Fort Runyon

 (1861-1865) - A Union U.S. Civil War Fort first established in 1861 in Arlington County, Virginia. Named Fort Runyon after Brigadier General Theodore Runyon whose New Jersey Brigade troops helped build the fort. Abandoned in 1865 at the end of the war.

History of Fort Runyon
Construction on Fort Runyon began on 24 May 1861, very early in the war. The post was built astride an important junction of three roads, one of which led directly to the Long Bridge. The fort had a perimeter of some 1,484 yards and completely enclosed the important junction forcing all traffic to the bridge to pass through the fort gates. This post was said to be the largest in the Defenses of Washington, roughly the size of the present day Pentagon. Construction was supervised by Captain Barton S. Alexander,, U.S. Corps of Engineers and was completed in about seven weeks.

As the defense line moved further into Virginia the fort declined in importance and the garrison was reduced in size and the role became simply checking traffic into the city. By 1862 most of the armament had been relocated to other forts and only one 8" seacoast howitzer and one 32 pounder cannon remained.

The fort was abandoned in 1865 at the end of the war.

Current Status
No visible remains. A marker was placed in 1988 but may no longer be in place.

See Also:
 * Fort Albany
 * Fort Jackson
 * Arlington Line - U.S. Civil War
 * Washington DC Fort Ring
 * Washington DC Defense System - U.S. Civil War

Sources:
 * , page 823.
 * , page 92.

Links:
 * North American Forts - Fort Runyon
 * Wikipedia - Fort Runyon
 * HMDB - Fort Runyon Marker