Fort De Soto Park
Encyclopedia
Fort De Soto Park is located just outside the city of St. Petersburg, Florida
. This park, operated by Pinellas County
, is made up from five offshore keys, or islands lying to the city's south-southwest: Madelaine Key, St. Jean Key, St. Christopher Key, Bonne Fortune Key and the main island, Mullet Key. Today all are connected by land to each other. The island group is accessible by toll road
from the mainland.
The park is a 'gateway site' for the Great Florida Birding Trail
.
In 1849, Brevet Col. Robert E. Lee
(the famous American Civil War
commander) and three other US Army Engineers surveyed the area and recommended Mullet and Egmont Keys become fortified. Both keys could only be reached by boat, since they were islands off the mainland. Union troops were stationed on the two keys during the Civil War (1861–1865) to aid in the Union blockade of Tampa Bay
. The keys were again abandoned by the military until 1882 when military reservations were officially created on the two keys. However, it would be several years before actual permanent construction would commence as a result of defense considerations linked to the Spanish-American War
.
Hillsborough County
established a quarantine
station on the eastern side of Mullet Key in 1889. It became known as Mullet Key Quarantine Station. The Marine Hospital Service
took over jurisdiction of the station in 1901. The duty of the station was to inspect aliens aboard ships arriving from foreign ports. By 1925 the station operated with fifteen buildings. The quarantine station operated until 1937, when the Public Health Service
transferred its operations there to Gadsden Point, near Tampa
.
The main operation on Mullet Key, however, became Fort De Soto in 1900, named for Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto
. The Army post was officially a subpost of Fort Dade
, which was constructed on Egmont Key. These posts were to contain batteries of artillery and mortars to protect Tampa Bay from any invading forces. Construction of Fort De Soto began in November 1898 and was completed in 1906. The foundation was constructed of a shell concrete formula and the walls and ceiling used a shell, stone and concrete mix. The main attractions at the completed post were the artillery
and mortar batteries
, Batteries Laidley and Bigelow. The post consisted of 29 buildings. The post's features included a large barracks
, a hospital, a guardhouse
, a blacksmith
and carpenter shop, an administration building, and mess hall with kitchen, a bakery, and a storehouse. The site also had brick roads, concrete sidewalks and a narrow-gauge railroad to aid in moving materials and supplies around the post.
The post was active from 1898 to 1910. At least one company was present at Fort De Soto at all times and many times several units were present. Mosquito
es were a constant problem and the post was very hot in the summers.
In 1910 most troops were moved to Fort Morgan in Alabama. Only a caretaker force remained. By 1914 only a sergeant and game warden
remained at the post. Through most of World War I
a larger caretaker force was at the post, usually with about 22 privates, two noncommissioned officers and two commissioned officers. In 1917 four of the post's mortars were disassembled and shipped to Fort Rosecrans
, in San Diego, California
.
In November 1922 the Army announced it would soon close both Forts De Soto and Dade. On May 25, 1923, the forts were officially abandoned and only one caretaker remained at each post. A number of tropical storms and hurricanes severely damaged the buildings on the post. A few were destroyed, as was Battery Bigelow in 1932. The Army attempted to sell the post, but there was little interest. In September 1938 Pinellas County bought the areas on Mullet Key for $12,500.
Two years later the War Department
decided it wanted Mullet Key back for use as a bombing range
. In June 1941 the key was purchased back from Pinellas County for $18,404 and turned into a subpost of MacDill Field. In 1948 Pinellas County again purchased the key and it permanently remained county property.
In 1962 a toll road, the Pinellas Bayway
(formerly State Road A19A
, now SR 682), was completed to the mainland, enabling island visitors to arrive by car. On December 21, 1962, Fort De Soto Park opened. On May 11, 1963, Fort De Soto Park was officially dedicated. Its facilities have been expanded over the years. The quartermaster storehouse was reconstructed to become the Quartermaster Storehouse Museum. On December 2, 1977, the Fort De Soto batteries were placed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
In 2003, a portion of the Marvel
comic-inspired film "The Punisher
" was filmed on Mullet Key and Fort Desoto as a mock-up of Puerto Rico
.
The park is open year-round and has the following features:
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...
. This park, operated by Pinellas County
Pinellas County, Florida
Pinellas County is a county located in the state of Florida. Its county seat is Clearwater, Florida, and its largest city is St. Petersburg. This county is contained entirely within the telephone area code 727, except for some sections of Oldsmar, which have the area code 813...
, is made up from five offshore keys, or islands lying to the city's south-southwest: Madelaine Key, St. Jean Key, St. Christopher Key, Bonne Fortune Key and the main island, Mullet Key. Today all are connected by land to each other. The island group is accessible by toll road
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
from the mainland.
