Posts Tagged With: Howard England

Inside Fort Zachary Taylor in Key West

Key West, FL. April 9

Well, I think we had the Rodney Dangerfield of park rangers today. We were at Fort Zachary Taylor State Historic Park at the extreme western end of Key West. So extreme, that when it was built it was actually constructed in the water and connected to the mainland only be a causeway. Our state park ranger gave a tour to about 15 of us on a hot, humid day.

Possibly he had not given this tour for a while. He seemed forgetful and his attempt at jokes were frequently a cover for his forgetfulness. Despite the humor or lack of it, we did gain some interesting knowledge of this little known fort. Fort Zachary Taylor was one of three U.S. military forts that remained in Union hands during the war. It never fired a hostile shot from its many cannons during any war.

Fort Zachary Taylor, Key West FL

It’s greatest claim to fame occurred during the Civil War. Through its role as a critical part of the effort to blockade Southern ports, Fort Zachary Taylor oversaw the detention of 1500 ships stopped for smuggling. As the Navy captured a ship, it would force the ship to drop anchor in the sea within the range of the big cannon at the Fort, effectively keeping the smugglers from leaving.

Our ranger enjoyed making little comments. For instance, the fort was begun as a reaction to the war of 1812, to protect the U.S. against British attack. As the fort’s usefulness wound down during WWII, the large coastal cannon then in service were removed and sent to Britain to be used to defend Britain from German attack. He thought the irony was rich.

Some of the Civil War armaments discovered buried at Fort Zachary Taylor

The history of the fort as a state park rests heavily on the work of one man, Howard England; another example of the power of a determined person. The Fort had been transferred to the Navy and the property was in disrepair. England was a civilian architect with the Navy. On his own and then with some other volunteers, in 1968 he began a thorough excavation of the site. His digging and his research uncovered the most extensive collection of Civil War armaments. The military had just taken outdated armaments and dumped them into a pit and covered them up. England’s work brought to light the historical significance of the fort. The property eventually was transferred to Florida for a state park, both for beach access and for the historical aspects.

Southernmost point in the U.S.

After our time at the fort, we traveled around downtown a little, stopping at the famous southernmost point in the U.S. for a picture. Thunderstorms were predicted for the afternoon and we returned to the hotel early. Not only did we get a thunderstorm, Key West and several of the keys east of it are now under a power outage. It has been going on for an hour, 5 PM to 6 PM, and we hope the people heading to the nightlife of Key West find their bar or restaurant able to serve them. The power outage reminds one of our comment about the water supply and how isolated this area can be in times of trouble. We are reasonably prepared for short outages with a flashlight, extra battery power for the laptop and phone, and our own internet connection.

Chickens and Roosters have been running loose in Key West for decades

Ed and Chris. April 9