Fort Mifflin: The Most Important Revolutionary War Site

When you think about Revolutionary War sites in Pennsylvania, you might think of the Brandywine Battlefield or Valley Forge, but there is one far smaller and far more important site that has been underappreciated and, for the most part, unknown for a great many years.  Nestled amongst airport runways, freight train tracks, and industrial sites, Fort Mifflin sits quietly on the Delaware River just south of Philadelphia, PA.  Built for its strategic position on the river as well as its proximity to Philadelphia, it's close but not too close to the hustle and bustle of the big city.  If you live on the East Coast, chances are that it's closer than you think AND well worth a visit.

The winter of 1777 was a bitter and bleak one for America.  The British occupied Philadelphia and General George Washington's troops were weary and beaten.  All that stood between the end of our young nation's independence was Fort Mifflin.  General Howe's fleet of British warships sailed up the Delaware River, bringing fresh supplies and reinforcements to finish off the Americans, but couldn't get past the Fort's roaring cannons.  Bottled up for weeks, a massive armada of some 240 British gun ships blasted away at the Fort in the greatest bombardment ever in North America.  For seven bloody weeks, Fort Mifflin's troops held off the British before being overtaken.  This delay immobilized the British and allowed Washington's army to recover at Valley Forge and storm back to rout the British.  Even though it was overtaken, Fort Mifflin is the fort that saved America! 

Until this location was showcased on SciFi Channel's Ghost Hunters on March 6th, we had no idea this place existed.  This is truly sad since we live a little less than 40 miles south in Delaware and have lived here for over 12 years now.  As with most historic locations, I find speaking with those who work there to be the best source of little-known, more in-depth information.  Mrs. Irby, the kind lady who was working in the gift shop, explained that the site is owned by the City of Philadelphia who, in turn, leases it long-term to the Old Fort Mifflin Historical Society which maintains it.  It was registered as a National Historic Landmark in 1970 in order to safeguard its future and in the hopes of securing more funding for refurbishment.  Sadly, after all the federal budget cuts, funding is slim to nil and the organization has been left to fend for itself, relying on sporadic donations and a trickle of visitors during the half-year that enjoys good weather (April - November).  How could such a place be abandoned and forgotten by the public?  Mrs. Irby says that not many people are aware of it and few see it's value because George Washington was never physically on-site, though he praised it in several letters he'd written.  If Gen. Washington saw its value, then why don't we?

 
The main beauty of Historic Old Fort Mifflin is, of course, the history.  From the moment you pull onto the site, the first thing you see can take you back at least a hundred years: a yellow, two-story colonial building and galant cannons poised in front, as if they were defending this lone building.  Now housing the office on the second floor, the building originally served as the hospital and mess hall.

  
As you walk down a pathway towards the entrance to the fort, you notice the large, beautiful flag flying overhead.  As you continue down the path towards the gate, you become more aware of the size of the fort, the thickness of its walls, the beauty of the zig-zig wall design, and the plentiful wildlife surrounding it.  There is marshland to explore here, too, with birds, turtles, foxes, deer, geese, ducks, and frogs.  There is even a walkway complete with interpretive panels on to educate visitors about the resident wildlife.

 
As you enter the large, wooden gates an expansive inner yard opens before you.  Directly ahead of you are the barracks and Officer's Quarters (the two-story building in the distance).  You also notice an impressive building in the center of the yard (the Commandant's House) which has a beautiful white turret on top.  Beyond that is a storage shed which resembles a stable, but which was an artillery shed at the time of military use.  In fact, Fort Mifflin boasts the last remaining open-faced artillery shed in the nation.  A blacksmith's shop and two grassy hills round out the view.  Little did I know at the time that those hills served a purpose: a torpedo casemate and a powder magazine.

        
First stop: the eerie casemates which served as prisons during the fort's military years.  I turned around and snapped this picture after entering the walkway to the casemates.  This archway is only about 5 1/2' high, causing all but my kids to crouch a little to get through.  The temperature drops significantly as you walk into darkness.  Lit only by a few worklights along the way, I realize that it is NOT a place in which I would want to be at night.  Even during the day and with the help of work lights you can barely see your feet ahead of you in the casemates.  If you have small children or children that are afraid of the dark, this is NOT the part of the fort for them to visit!  The only reason it looks remotely light is because of my flash.  The three small lights you see above the bunks are three small squares to the outside - and the worklight on the wall to the right is the only other light in the room.

  
After viewing the casemates, we returned to the central yard.  We travelled to the Arsenal which was completed in 1816 and which was originally used as a guard house and prison.  The walls are 4' thick and there are metal grates at the bottom near the floors that are so deeply seated in the walls that no inmate could ever escape.  As we walked up the grassy hill from the Arsenal, we saw a line of semi-circular stone "steps".  Artwork?  I was stumped.  Then hubby brought me up to speed: cannons were set onto the stump in the center of the semi-circle and on top of the cement steps were metal tracks upon which the cannons could be pivoted left or right, allowing a 180° range of fire.

