Lake Michigan Shipwreck Found After 112 Years

Over a century ago, in October 1898, the L.R. Doty, a 300-foot-long wooden steamship was carrying a cargo of corn from South Chicago, Illinois to Ontario, Canada.  A fierce storm on Lake Michigan that produced heavy winds, snow, sleet and waves as high as 30 feet caused the steamship to sink.

By all accounts, the Doty should have been able to withstand the storm.  The ship was a mere five years old and its massive hull was reinforced with steel arches.  But, it had a weakness.  It was towing a small schooner, the Olive Jeanette.  The schooner began to founder in the storm and the tow line snapped.  Experts believe the Doty sank when it came to the aid of the Olive Jeanette.  All 17 of the ships crew members, and two ship's cats, Dewey and Watson, perished when the ship sank.

Until now, the Doty was the largest wooden ship still unaccounted for.  The ship was discovered in the Milwaukee-area shoreline and appears to be completely intact having been preserved by the cold fresh waters.

In 1991, a Milwaukee fisherman reported snagging his nets on an underwater obstruction about 300 feet down.  His report was forgotten until diving technology improved to allow exploration at such a depth.  In recent months, researchers conducted preliminary surface scouting, then used deep-sea technology to finally find the massive wreckage.  Last week, divers were able to go into the waters.  Immediately, they knew they had the Doty.

The Doty is sitting upright and completely intact--including the cargo of corn in the hold--in the clay at the bottom of Lake Michigan.  The ship has been protected for the last 112 years because of the cold waters of Lake Michigan and its depth shielded it from storms.  Brandon Baillod, president of the Wisconsin Underwater Archaeology Association who worked on this find believes the bodies of the 17 crew members are likely intact as well, mostly likely in the boiler room where they believes they probably went as the ship sank.

Baillod believes the rudder chain must have snapped when the Doty was turning to assist the Olive Jeanette leaving the massive steamship at the mercy of the storm.  He imagines the crew must have had at least an hour of knowing they were going to die in the icy Lake Michigan waters before the cargo holds collapsed.

There are no plans to raise the Doty.  Doing so would probably be more harm than good.  As it sits, the ship is protected by the cold Lake Michigan waters and its depth in them.  Raised, the ship would be exposed to air that could cause it to rot away within a few years.  Diver interference isn't something the Doty must worry over either.  The depth of the ship guarantees that few divers will visit it because of the amount of experience one must have to make such a deep and dangerous dive.

For more information, to see an underwater photo of The Doty and to read about Brandon Baillod's next project, please visit the MSNBC.com Technology and Science Article.

Update:  More spectacular underwater photographs of The Doty, courtesy of John Scoles, can be seen at this link.  The photographs are amazing quality; very clear and you really get a great look at this amazing find.

Major Mystery of the 20th Century Solved?

For seventy-three years it has been one of the most intriguing mysteries to capture international attention. 

On July 2, 1937, Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan took from from Lae with the intended destination of Howland Island some 2,556 miles away.  The last known position of Earhart and Noonan was a mere 800 miles into the flight near the Nukumanu Islands.  Approximately one hour after Earhart's last message, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) ship Itasca began search efforts that proved to be unsuccessful.  No trace of Earhart's twin-engine plane, a 1935 Lockheed Electra 10E, or of Earhart and Noonan were to be found.  The search was called off July 19, 1937.  To that point in history, the $4 million air and sea search by the USCG and US Navy was the most expensive and intense search in United States history.

In the years since that historic flight, Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan have been the subject of much spectulation, rumor and theory.  Just what did happen on that fateful day in July 1937?  Did they crash into the sea and drown?  Did they crash on Saipan Island and were executed by Japanese troops?  Perhaps we shall never know.  Or will we?

New clues have surfaced that might just solve the mystery once and for all.

Over the course of twenty-one years and ten visits, researchers have scoured Nikumaroro, a remote island in the South Pacific where they believe Earhart and Noonan spent their final days.  The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) has found several artifacts they feel might shed a little more light on the Earhart disappearance.  Three pieces of a pocket knife and fragments of a broken cosmetic jar are the latest artifacts that have been found.  According to Ric Gillespie, executive director of TIGHAR believes that "touch DNA" can be taken from the objects and compared to an Earhart DNA reference sample held by a DNA lab working with TIGHAR. 

