Named for General

General

A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....

 Winfield Scott

Winfield Scott

Winfield Scott was a United States Army general, and unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Whig Party in 1852....

, who was then General-in-Chief of the Union Army

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

, Fort Scott was a detached lunette constructed in May 1861 to guard the south flank of the defenses of Washington

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 during the 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...

. An historic marker and a small remnant of the fort are the only evidence of the site of the fort on the grounds of what is now the Fort Scott Park in Arlington County, Virginia

Arlington County, Virginia

Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The land that became Arlington was originally donated by Virginia to the United States government to form part of the new federal capital district. On February 27, 1801, the United States Congress organized the area as a subdivision of...

. When originally built, the fort had a perimeter of 313 yards and emplacements for 8 guns. Construction of the defense of Alexandria to the west subsequently reduced the importance of the fort.

The fort is designated as a Historic District and is located in the Arlington Ridge

Arlington Ridge

Arlington Ridge is an unincorporated community in Arlington County, Virginia, United States. It is bordered on the north by The Pentagon, on the west by the Army Navy Country Club, and on the south the City of Alexandria. The main thoroughfare is the eponymous Arlington Ridge Road, a mansion-lined...

community.