Monday, March 6, 2017

The ruins of Fort Macomb in New Orleans



Fort Macomb was constructed by the United States in 1822, outside the city of New Orleans. It was after the War of 1812, when the British forces invaded New Orleans, and the brick fort was constructed to protect the area. Although today the area is part of New Orleans, back in the day Fort Macomb was some miles outside the city.

The first name of the fort was Fort Wood, but it was renamed to Fort Macomb in 1951, for General Alexander Macomb, former Chief of Engineers and the second Commanding General of the United States Army

In 1861, early in the American Civil War, Fort Macomb was occupied by the Confederate States Army. A year later, the Union Army regained control of the fort as well as the city of New Orleans. In 1867 the fort was largely abandoned after the barracks got fire. It was finally decommissioned in 1871. 

Today Fort Macomb belongs to the state of Louisiana. Although it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places no reconstruction work has taken place and the fort sits largely abandoned and in need of structural stabilization. 

During the last years, Fort Macomb has been used in filming: for the first season finale of the tv series True Detective, for tv series Into the Badlands and for portions of BeyoncĂ© visual album, Lemonade.







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