Nikumaroro lies approximately 300 miles southeast of Earhart and Noonan's original destination of Howland Island. 

The researchers will be working on the island through June 17, 2010.

For more in-depth reading of this fascinating development in the interesting story of Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan please read the MSNBC.com Technology and Science article and visit the TIGHAR web site.  The TIGHAR site contains photographs of a couple of of the artifacts recovered on Nikumaroro.

Super Saver Wins 136th Kentucky Derby

Despite a massive amount of rain that fell in Louisville, Kentucky this wet May 1, 2010, Super Saver, ridden by jockey Calvin Borel came in first place to win the 136th annual Kentucky Derby. This makes the third Derby win for Borel in the past four years. The horse and jockey covered the 1 1/4-miles in 2:04.45.

Numerous celebrities such as Pete Wentz and his wife Ashley Simpson-Wentz, Diane Lane, Travis Tritt and several sports figures, among others, attended the rain-soaked Derby. It's unlikely they had to deal with the rain the way the hardcore Derby fans, the ones with the bad seats had to deal with it. More than 155,000 spectators attended this years Run for the Roses, a figure up from last year.

But the real kudos go to the jockeys and the horses themselves. They braved conditions that could have been dangerous to both man and beast.

Congratulations to Super Saver, jockey Calvin Borel and trainer Todd Pletcher!

(Note: I will include a replay video of the 136th Derby once it has been posted by the official Derby YouTube channel. Until the video does appear on YouTube, it can be viewed at the official Kentucky Derby web site.)

A Very Wet Derby Day In Kentucky

Well, it's finally here. The Kentucky Derby is going to be run today at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.

Mother Nature isn't quite as excited about the Derby as everyone else is, though. The entire state of Kentucky has been deluged by near-flooding rains since the wee hours of the May 1st morning. Despite the heavy rains, it appears the Derby will still run as scheduled.

Morning workouts on the track for the horses were postponed and the trainers opted instead to run the horses in their barns.

If Mother Nature doesn't completely throw a cog in the wheel of the Derby (which I can't see happening unless so much rain comes down that Churchill Downs is completely flooded whichever horse wins this years Derby will most certainly have to be one of the best "mudders" in the world!

The wettest Derby Day on record was May 11, 1918 when 2.31 inches of rain fell. With about another five hours yet to go it remains to be seen if this years rainfall will break the 1918 record.

The 2010 Kentucky Derby

The Run for the Roses
The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports
The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports
The Sport of Kings

Whatever you call prefer to call it, the 136th Kentucky Derby is almost upon us! It doesn't matter where in the world you are from, chances are you've heard of or even watched a broadcast of the Kentucky Derby.

Why is the Derby called the "Run for the Roses" you might ask? Good question! It is nicknamed that because the winning horse is draped with a blanket of 554 red roses. The current governor of the State of Kentucky awards the garland and trophy to the winner. The first recorded record of a horse being draped with the blanket of roses was 1896 and it has happened every year since with the exception of 2008. Big Brown, the horse that won the Derby didn't like flowers and the jockey didn't wish to upset the winner so he didn't allow the blanket of roses to be placed on the horse.

In a little over four days on May 1, 2010 the jockeys will saddle up, lead their horses into the stalls at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky and shoot out of the gates to the words "and they're off!!" to take that two minute, one and one-fourth mile ride that will lead them to either fame or disappointment. The rich and famous, and even the not-so-rich and famous turn out in droves to sip Mint Juleps (an iced drink of bourbon, mint and sugar syrup) and eat a dish of burgoo (a thick beef, chicken, pork and vegetable stew). They party and celebrate the biggest event Louisville sees all year. In 2007 even Queen Elizabeth II attended the Kentucky Derby.

But it isn't just Derby Day seeing the partying. For two weeks before the Big Day there are parties galore in Louisville. So, even as you read this there is a party happening somewhere in Louisville, Kentucky celebrating the Derby.

