1815), the British Fleet pillaged the American coastline because of the weakened earth works and poor defenses except for Fort Washington on the Potomac and Fort McHenry in Baltimore. The War Department began to look for an engineer of repute, one who was thoroughly familiar with all types of warfare and well versed in the science and art of designing fortifications. President Madison, in 1816, advised the American representative in Paris to secure the services of a prominent military engineer to supervise the fortification of our coast. As luck would have it, there was General Bernard’s situation of leaving France and his vast experience as a military engineer.
“President Monroe, on November 16, 1816, commissioned Bernard to be an assistant in the Corps of Engineers of the United States and he became the chief architect in building new fortifications and improved weaponry. These included Fort Pulaski, Fort Jefferson of the Dry Tortugas, Fort Macon of North Carolina; Fort Pike and Fort Macomb of Louisiana, and Fort Morgan, at Mobile Point, Alabama.”
Others contributing correct answers include: Raleigh Perry, Buford; Robert Foreman, Grayson; Lou Camerio, Lilburn; Rick and Sandy Krause, Lilburn; Ashley Herndon, Oceanside, Calif.; Rick Hammond, Flowery Branch; Steve Spellman, Dunwoody; and Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill; and Allan Peel, San Antonio, Tex.
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