Conanicut Battery

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Conanicut Battery (1776-1781) - A Patriot Revolutionary War Battery established in 1776 on Conanicut Island near Jamestown, Newport County, Rhode Island. Captured by the British in late 1776 and occupied by them until 1778. Occupied by French Marines 1780-1781. Abandoned in 1781. Also known as Prospect Hill Fort, Beaver Head Battery and Beaver Head Fort.

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  Conanicut Battery Earthworks
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  Conanicut Battery Massive Drilled Rock
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  Conanicut Battery Site on Prospect Hill, Marker in Foreground, Earthworks in Background.

History of Conanicut Battery

In May 1776, a fort was ordered built "at Beaver Tail, on Conanicut, to contain six or eight heavy cannon." Shortly after that such a fort was built on Prospect Hill with an earthworks that had a commanding view of the West Passage. This fort was likely built as a crescent shaped earthworks.

All three of the Patriot works on Conanicut Island were then occupied by the British, from the time they landed at Newport, in December, 1776, until the 8th of August, 1778. These works included Beaver Tail Fort, Beaver Head Fort and Dumpling Rock Battery. Anticipating the fall of the island to the French, the British spiked the guns, destroyed the magazines, abandoned the works, and retreated to Newport.

The site was occupied by French Marines in 1780-1781 and then abandoned as a fortification until 1916 when it became a part of Fort Getty. During World War I and World War II that part of the military reservation reservation was used to house six underground observation posts for the gun batteries at Fort Getty.

Current Status

The property was deeded to the town in 1964. In 1972 Conanicut Battery was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Context

Location: Near Jamestown, Newport County, Rhode Island.
Lat: 41.48° Long: -71.395° Elevation: 110' Bing, Google, OldMapsOnline, USGS, OHM

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See Also:

• Revolutionary War
• Rhode Island Revolutionary War Forts

Sources:

• Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 699.
• USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Database Entry: 2475184
• Field, Edward, Revolutionary Defenses in Rhode Island, Providence, R.I., Preston And Rounds, 1896

Links:

• North American Forts - Beaver Tail Fort
• Tail Fort Wikipedia - Beaver Tail Fort

Related:
2012 New England Plan, Beaver Head Battery, Beaver Head Fort, Dumpling Rock Battery, Encyclopedia of Historic Forts, Fort Getty, Prospect Hill Fort, Revolutionary War, Rhode Island Revolutionary War Forts, World War I,