If you're lucky enough to secure a ticket to the Derby you can watch the race from the infield, where the "average" spectator can sit for general admission prices although the seats are usually so poor you can see very little of the race. Or, if you happen to be rich enough or know the right person you can watch the race from "Millionaire's Row". Millionaire's Row is an exclusive and extremely expensive section of box seats where the rich, famous, well-connected and sometimes royal spectators are privileged enough to sit. It's there where you will see men and women in fine outfits and the ladies wearing large, and often rather elaborate hats. Unless you're just a race junkie that absolutely must attend the event your best bet, and best seat, is right in front of your television on race day. You can see every second of the race and don't have to worry about being seated in front of a woman with a large, ugly and annoying hat.

The Kentucky Derby is responsible for making such household names as the two most winning jockeys of all time: Eddie Arcaro (1938, 1941, 1945, 1948, 1952) and Bill Hartack (1957, 1960, 1962, 1964, 1969), Ben A. Jones, the trainer with the most wins (1938, 1941, 1944, 1948, 1949, 1952), William "Willy" Shoemaker (1955, 1959, 1965, 1986), and Calumet Farms, the owner with the most wins (1941, 1944, 1948, 1949, 1952, 1957, 1958, 1968). Notable horses include Mine that Bird (2009), Barbaro (2006), Smarty Jones (2004), Funny Cide (2003), War Emblem (2002), Seattle Slew (1977), Dancer's Image (1968), Citation (1948), War Admiral (1937), Sir Barton (1919) and the very first winner of the Derby, Aristides in 1875.

Probably the most famous of all Kentucky Derby names is Secretariat. Owned by Penny Chenery and trained by Canadian Lucien Laurin and ridden by Canadian jockey Ron Turcotte, Secretariat is probably the most famous racehorse of them all. He was the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years and he set not one, but two speed records. Secretariat completed the Kentucky Derby in 1973 at 1:59 and the Belmont Stakes in 2:24 . Both records stand to this day.

The Kentucky Derby is the first of three races in the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing held each year. The Preakness Stakes (held on the 3rd Saturday in May each year) run at the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland and the Belmont Stakes (in June five weeks after the Derby and three weeks after Preakness) run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York are the second and third events.

Only eleven horses have ever won the Triple Crown. The last horse to win the United States Triple Crown was Affirmed in 1978. Perhaps this will be the year we see another Triple Crown winner?!

For more information about the Kentucky Derby you can visit the Official Kentucky Derby Web Site.

In the meantime, enjoy this video replay of the 2009 Kentucky Derby presented on the Kentucky Derby Official YouTube Channel. They also have videos posted showing you how to make your own gaudy Derby hat, Mint Julep's and other racing videos.

Fort Heiman, Kentucky: 2002 Photographs

The photographs of the remains of Fort Heiman presented here were taken on June 8th, 2002.



This sign is located approximately one-half mile to one mile from the entrance to Fort Heiman. As you can see beneath the sign, there is information pertaining to the unfortunate development of the fort.



This sign is located approximately a few hundred feet past where the original entrance sign (this can be seen above) was located.



As difficult as it is to tell from this photograph, this is a trench. Upkeep on the Fort leaves much to be desired.



Another trench that has been taken over by underbrush.



This is a wonderful view of the Tennessee River was taken atop one of the many hills that comprise the Fort. This isn't too far from where the cemetery and ammunition bunker used to be.



Same as above.



This is a view of the Tennessee River taken not far from the cemetery and ammunition bunker. There is pretty much a straight drop to the river. When the water-level of the lake was low you used to be able to see the remains of an old road that existed, to my best guess, around the time of the War.



Same as above.



This is a trench directly across the road from the above photos. If you look very hard on the right of the photo is the road leading to where the cemetery and ammunition bunker was located.



Same as above.



Another view of the hill overlooking the Tennessee River described above.



Same as above.



Trench.



When the Fort was cut into tracts and sold this is the replacement for the old house (see photos above) originally located on top of one of Heiman's hills. The trench in the previous photo is in the back yard of this house. If you are in front of this house you have a magnificent view of the Tennessee River. The fifth, sixth and seventh photos I posted yesterday (the 1980's photos) were taken from that viewpoint before the Fort was sold. From the rock in photo number seven you can see the general area where Fort Henry once stood.



