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| Fort Livingston's western wall is slowing eroding away. |
Perched on the western tip of the barrier island West Grand Terre sit the remains of the great brick fort, Fort Livingston. The site was originally the base for the infamous pirate, Jean Lafitte. With the outbreak of war against England in 1812, American forces successfully took command of the pirate's base and established a means of repelling an invasion against New Orleans via the route through Barataria Bay.
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| A collapsed section of the fort's outer wall. |
Following England's defeat, the Lafitte House site would make the list for America's coastal defense systems. Plans were made and construction started on the fort proper in 1841. Although never finished, the fort was captured by the CSA and re-armed for battle against the Union forces. The fort never did see any action and it was finally abandoned in 1892.
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| Silt is slowly fills the inside of the fort. |
On a daily basis nature is taking it's toll on Fort Livingston, slowly reclaiming the area. Except for a few remnants displaying the natural shell fill material, the majority of the outer walls are gone. The front-inner walls of the fort are also gone. The water surrounding the west end of the fort was shallow, so we were forced to park the skis further back and make a short wade and hike.
We gained access via the rear-outer wall and then in through the rear of the fort's casemate. Like all the great brick forts, Fort Livingston was built for a topside rampart with embrasures for cannon. Granite was supplied for window lentels, stair risers, and case openings. The interior of the fort is filling in with silt being brought in from storm surges and other high tides. It doesn't take much imagination to realize that a hurricane or two will see the end of Fort Livingston.
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| Looking out towards the GoM shows a small remnant of the fort's outer wall. |
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