Fort Fisher was was the Confederacy's strongest seacoast fortification. It guarded New Inlet, the northern entryway into the Cape Fear River and the port of Wilmington, North Carolina. By the summer of 1863, Wilmington was the Confederacy's main seaport along the Atlantic seaboard. Commerce vessels brought in essential weapons, equipment, and provisions for its armed forces on the battlefront and civilians on the home front. To do so, they had to evade U.S. Navy ships deployed to blockade the South's coastline and seaports. Strong defenses like Fort Fisher were needed to protect Wilmington for blockade-runners, the inlets they used to access its harbor, the port facilities, and the railroads along which supplies were transported. By late 1864, Wilmington was the lifeline for General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and the Confederacy's most important city. Faces of Fort Fisher, 1861-1864, examines the early history of the fort, nicknamed the Gibraltar of the South, from its construction beginning in 1861 until the eve of it being attacked by Union forces at Christmas 1864. It looks at the officers who planned, designed and commanded the works, and the soldiers who built, garrisoned and defended them. The book also explores events associated with the fort's fascinating history.
 
160 pp., 9" x 11", hardcover with case binding and dust jacket, 162 B&W and color images, and 8 maps.
ISBN: 978-0-9792431-9-6
Price includes $6.99 shipping