Another view of the trench.



Another view of the house.

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I hope you have enjoyed looking at these pictures and taking your "virtual tour" as much as I have enjoyed posting them for you.

If you have any information about Fort Heiman that you wouldn't mind sharing, please post in the comments or drop me a note and I will, with your permission, post the information or references you have. I will give proper credit.
As I find historical information regarding Fort Heiman I will be certain to share it with you.

Fort Heiman, Kentucky: 1980's Photographs

**In this, my second-to-last post about Fort Heiman, I will be sharing with you photographs I took when I was able to visit the fort with my family back in the mid-1980's. Please note that it has been a very long time since I've been to Fort Heiman. Anything I have marked in red as no longer being in existence was at the fort in the 80's but NOT there when I last visited on my own in 2002. If any of the signs that I have marked as being no longer in existence have been restored I am unaware of it at this time. While areas such as the ammunition bunker and empty Union cemetery surely still exist, the last time I was there extremely thick underbrush had overtaken the areas. I am hopeful that now the National Park Service owns Fort Heiman they will do whatever they can to restore these areas so they can be viewed once again.**



This is the sign signifying the outer defenses of the fort. This is no longer in existence.



This is the entrance sign leading from the main road back into the fort. This is no longer in existence.

This structure is no longer standing nor was it part of the original Civil War fort. To the best of my knowledge, this house was built by a former professor of Murray State University in the 1960's. The property it sat on is now private property as it was purchased when the fort was sold off. A new building, looking much like this one, has been constructed in its place. I would imagine the current owner assumed this building was "period" and copied its style for the structure he built. Tomorrow I will be posting a picture of the "new" house that was built to take the place of this.

The back and side of the old house. This side of the house was a large living room. The chimney belonged to a huge fireplace, suitable for cooking in. Walking out of the living room, was a kind of 'dog-trot' as my grandmother called it. (A dog trot is an open breeze way between two parts of a structure.) Across the dog trot was the kitchen of the house. The kitchen and living room were the only rooms I was ever in.

This photo, as is the one below, is the river view just before proceeding down a small path that is located in front of the old building. This view and the two photos below are now on private property and cannot be accessed.

This is a path in front of the building that leads to a very large rock. From this rock there is a magnificent view of the river. Standing or sitting on this rock, I couldn't imagine anyone not being able to dream of a little bit of the past. I vaguely remember also being able to see a path below the rock that may or may not have been some sort of road at one time.

The following three photographs are some of the trenches of the fort.

The sign reads: OLD POWDER MAGAZINE Here, Cannonballs & Black Powder
Were Stored For the FORT This is no longer in existence. I could not find the sign for this and the area where it was once located consists of very thick underbrush.

This is the Ammunition Bunker. When this photo was taken, it had rained just a few days prior which is why there is so much standing water in the bunker. While the bunker itself surely still does exist, (or I'd like to think it still does!) I could not find the sign for this and the area where it was once located consists of very thick underbrush.

The sign reads: EMPTY UNION CEMETERY After the Civil War The bodies were
taken home or reburied in Dover at the NATIONAL MILITARY CEMETERY. This is no longer in existence. I could not find the sign for this and the area where it was once located consists of very thick underbrush.

This is the where the empty Union cemetery is located. This is no longer in existence. I could not find the sign for this and the area where it was once located consists of very thick underbrush.

This is one of the final trenches you can see on your way out of the fort. The area where this is located consists of extremely thick underbrush.

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I hope you have enjoyed looking at these pictures and taking your "virtual tour" as much as I have enjoyed posting them for you. Tomorrow, I will be posting photographs taken in 2002.

If you have any information about Fort Heiman that you wouldn't mind sharing, please post in the comments or drop me a note and I will, with your permission, post the information or references you have. I will give proper credit.
As I find historical information regarding Fort Heiman I will be certain to share it with you.

