The Lansing state Republican. [volume] (Lansing, Mich.) 1855-1874, 1861-10-09
THE DESTRUCTION OF THE FORT AT
OCRACOKE.

From letter in the Philadelphia Inquirer, da-
ted "Steamer Pawnee, September 20, we copy
the following account of the result of the exped-
ton alluded to in our For'ress Monroe letters :
We started at o'clock on Monday morning
last, and reached Fort Ocraoose. which is situa-
ted on Beacon Island, at / O'Clock. 1t is abOu,
twenty miles below Hatteras Inlet, and thirty
miles from Beaufort. II commands the entrance
to OcracOke Inlet. is octagonal in shape, and Was
built by Colonel Morris, in the most scientific
and substantial manner; in fact, it was pro-
nounced by the officers of the expedition as be-
ing far superior 10 Pickens, ard, considering the
depth of water, almost impregnable. Why it
should ever have been evacuated was a matter
of surprise to all who looked upon this splendid
monument Of engineering; and could only be
solved by allowing for the limited supply of wa
ter on hand, and the impossibity Of procuring
further supply, as there is no well on the Is
land; all the water was brought from Washing
ton and Newbern.
At equal distances inside the fort were the
shell rooms, four in number, and twenty five
feet square In the centre of the fort was a
large bomb proof. about 100 feet square, and
capable o. holding 5000 men. In the center OF
the bomo-proof is the magazine, protected on
each side BY three large tanks, ten feet deep,
filed with water, which we're intended for drown
ing shell. There we're platforms for twenty
guns, but in burning the gun-carriages before
they left they were partially destroyed. There
were four navy shell guns and four long 80 poun.
ders in the fort; two of the guns had teen car
ried of from the entrance of the fort by the
steamer Al5ermalle, and taken to Newbern or
the day before We arrived. All the guns except
one had been spiked by the Confederates before
leaving the fort; all of them had been received
from Norfolk, and were marked az. S., ls47.'
The fort was commenced in May last and all the
free negroes, and as many Of the white men oi
the State as could be spared from military ser
vice. we're employed in buildingit. Itcost 5000,
900.
Our work was now to commence - taking
sledges, axes, &C., on shore, We commenced
breaking the trunions off, 80 as to render then
forever unfit for service; but this being such
slow work, Lieut.. Maxwell directed the CUR
which had not been spiked to be loaded with
solid shot, pointed at the trunion Of guu, ther
fred BY this means the work was soon accom-
plished, and the guns we're forever rendered use
less after finishing this work all the lumber
wheelbarrows, and about $50 barrels were plac
ed under and around the bomb proofs, and Al
night Get FIRE, which made the greatest confsgra
ton witnessed since the burning of the Norfo!l
Navy Yard.
A light boat which had been used by the reb
els for a store ship. and run upon the shore be
fore evacuatins the Fort, with the intention o
subsequently towing her of and srming her
was also Get FIRE to and destroyed
About mile and half from Beacon IslanG
is the village Of Portsmouth, which contained
before the bombardment, four hundred and fifty
inhabitants, but nearly all had fed to the mair
land, " that scarcely hundred remained in the
place. Here the camp, called Camp Washing
ton, had been established, composed Of the Roam
oke Guards, Tar River Boys, &c, in all abou
Eve hundred, who could whip Eve Yankees each
but who came to reinforce Fort Hatteras on the
morning Of the b0mbardment, and are now SAFE
prisoners of war in Yankee land. Lying on the
beach in Portsmouth were the Navy shell guns
and one mounted on . carriage near by. 1t wa
tine intention of the enemy to have erected
battery, but the sudden visit Of our feet chang
ed their mind, and the guns were subjt cted Il
the same course Of destruction those at the fort
At Portsmouth our expedition was well reeeiv
ed by the few people remaining. Many Of then
| we're surprised 70 find that Yankees looked lik,
other men. as they expected they somewhat re
semble6 bears. A man expressed surprise a
me, and mentioned the above in a conversation
with me, among party Of twenty persons.
4 Al tutS pluCc We iOuuU iau, ndmcO w.
Phillips, OF Cape Ced, Massachusetts,, who va
in the schooner Nathaniel Chase, bound to Nev
York, and was captured by the privaseer Mari
uer, and carried to Newbern last Julv the Cap
tain and mate escaped in an open boat befor
reaching there, and the youth got on schoone
and reached this far on his way home he ha
been staying in this place ever since, and "
brought him of to the Pawnee, aud will sen
him on home a. soon as convenient
Beaufort has been cased outside with railroa
iron, 90 - to render it impregnable; 1000
troops have been quartered in and around i
and it is said to be nov one Of the strongest fort
to the southern part of the United States. II
night smother expedition Is to start far Orego
Inlet and Roanoke Island. where there are bait,
ries. It is about 20 miles above Hatteras and
the key to Norfolk. Once in our possession, tt
whole coast Of Virginia and North Carolina
rendered useless 70 them for the present