Fort Terry
Encyclopedia
Fort Terry was a coastal fortification on Plum Island
, a small island just off Orient Point, New York, USA. This strategic position afforded it a commanding view over the Atlantic entrance to the commercially vital Long Island Sound
. It was established in 1897 and used intermittently through the end of World War II. In 1952, it became an animal and biological warfare
research facility, a mission it continued under military and later, civilian, control until 1969.
Indian tribes the Plum Island was sold to Samuel Wyllys for a coat, a barrel of biscuits and 100 fishhooks. The original fort was constructed after the federal government acquired Plum Island from Abraham S. Hewitt, a former mayor of New London, Connecticut
, for $25,000. It is not clear how Hewitt became owner of the property. Fort Terry, named for Major General Alfred Terry
, began operation in 1897 and was expanded several times from the time of the Spanish–American War through World War II. The initial federal purchase was for 150 acres, however the rest of the island was turned over to the federal government in 1901.
Fort Terry served as an artillery
post during the Spanish–American War, and it was to attack enemy ships as they headed toward New York City. Organized in 1907, It was manned by the 133rd Company, Coast Artillery Corps, organized in 1907. In 1916, they were re-designated as the 3d Company, and continued to serve in that capacity throughout World War I. Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Hero, Jr. was in command of the post in August, 1915. Following the end of World War I, Fort Terry was declared surplus and put under the control of personnel at Fort H.G. Wright. At one point, Fort Terry was used by Portsmouth National Guard Armory as their summer encampment and training location. The Gun and Machine Gun Battalions worked on night firing solutions at aerial balloon targets, tracked by the Searchlight Battalion. In 1930, the Federal Census - New York, identified 133 people living on Fort Terry. Also, in 1930, the Justice Department conducted a study to consider building a 1000-cell prison on the island. However, it was deemed impractical, and there was no further action.
During World War II, the post was put to use again, this time as a training facility and supply depot. It was also used as a look-out for German U-boats and planes. On December 7, 1941, this fort was listed as manned by the Navy Harbor Defense, 242nd Coastal Artillery Regiment. Today, on the east side of Plum Island, a network of trenches remains from the area's tenure as an artillery post. The fort was once again declared surplus in 1948.
Beginning April 15, 1952, it served as a U.S. Army Chemical Corps facility. As a Chemical Corps facility, it was under the control of the First Army. Fort Terry was small and focused primarily on anti-animal biological warfare
(BW) research aimed at enemy livestock. Anti-animal agents rinderpest and foot and mouth disease
were the main areas of research. When the decision to use the Fort as a research facility was planned, it was envisioned that it would be staffed by less than 20 personnel. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) took over the island in 1954 and began to use it as an animal disease research center. It was then staffed by at least 9 military and 8 civilian employees. Most of the original buildings and batteries still stand today and in many cases have been incorporated in one way or another into the island's new role as a disease research center. Most of the disease research done by the USDA was also focused on biological warfare until Richard Nixon
ended the U.S. bio-weapons program in 1969. The facilities continued to be operated by the USDA until June 2003, when the responsibility for Plum Island and its security was transferred to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
(RVF), rinderpest
, African swine fever, and a slew of miscellaneous exotic animal diseases. Among the miscellaneous diseases were 11 other animal pathogens. Shortly before the handover of the facility to the Department of Agriculture in 1954, Fort Terry's mission was altered. The number of pathogens studied was reduced to two, rinderpest and FMD, and the mission was changed to "defensive" research of those two diseases.
the area against submarines. During World War I the post had anti-aircraft artillery installed. In addition the post was home to an advanced fire regulation system as well as a position finding system. The grounds also had a functional 36" gauge railroad built in 1914. The Porter locomotive was used to haul munitions from bunkers to the artillery batteries.
Fort Terry's Chemical Corps installation covered three acres and included many of the amenities traditionally associated with U.S. military installations. Included on the grounds were various administration buildings, laboratories, a dock, a motor pool, a commissary
, a hospital, a fire station, staff housing and animal housing.
When the Chemical Corps took control of Fort Terry, in 1952, it required the remodeling of 18 original buildings on post. The Army had been developing plans for the animal disease facility at Fort Terry since 1951. A laboratory was planned for the circa 1911 Building 257
, originally known as Combined Torpedo Storehouse and Cable Tanks building. The lab was not completed by the time the Chemical Corps transferred the fort to the USDA but it and the rest of the remodeled buildings were eventually incorporated into the civilian facility.
A 2008 DHS report recommended that the remnants of Fort Terry, its buildings and batteries, be opened to the public and preserved. The Town of Southold, New York
formed a Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) which noted that many of the island's structures, including those at Fort Terry, could qualify for listing on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
.
Plum Island (New York)
Plum Island is an island in the Town of Southold in Suffolk County, New York in the United States. The island is in Gardiners Bay, east of Orient Point, off the eastern end of the North Fork coast of Long Island. It is about long and wide at its widest point...