Fort Heiman, Kentucky: Related Newspaper Articles

Ft. Heiman Proposed Stop on Civil War Trail

Murray Ledger & Times Monday, August 5, 2002

LOUISVILLE, Ky (AP)--State and economic development officials, Civil War buffs, university professors and local officials are working together to map out driving trails for tourists that promote Kentucky's role in the Civil War.

The idea is for motorists to follow marked highway routs to historic sites, stopping along the way to see displays about local skirmishes and take tours of places that became important during the conflict.

Sites along the three proposed trails include Fort Heiman, a Confederate outpost that fell to then-Brig. Gen. Ulysses Grant in 1862, and Octagon Hall, an eight-sided antebellum estate in Simpson County that served as a shelter for Confederate troops. Officials hope at least one trail will be ready by spring.

Kentucky officials don't have an estimate on how many visitors the trails might draw, but they see the approach as a package giving tourists a variety of places to visit.

"If we can make it that much easier for the visitor, I think it does increase not only tourists to the state, but it increases the level of satisfaction to those who come to the state," said Carole Summers, cultural heritage tourism coordinator for the Kentucky Department of Travel. "They have a better visit."

Kentucky never seceded from the Union, but as a border state its loyalties were divided. Both Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, the Confederate president, were natives of the state, and Union and Confederate forces battled for strategic points here until the war ended.

The three planned Kentucky trails are:

*The Cumberland Valley Trail, which will tell the importance that transportation routes played in the war. Trail sites include Octagon Hall, Camp Nicholas and a burial site of executed Confederate prisoners in Simpson County; Dumont Hill, an encampment at Allen Springs and guerrilla activity sites in Allen County; and Fort Webb, Riverview and Fort Albert Sidney Johnson in Warren County.

The Cumberland trail system runs along U.S. 31W in Warren and Simpson counties, Ky. 231 in Warren and Allen counties and Ky. 100 from Simpson County through Allen County. The trail also dips into six Tennessee communities.

*The John Hunt Morgan Trail, named for the Alabama-born cavalry leader whose raids reached the outskirts of Cincinnati. The trail will include links to Morgan trails in Tennessee, Indiana and Ohio.

The Morgan trail will show "the flow or the movement of that campaign as it was conceived by Gen. John Hunt Morgan, and actually what happened on that march," said Thomas Fugate, Civil War sites preservation coordinator for the Kentucky Heritage Council. The trail is a work in progress that includes sites in 16 counties and carves a north-south path down the middle of Kentucky.

*The Fort Heiman Trail in Calloway County. Fort Heiman is where the Union supply vessel Mazeppa, sunk by Confederate cavalry in 1864, sits on the bottom of the Tennessee River. Fort Heiman visitors can also see the remains of Fort Henry, on land partially submerged across the river, and it is near Fort Donelson in Tennessee.

The three forts guarded the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, cutting of river movement of Union soldiers and supplies until February 1862, when Grant-led Army-Navy join operation captured them.

The development costs, and estimated completion times, vary for the trail projects. The Morgan trail is expected to cost $231,700 and will be completed within six to nine months; the Cumberland Valley Trail will cost $48,680 and will be finished within six months after the project gets a state grant, which is blocked until the legislature passes a budget; and the Fort Heiman Trail will cost $750,000 and will be completed in the next two years. Plans call for Fort Heiman to become a part of the National Parks system.

The trails will take motorists down historic paths that run along federal, state and county roads. Along the way, signs will direct visitors to roadside exhibits featuring maps, brochures and other displays to help people understand the sites in a historic context.

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Below is the text and scans of the Saturday, June 15, 2002 Murray Ledger & Times newspaper article providing information about the federal land grant awarded to Calloway County towards the purchase of Fort Heiman.

Click on the thumbnails to see the full images.

City, County get funding for Miller Annex, Fort Heiman

By Edward Sheridan

Staff Writer

The four-day span of June 11 through June 14 may go down as one of the most propserous times in Calloway County history.

Just three days after welcoming the Pella Corporation and its new jobs to the local community, two grants administered through the Kentucky Department of Local Government were delivered to Murray Friday that will aid local preservation efforts.

