The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1899-10-19
FORT LAFAYETTE WHERE ENoR NOUS QUANTITIES OF ExPL
sIVEs ARE STORED LIMITS NEW CITY.

the shore of the borough of Brooklyn
is only a few hundred yards away. 1t is
housed in venerable diamond shaped
structure of solid masonry, built for
defensive purposes nearly eighty-five
years ago, just after the close of the
last war with England, named Fort
Diamond from its distinctive shape,
and fitted with an armament of twenty
four FOUNDERS. When. Lafayette visited
the United States in 1924, he inspected
Fort Diamond and pronounced it one
of the finest defensive works he had
! ever seen, and said it's guns were
ample to stop any ship that ever sailed
from proceeding up the harbor to the
| city. In his honor it was renamed
Fort Lafayette, and for many years
was held in high regard both by the
| general government and the people
of the big town it was built to defend.
Fort Lafayette ceased to be regarded
seriously as fortification long ago,
however, its usefulness having been
done away with, quite by the invention
, OF modern high power artillery. In
fact, no defensive shot has ever been
fired from it's grim and solid walls, for
since the foundation of the republic
New York has never been attacked by
a foreign fleet. Once or twice in the
course of the civil war sea expedi-
tons were planned against the town
by the confederate authorities, but
none of them came to anything. and it
is certain now that Lafayette will
never be a factor in New Yorks de-
Tense. Fort Hamilton. a modern forti-
hcation on the Brooklyn shore hard by
having been erected and fitted with
heavy guns of the latest pattern to
take it's place. Fort Lafayette has
served useful purpose, however,
nearly every year of its existence.
old fort was used for the confinement
of political prisoners and others, and
a complete story of the doings in those
years within it's walls and under it's |
roof would make highly interesting |
reading. After the civil war Lafayette !
gradually fell into disuse, and vir-
tually was abandoned by the army, to |
which branch of the nations service it ]
belonged. Then fire came along and |
destroyed all its wooden parts. and for |
some years it stood useless and idle, |
picturesque, indeed but more or less
a ruin, in the narrow channel. inter
esting as place for sight seers to
visit and an instructive object lesson,
compared with the modern Fort Ham
ilton, in the evolution of the art of
war, but nothing more.
NAVY'S DISTRIBUTING POINT.
Fort Lafayette might be falling into
deeper ruin still had it not occurred to
some one, not long before the breaking
out of the Spanish war, that save for
one drawback it would be an ideal dis
tribution magazine for the navy.
The drawback was furnished by ita
to the open sea and conse-
Iuent danger from hostile fleet in case
IF war. That drawback wasn't count
ed for much, though, since no one then
thought war would come, and the navy
being unable to find any other suitable
magazine location. the forts transfer
rom the army to the navy was sug-
sested and accomplished.
As soon as the transfer was made
zig body of men was set to work max
ng repairs and fitting the place up for
is new service. Parts of walls had to
)e rebuilt new roofs had to be put on
lew floors had to be laid and the arch
ID easements that had served variouslv
Is barracks for troops, chambers for
mooth bore cannon, cells for prisoners
md living quarters for army officers,
lad to be transformed to suit magazine
purposes. In the midst of this work
anne the war with Spain. Just what
would have happened had the fleet of
he Dons really attacked New York.
nd had its commander been aware of I
he old forts contents, can only be con-
ectured, though it may be seen readily
nough that one shot dropped into a !
containing hundreds of thou ,
ands of pounds of powder could raise
% end of mischief.
The days Immediately following the !
vars beginning were stirring ones.
Hardly an hour of any day passed ,
Without the reception of an invoice of '
owder, black, brown or smokeless;
here was hardly an hour that a ship | i
lent was not sent away. Relays of / :
rdnance men We're kept constantly at !
'ork, part of the time by night as well :
$ by day loading shells and cartridges :
nd getting ammunition in order for ,
s journeys across the continent to f
alifornia, there to be shipped to Dewey :
n the Asiatic coast, to Fortress Mon +
De for Schley's flying squadron, to o
ampa for SIMPSONS ships that were i
, blockade Cuba, and other points a
here Uncle Sans sea fighters needed i
ar material. Much of the repairing |.
nd rebuilding was still undone, and o
lie shell and cartridge leaders, the as D