The park is a 'gateway site' for the Great Florida Birding Trail
Great Florida Birding Trail
The 2000 mile long Great Florida Birding Trail is a collection of more than 400 locations in the U.S. state of Florida...
.
History
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
(the famous American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
commander) and three other US Army Engineers surveyed the area and recommended Mullet and Egmont Keys become fortified. Both keys could only be reached by boat, since they were islands off the mainland. Union troops were stationed on the two keys during the Civil War (1861–1865) to aid in the Union blockade of Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary along the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay."Tampa Bay" is not the name of any municipality...
. The keys were again abandoned by the military until 1882 when military reservations were officially created on the two keys. However, it would be several years before actual permanent construction would commence as a result of defense considerations linked to the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
.
Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County, Florida
As of the census of 2000, there were 998,948 people, 391,357 households, and 255,164 families residing in the county. The population density was 951 people per square mile . There were 425,962 housing units at an average density of 405 per square mile...
established a quarantine
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
station on the eastern side of Mullet Key in 1889. It became known as Mullet Key Quarantine Station. The Marine Hospital Service
Marine Hospital Service
The Marine-Hospital Service was an organization of Marine Hospitals dedicated to the care of ill and disabled seamen in the U.S. Merchant Marine, U.S. Coast Guard and other federal beneficiaries....
took over jurisdiction of the station in 1901. The duty of the station was to inspect aliens aboard ships arriving from foreign ports. By 1925 the station operated with fifteen buildings. The quarantine station operated until 1937, when the Public Health Service
United States Public Health Service
The Public Health Service Act of 1944 structured the United States Public Health Service as the primary division of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare , which later became the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The PHS comprises all Agency Divisions of Health and...
transferred its operations there to Gadsden Point, near Tampa
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
.
The main operation on Mullet Key, however, became Fort De Soto in 1900, named for Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto
Hernando de Soto (explorer)
Hernando de Soto was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who, while leading the first European expedition deep into the territory of the modern-day United States, was the first European documented to have crossed the Mississippi River....
. The Army post was officially a subpost of Fort Dade
Egmont Key State Park
Egmont Key State Park is a Florida State Park located on Egmont Key, at the mouth of Tampa Bay, in the state of Florida, United States. It lies southwest of Fort DeSoto Park. It can only be reached by boat or ferry. The Egmont Key Lighthouse and the ruins of Fort Dade, a Spanish-American War era...
, which was constructed on Egmont Key. These posts were to contain batteries of artillery and mortars to protect Tampa Bay from any invading forces. Construction of Fort De Soto began in November 1898 and was completed in 1906. The foundation was constructed of a shell concrete formula and the walls and ceiling used a shell, stone and concrete mix. The main attractions at the completed post were the artillery
Artillery battery
In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit of guns, mortars, rockets or missiles so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield communication and command and control, as well as to provide dispersion for its constituent gunnery crews and their systems...
and mortar batteries
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
, Batteries Laidley and Bigelow. The post consisted of 29 buildings. The post's features included a large barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
, a hospital, a guardhouse
Guardhouse
A guardhouse is a building used to house personnel and security equipment...
, a blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
and carpenter shop, an administration building, and mess hall with kitchen, a bakery, and a storehouse. The site also had brick roads, concrete sidewalks and a narrow-gauge railroad to aid in moving materials and supplies around the post.
The post was active from 1898 to 1910. At least one company was present at Fort De Soto at all times and many times several units were present. Mosquito
Mosquito
Mosquitoes are members of a family of nematocerid flies: the Culicidae . The word Mosquito is from the Spanish and Portuguese for little fly...
es were a constant problem and the post was very hot in the summers.
In 1910 most troops were moved to Fort Morgan in Alabama. Only a caretaker force remained. By 1914 only a sergeant and game warden
Game warden
A game warden is an employee who has the role of protecting wildlife. Game wardens may also be referred to as conservation officers or wildlife officers...
remained at the post. Through most of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
a larger caretaker force was at the post, usually with about 22 privates, two noncommissioned officers and two commissioned officers. In 1917 four of the post's mortars were disassembled and shipped to Fort Rosecrans
Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery
Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery is situated in the city of San Diego, California, on the Fort Rosecrans Military Reservation. The cemetery is located approximately 10 miles west of downtown San Diego, overlooking the bay and the city...
, in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
.
Two years later the War Department
United States Department of War
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department , was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army...
decided it wanted Mullet Key back for use as a bombing range
Bombing range
A bombing range is an area used for testing explosive ordnance and practicing to accurately direct them to the target. Bombing ranges are used for munitions that either explode or produce too much destruction to use at a shooting range, such as kinetic energy penetrators or very large caliber...