A $60,000 federal land and water conservation grant was presented that will enable the Calloway County Fiscal Court to apply for additional funding to go toward the purchase of land where Civil War site Fort Heiman once stood. An additional $500,000 community development block grant from the department of local government was presented to the Murray Main Street program which will allow for the renovation of the Miller Courthouse Annex.

"This has been a great week for Murray and Calloway County and the entire region," state Sen. Bob Jackson (D-Murray) said during a check presentation ceremony held Friday afternoon on the steps of the courthouse annex.

Department of Local Government Commissioner and Calloway native Jody Lassiter added additional good news by announcing that the Fort Heiman project would not only receive the $60,000, but would also be eligible to add another $15,000 onto the grant total if efforts to preserve went above the original grant total.

"The $60,000 is going to be the first step to purchase the most important part of Fort Heiman," he said. "Before it's all done, Calloway County is going to have the second national park in Kentucky, as (Fort Heiman) becomes part of the Fort Donelson system."

According to Steve Zea, president of the West Kentucky Corporation, the entire $60,000--or $75,000--will be used to provide matching monies for a larger TEA 21 grant that, if approved, will be used to purchase the property. News on that grant could come within the next 30 days.

"They want to see an effort of other money," Zea said. "We're going to have to use this money to match the other money."

Whatever monies are acquired will be used to purchase the portions of Fort Heiman that are in the most danger of succumbing to commercial development. Much of the fort is currently under private ownership.

Additional federal monies for Fort Heiman could be on the way if it is included on the list of sites under consideration for the Vicksburg Train. U.S. Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.) said during the ceremony that there is currently a technical corrections bill pending in Congress that would place Fort Heiman on that list.

Note: all portions of the article relevant to Fort Heiman end here. The remainder of the article deals with the grant to renovate the Murray Couthouse Annex.



Image Caption: Jody Lassiter DLG Commissioner



Image Caption: MORE MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENTS...From left, Commissioner for the Department for Local Government Jody Lassiter, Senator Bob Jackson, Sandy Forrest, Calloway County Judge Executive Larry Elkins and Murray Mayor Freed Curd display a check for $500,000 for community development and preservations projects for Murray and Calloway County and a check for $60,000 for the Fort Heiman Civil War Preservation. Lassiter, representing Paul Patton's office, presented the checks during a ceremony Friday afternoon.

Special Note: Paul Patton was governor of Kentucky at the time and the ceremony was Friday, June 14, 2002.

Fort Heiman, Kentucky: Maps & Illustrations

Here's a collection of maps and illustrations about Forts Henry and Heiman. The drawings and maps collected here were taken from Forts Henry and Donelson: The Key to the Confederate Heartland by Benjamin Franklin Cooling. University of Tennessee Press, 1987. If you look hard enough, you can also find a few scattered maps and illustrations (most likely the same that I have here) in copies of old newspapers from the Civil War era as well as books that focus on illustrations and maps of the era. I know my focus in all my posts has been Fort Heiman but I have included illustrations and maps of Fort Henry because you pretty much can't talk about one without focusing on the other as well.

Click on the thumbnails to see a larger image.


The Western Theater, 1861-62


Twin Rivers Area, 1862


Interior of Fort Henry, the morning after its capture, February 2, 1862. Sketch by H. Lovie, Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, March 15, 1862.


Landing of Federal troops below Fort Henry, February 4, 1862. Sketch by H. Lovie, Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, March 15, 1862. (I apologize for the center crease of the book spine.)


Foote's Flotilla Attack on Fort Henry, February 6, 1862. Sketch by S.O. Hawley, Massachusetts Order of Loyal Legion Collection, U.S. Army Military History Institute.


Confederates defend Fort Henry, February 6, 1862. Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, March 1, 1862. (I apologize for the center crease of the book spine.)


Country between Forts Henry and Donelson, 1862. U.S. Army Infantry School. Military History Methods of Research Compilation of Sources (Fort Benning, 1937).


Environs of Fort Henry, 1862. U.S. Army Infantry School. Military History Methods of Research Compilation of Sources (Fort Benning, 1937).

Fort Organization of Forces, Forts Henry, Heiman & Donelson--Confederate

This information taken from: Forts Henry & Donelson: The Key to the Confederate Heartland by Benjamin Franklin Cooling. University of Tennessee Press, 1987.