, a small island just off Orient Point, New York, USA. This strategic position afforded it a commanding view over the Atlantic entrance to the commercially vital Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
. It was established in 1897 and used intermittently through the end of World War II. In 1952, it became an animal and biological warfare
Biological warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi with intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war...
research facility, a mission it continued under military and later, civilian, control until 1969.
History and Timeline
First “owned” by the Corchaug and MontaukettMontaukett
The Montaukett is an Algonquian-speaking Native American group native to the eastern end of Long Island, New York and one of the thirteen historical indigenous centers...
Indian tribes the Plum Island was sold to Samuel Wyllys for a coat, a barrel of biscuits and 100 fishhooks. The original fort was constructed after the federal government acquired Plum Island from Abraham S. Hewitt, a former mayor of New London, Connecticut
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
, for $25,000. It is not clear how Hewitt became owner of the property. Fort Terry, named for Major General Alfred Terry
Alfred Terry
Alfred Howe Terry was a Union general in the American Civil War and the military commander of the Dakota Territory from 1866 to 1869 and again from 1872 to 1886.-Early life and career:...
, began operation in 1897 and was expanded several times from the time of the Spanish–American War through World War II. The initial federal purchase was for 150 acres, however the rest of the island was turned over to the federal government in 1901.
Fort Terry served as an artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
post during the Spanish–American War, and it was to attack enemy ships as they headed toward New York City. Organized in 1907, It was manned by the 133rd Company, Coast Artillery Corps, organized in 1907. In 1916, they were re-designated as the 3d Company, and continued to serve in that capacity throughout World War I. Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Hero, Jr. was in command of the post in August, 1915. Following the end of World War I, Fort Terry was declared surplus and put under the control of personnel at Fort H.G. Wright. At one point, Fort Terry was used by Portsmouth National Guard Armory as their summer encampment and training location. The Gun and Machine Gun Battalions worked on night firing solutions at aerial balloon targets, tracked by the Searchlight Battalion. In 1930, the Federal Census - New York, identified 133 people living on Fort Terry. Also, in 1930, the Justice Department conducted a study to consider building a 1000-cell prison on the island. However, it was deemed impractical, and there was no further action.
During World War II, the post was put to use again, this time as a training facility and supply depot. It was also used as a look-out for German U-boats and planes. On December 7, 1941, this fort was listed as manned by the Navy Harbor Defense, 242nd Coastal Artillery Regiment. Today, on the east side of Plum Island, a network of trenches remains from the area's tenure as an artillery post. The fort was once again declared surplus in 1948.
Beginning April 15, 1952, it served as a U.S. Army Chemical Corps facility. As a Chemical Corps facility, it was under the control of the First Army. Fort Terry was small and focused primarily on anti-animal biological warfare
Biological warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi with intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war...
(BW) research aimed at enemy livestock. Anti-animal agents rinderpest and foot and mouth disease
Foot-and-mouth disease
Foot-and-mouth disease or hoof-and-mouth disease is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids...
were the main areas of research. When the decision to use the Fort as a research facility was planned, it was envisioned that it would be staffed by less than 20 personnel. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) took over the island in 1954 and began to use it as an animal disease research center. It was then staffed by at least 9 military and 8 civilian employees. Most of the original buildings and batteries still stand today and in many cases have been incorporated in one way or another into the island's new role as a disease research center. Most of the disease research done by the USDA was also focused on biological warfare until Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
ended the U.S. bio-weapons program in 1969. The facilities continued to be operated by the USDA until June 2003, when the responsibility for Plum Island and its security was transferred to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Research
The original anti-animal biological warfare research mission at Fort Terry was "to establish and pursue a program of research and development of certain anti-animal biological warfare agents. The first agent that was a candidate for development was foot and mouth disease (FMD). Besides FMD, five other top secret BW projects were commissioned on Plum Island. The other four programs researched included Rift Valley feverRift Valley fever
Rift Valley Fever is a viral zoonosis causing fever. It is spread by the bite of infected mosquitoes, typically the Aedes or Culex genera. The disease is caused by the RVF virus, a member of the genus Phlebovirus...
(RVF), rinderpest
Rinderpest
Rinderpest was an infectious viral disease of cattle, domestic buffalo, and some other species of even-toed ungulates, including buffaloes, large antelopes and deer, giraffes, wildebeests and warthogs. After a global eradication campaign, the last confirmed case of rinderpest was diagnosed in 2001...
, African swine fever, and a slew of miscellaneous exotic animal diseases. Among the miscellaneous diseases were 11 other animal pathogens. Shortly before the handover of the facility to the Department of Agriculture in 1954, Fort Terry's mission was altered. The number of pathogens studied was reduced to two, rinderpest and FMD, and the mission was changed to "defensive" research of those two diseases.
Facilities and weaponry
As an artillery post Fort Terry, was heavily armed. By 1914 the fort had 11 gun batteries and the ability to extensively mineNaval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
the area against submarines. During World War I the post had anti-aircraft artillery installed. In addition the post was home to an advanced fire regulation system as well as a position finding system. The grounds also had a functional 36" gauge railroad built in 1914. The Porter locomotive was used to haul munitions from bunkers to the artillery batteries.
