Fort Tompkins
Fort Wadsworth
Two forts, both named Fort Tompkins, have occupied this hill. In 1814 the state of New York started the first Fort Tompkins – a pentagon-shaped stone structure with round bastions at each of the five angles. Never fully completed, the first fort lay deserted by the 1840s.
The U.S. Army built this second Fort Tompkins from 1859 to 1876 using granite, brick, and sandstone. Originally designed to protect Battery Weed below, the fort mounted only one large gun. Fort Tompkins’ main role was housing soldiers. For almost a century, the parade ground behind these walls witnessed a daily routine of drills, reviews, and bugle calls.
Marker is on Hudson Road, on the right when traveling north.
Courtesy hmdb.org