   
Then we visited the Commandant's House.  Originally designed by Pierre Charles L'Enfant and is the only single dwelling north of the Mason Dixon line that was designed by L'Enfant (he designed Washington, D.C.).  The original exterior marble steps are still in place and, in spite of a fire that gutted the entire building, all the original brick work is also still in place.  Having only had enough funds to replace the roof and turret thus far (at a $1 million price tag), there was only a plank floor upon which to walk and view the inside of the structure.  Once inside there are no actual floors and only the large fireplaces remain.  On the left side of the room there is one large fireplace and on the right there is one large chimney that sports a fireplace on each side.  You can see by the cement on the right side that there was a wall partition, providing one fireplace for each room but with one chimney that still provided privacy since the fireplaces weren't open in the center. 

 
Directly behind the Commandant's House is the Powder Magazine, Blacksmith's Shop, and Western Sulley.  My kids loved the Blacksmith's Shop which still boasts a large bellows that can be moved as well as a number of tools hanging on the wall and two large anvils.  We could easily explain how these could be used and they got to see how heavy a few of the smaller tools actually are.  The sulley was just an entrance, but the gate was almost as impressive as the front gate.

The museum displays a number of artifacts unearthed on site ... many of which date to the late 18th century and may well have been used during the 1777 campaign.  The bayonet pictured above has been dated to that time period.  The cartridge box plate emblem was dated to a later time, about 1839.  Keep in mind that this location WAS active during Civil War times as well.  At that ime it was used to house Confederate prisoners of war as well as Union soldiers and civilians accused of breaking the law.  The fort was used as a military post until the 1950's, acting as a munitions depot during World Wars I & II, and in 1962 it was deeded back to the City of Philadelphia.


We didn't get to spend as much time at the fort as I would have liked, deciding to make the journey last Saturday in the middle of the day, but we still saw and learned a lot within the 4 hours we were there.  I will be returning with the kids within the coming weeks (perhaps even next week during Spring Break!) so we can enjoy the wildlife and learn even more about the site.  We would love to take a tour with an experienced tour guide!

This place is full of history and was crucial to our success during the Revolutionary War.  It supported us during the Civil War and even served a purpose into the 20th century.  It is in need of a tremendous amount of work and, therefore, funds.  The Old Fort Mifflin Historical Society oversees the site and gets very little in support from the US Government, the State of Pennsylvania, and the City of Philadelphia.  All it can do is continue its efforts, collecting funds from visitors as it sits, hoping to be refurbished one bit at a time.

If you live in the area, I encourage you to visit and learn.  Spend the day: have a picnic, enjoy the wildlife, walk the grounds and learn about its history.  I just hate to see historic places not being given the assistance they need while there is a HUGE bustling populace in the area that is seemingly content to let our history fade away.  This place has over 200 years of history - it is one of the longest continually used military posts in the nation.  It's just very sad that we could visit for the day for just $6 per adult and $3 for children 6-12 (5 and under are free), thus doing a very small part to help preserve this piece of our history, rather than the myriad of other things we might do on a Saturday.

If you can't visit on a weekend with your family, perhaps a trip through another avenue would be better suited.  Schools, Scouts, naturalists, and hobbyists would find great value here as well.  Fort Mifflin offers educational and interpretive programs for school and Scout groups as well as birthday parties for children 12 and younger.  It offers seasonal events such as School of the Musketeers, Pirates Day, Viet Nam War Vet Appreciation Days, World War II re-enactments, and Historic Nights of Fright (October).  Boy and Girl Scouts can also enjoy troop camp-outs on the grounds complete with a guided tour and weapons and uniform demonstrations.  Lastly, there are Sleep With the Ghosts events scheduled for ghost hunters and paranormal enthusiasts (these are already nearly booked to full capacity).  For information on ANY of the opportunities, please call (215) 685-4167 or visit the website at http://www.fortmifflin.us/.  I can't wait to return ... and I can't wait to participate in one (or more) of their upcoming special events!

If you'd like to learn more, here are some links to websites that provide more info on Fort Mifflin:

http://www.generalatomic.com/AmericanHistory/fort_mifflin.html

http://www.fieldtrip.com/pa/54923395.htm

http://www.ushistory.org/march/phila/mifflin.htm

http://www.fortmifflin.com/

http://www.phila.gov/recreation_old/fortmifflin/Fort_Mifflin_History/fort_mifflin_history.html

STAY TUNED ... for my photoessay on the paranormal pictures I took at Fort Mifflin!!!