Photo of Fort Fisher taken more than a century ago. 



But before Gen. Benjamin Butler brought in his 

 troops, he sent engineers to survey the fort. 



What they saw amazed them. 



The fort's looming defenses prevented direct 

 assault, they said. So the troops turned around. 



Only 800 Confederate troops guarded Fort 

 Fisher that day. Six thousand more were camped 

 five miles away at Sugar Loaf, but never moved in 

 to help. 



From the flat lands of 

 Ihe beaches loomed the 

 largest earthwork fortifi- 

 cation in the South. Like a 

 giant in the forest or 

 pyramids in the desert. 

 Fort Fisher awed them. 



Whiting and Lamb expected a second attack 

 soon. Troops repaired parts of the fort, got more 

 ammunition and doubled their numbers. 



On Jan. 13, the Yankees came back. 



Fifty-eight warships carried 600 cannons and 

 8,000 men. 



The Union Army moved in. Then the Navy. 



At 3 p.m. on Jan. 15, the sailors and marines 



attacked Fort Fisher on the ocean side. Then the 

 Army came in from the river side. 



The enemies fought hand-to-hand combat for 

 five hours. Each mound was its own battlefield, 

 and whoever held the high ground claimed 

 victory. 



By 8 p.m., hundreds of Union and Confederate 

 soldiers lay dead. The rest were tired. Whiting 

 and Lamb had been wounded leaving Maj. 

 James Reilly in charge. 



Then a band of black Union infantry came in, 

 prolonging the battle two more hours until Reilly 

 waved a white handkerchief from Battery 

 Buchanan. 



A month later, Wilmington fell. 



Then on April 9, 1865, Gen. Robert E. Lee sur- 

 rendered to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox. 



Union troops occupied Fort Fisher after the 

 battle. Hunters and fishermen slowly took their 

 place after the war. 



The intricate underground network of shelters 

 and tunnels burned or collapsed. 



The palisade fence fell to the forces of wind 

 and water. 



And the ocean claimed more than half of the 

 fort and its grounds. 



What stands today is all that's left to tell the 

 story of "The Last Major Stronghold of the 

 Confederacy." 