Fort Terry's Chemical Corps installation covered three acres and included many of the amenities traditionally associated with U.S. military installations. Included on the grounds were various administration buildings, laboratories, a dock, a motor pool, a commissary
Commissary
A commissary is someone delegated by a superior to execute a duty or an office; in a formal, legal context, one who has received power from a legitimate superior authority to pass judgment in a certain cause or to take information concerning it.-Word history:...
, a hospital, a fire station, staff housing and animal housing.
When the Chemical Corps took control of Fort Terry, in 1952, it required the remodeling of 18 original buildings on post. The Army had been developing plans for the animal disease facility at Fort Terry since 1951. A laboratory was planned for the circa 1911 Building 257
Building 257
Building 257, also known as Lab 257, was a U.S. biological warfare research laboratory located at Fort Terry on Plum Island, New York. Originally intended for munitions storage, the facility researched anti-animal biological agents beginning in 1952 under the U.S. Army. Biological warfare research...
, originally known as Combined Torpedo Storehouse and Cable Tanks building. The lab was not completed by the time the Chemical Corps transferred the fort to the USDA but it and the rest of the remodeled buildings were eventually incorporated into the civilian facility.
A 2008 DHS report recommended that the remnants of Fort Terry, its buildings and batteries, be opened to the public and preserved. The Town of Southold, New York
Southold, New York
Southold is one of ten towns in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is located in the northeastern tip of the county, on the North Fork of Long Island. The population was 20,599 at the 2000 census...
formed a Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) which noted that many of the island's structures, including those at Fort Terry, could qualify for listing on the U.S. 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...
.
Batteries
The following is the status of the batteries:| Battery Name | Type | Dates | Status/Note | Latitude | Longitude |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery Stoneman | 4 - 12" Mortar | 1901–1943 | named in honor of MG George Stoneman, U.S. Volunteers (Bvt. MG, U.S. Army), who served with distinction during the U.S. Civil War, died 5 Sep 1894. | 41.18889 | -72.16472 |
| Battery Steele | 2 - 10" Disappearing | 1900–1942 | named in honor of Bvt. MG Frederick Steele, U.S. Army, who served with distinction during the Mexican-American War and the U.S. Civil War, and who died on 12 Jan 1868. | 41.185 | -72.18083 |
| Battery James Bradford | 2 - 6" Disappearing | 1901–1944 | named on March 13, 1902 in honor of Captain James Bradford, U.S. Artillery, who was killed on November 4, 1791, in action with hostile Indians at Fort Recovery Fort Recovery Fort Recovery was a United States Army fort begun in late 1793 and completed in March 1794 under orders by General "Mad" Anthony Wayne. It was located on the site of the present-day village of Fort Recovery, Ohio, United States, on the Wabash River within two miles of the boundary with... , Ohio |
41.18944 | -72.16333 |
| Battery Robert Floyd | 2 - 6" Disappearing | 1906–1917 | arms removed by 1921 - named in honor of Lt. Robert Floyd (3d Art. attached) fought and died in the battle for Fredericksburg, VA. 1863 | 41.16778 | |
| Battery Justin Dimick | 2 - 6" Disappearing | 1905–1917 | arms removed by 1921 | 41.18861 | |
| Battery Kelly | 2 - 5" Pedestal | 1898–1917 | arms removed by 1921,partially buried | 41.18833 | |
| Battery 217 | 1944 | never armed | |||
| Battery Peter Hagner Peter V. Hagner Peter Valentine Hagner was an officer of ordnance who served for over 40 years in the United States Army and was Brevetted Brigadier General.-Biography:... |
2 - 3" Pedestal | 1906–1932 | mostly destroyed | 41.17111 | |
| Battery Bogardus Eldridge | 2 - 3" Pedestal | 1906–1946 | named in honor of Capt. Bogardus Eldridge, U.S. Infantry, who was killed in action at Bocoor, Philippine Islands, 2 Oct 1899. | 41.1688889 | |
| Battery John Greble | 2 - 3" Pedestal | 1905–1932 | Named in honor of 1st Lt. John Greble, 2nd US Artillery, killed in action at the Battle of Big Bethel Battle of Big Bethel The Battle of Big Bethel, also known as the Battle of Bethel Church or Great Bethel was one of the earliest land battles of the American Civil War after the surrender of Fort Sumter... , 10 Jun 1861. |
41.18917 | |
| Battery James Dalliba | 2 - 3" Pedestal | 1905–1946 | named in honor of Captain James Dalliba - Ordnance, War of 1812, in 1815 - Bvt. Major James Dalliba | 41.18861 | |
| Battery Henry Campbell | 2 - 3" Pedestal | 1905–1934 | partially destroyed | 41.18972 | |
| AMTB Battery 911 | 1943–1946 | ||||
| AA | 1920 | ||||
| 155mm | 2 - 3" | 1942–1943 |