. In June 1941 the key was purchased back from Pinellas County for $18,404 and turned into a subpost of MacDill Field. In 1948 Pinellas County again purchased the key and it permanently remained county property.
In 1962 a toll road, the Pinellas Bayway
Pinellas Bayway
The Pinellas Bayway System is a series of bridges on two Florida State Roads in Pinellas County, Florida. It is a toll road complex maintained and operated by the Florida Department of Transportation. It also is compatible with the SunPass ETC system currently in used on all other FDOT-owned toll...
(formerly State Road A19A
State Road A19A (Florida)
State Road A19A is a loop in the St. Petersburg, Florida, area that currently consists of the entirety of the north–south SR 693 , a stretch of SR 699 in and near St. Pete Beach, and the entirety of SR 682...
, now SR 682), was completed to the mainland, enabling island visitors to arrive by car. On December 21, 1962, Fort De Soto Park opened. On May 11, 1963, Fort De Soto Park was officially dedicated. Its facilities have been expanded over the years. The quartermaster storehouse was reconstructed to become the Quartermaster Storehouse Museum. On December 2, 1977, the Fort De Soto batteries were placed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
In 2003, a portion of the Marvel
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
comic-inspired film "The Punisher
The Punisher (2004 film)
The Punisher is a 2004 American comic book action film, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, starring Thomas Jane as the antihero Frank Castle / The Punisher and John Travolta as the villain Howard Saint, a money launderer who orders the death of Castle's entire family...
" was filmed on Mullet Key and Fort Desoto as a mock-up of Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
.
Early History
The area of Fort Desoto for over 400 years has attracted a variety of visitors. Among the earliest was the Tocobaga Indians who preceded Spanish explorers which begin the westerns world entrance into the area. On April 15, 1528, Panfilo de Narvaez landed on the short of the west coast of Florida between St. Petersburg Beach and Clearwater. This Spanish explorer with a group of conquistadors explored the barrier islands in the area. This area was further explored on May 30, 1539, when Hernando De Soto arrived on the shores of Tampa Bay.Recreational activities and amenities
- Two piers, each allowing fishing. Both have bait, tackle and food concessions.
- Various picnic areas.
- Fort De Soto, built in 1898, abandoned in phases 1910 to 1948.
- QuartermasterQuartermasterQuartermaster refers to two different military occupations depending on if the assigned unit is land based or naval.In land armies, especially US units, it is a term referring to either an individual soldier or a unit who specializes in distributing supplies and provisions to troops. The senior...
Storehouse Museum. - Two swimming areas, North Beach and East Beach. North Beach has been named to America's Top 10 Beaches list by DrBeach.org numerous times. In 2005 it moved to the first place in this list, being recognized as the top beach in the nation.
- 800-foot boat ramp.
- Camping area with a camp store, modern restrooms and laundry roomLaundry roomA laundry room is a room where clothes are washed. In a modern home, a laundry room would be equipped with an automatic washing machine and clothes dryer,and often a large basin, called a laundry tub, for hand-washing delicate articles of clothing such as sweaters, and an ironing board...
. - Snack barSnack barthumb|A snack bar in AmsterdamA snack bar usually refers to an inexpensive food counter that is part of a permanent structure where snack foods and light meals are sold. A beach snack bar is often a small building situated high on the sand. Besides soft drinks, candies and chewing gum, some snack...
with gift shopGift shopA gift shop is a store primarily selling souvenirs relating to a particular topic or theme. The items sold often include coffee mugs, stuffed animals, t-shirts, postcards, handmade collections and other souvenirs....
at the old fort. - Seven-mile multi-purpose trail.
- 2¼ mile canoe trail.
- Barrier-free nature trail.
- Paw Playground, an area to exercise pets.
- Ferry to Egmont Key, site of Egmont Key State ParkEgmont Key State ParkEgmont Key State Park is a Florida State Park located on Egmont Key, at the mouth of Tampa Bay, in the state of Florida, United States. It lies southwest of Fort DeSoto Park. It can only be reached by boat or ferry. The Egmont Key Lighthouse and the ruins of Fort Dade, a Spanish-American War era...
.
External links
- Pinellas County listings at National Register of Historic Places
- Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs
- Fort De Soto Park - official site
- FortDeSoto.com - A site dedicated to Fort De Soto Park
- Laboratory for Coastal Research & National Healthy Beaches Campaign, Florida International UniversityFlorida International UniversityFlorida International University is an American public research university in metropolitan Miami, Florida, in the United States, with its main campus in University Park...