TILGHMAN (approximately 2,700-3,300, Feb. 6, Fort Henry)

• 6 infantry regiments + 1 battalion
• 3 batteries of light and heavy artillery
• 2 battalions + 1 company + miscellaneous cavalry

1st Brigade (Heiman)

• 10th, 48th Tennessee Infantry
• 27th Alabama Infantry
• Culbertson’s Light Artillery Battery
• Gantt’s Battalion, Tennessee Cavalry

2nd Brigade (Drake)

• 4th Mississippi Infantry
• 15th Arkansas Infantry
• 51st Tennessee Infantry
• 26th Alabama (Garvin) Infantry (2 companies)
• Crain’s Light Artillery Battery
• Alabama Cavalry Battalion (Hubbard, Houston)
• Milner’s Cavalry Company
• Padgett’s Spy Company
• Milton’s Ranger Detachment

Taylor’s Company, Tennessee Artillery Corps

FLOYD (approximately 15,000-21,000, Feb 13-16, Fort Donelson)

• 27 infantry regiments + 1 battalion + 2 companies
• 9 artillery batteries (field guns, siege, seacoast)
• 2 cavalry regiments + 1 battalion

Pillow’s Division (B. Johnson)
Heiman’s Brigade

• 10th, 30th, 42nd, 48th, 53rd Tennessee Infantry
• 27th Alabama Infantry
• Maney’s Tennessee Battery Light Artillery

Drake’s Brigade

• 4th Mississippi Infantry
• 15th Arkansas Infantry
• 26th Alabama (Garvin) Infantry (2 companies)
• 1st Tennessee Battalion (Browder, Colms) Infantry

Simonton’s (Davidson’s) Brigade

• 1st, 3rd Mississippi Infantry
• 7th Texas Infantry
• 8th Kentucky Infantry

Baldwin’s Brigade (-) (Buckner)

• 26th Tennessee Infantry
• 20th, 26th Mississippi Infantry

Wharton’s Brigade (Floyd)

• 51st, 56th Virginia Infantry

McCausland’s Brigade (Floyd)

• 36th, 50th Virginia Infantry

Artillery

• Guy’s Battery, Goochland (Va.) Light Artillery (Floyd)
• Green’s Tennessee Battery Light Artillery
• French’s Virginia Battery Light Artillery (Floyd)

Buckner’s Division
Brown’s Brigade

• 3rd, 18th, 32nd Tennessee Infantry
• Porter’s Tennessee Battery Light Artillery
• Graves’ Cumberland Kentucky Battery Light Artillery

Baldwin’s Brigade

• 2nd Kentucky Infantry
• 14th Mississippi Infantry
• 41st Tennessee Infantry
• Jackson’s (Va.) Battery Light Artillery (Floyd)

Forrest’s Cavalry Brigade

• 3rd Tennessee Cavalry Regiment
• Gantt’s Tennessee Cavalry Regiment
• 1st Kentucky Cavalry Regiment

Fort Donelson Garrison (Head)

• 30th, 49th, 50th Tennessee Infantry
• Maury Tennessee Battery Light Artillery (Ross)
• Detachment Taylor’s Company Tennessee Artillery Corps (Stankiewicz)
• Water Battery Heavy Artillery (Culbertson)

Fort Organization of Forces, Forts Henry, Heiman & Donelson--Federal

This information taken from: Forts Henry & Donelson: The Key to the Confederate Heartland by Benjamin Franklin Cooling. University of Tennessee Press, 1987.

Federal Forces:

Army:
GRANT: (approximately 12,000, Feb. 6; approximately 25,000, Feb. 16.)

• 37 infantry regiments + 1 company
• 8 artillery batteries (field guns)
• 2 cavalry regiments + 4 independent companies

First Division (McClernand)
1st Brigade (Oglesby)

• 8th, 18th, 29th, 30th, 31st Illinois Infantry
• Battery D, 2nd Illinois Light Artillery (Dresser)
• Battery E, 2nd Illinois Light Artillery (Schwartz ) (Gumbart)
• Companies A, B, 2nd Illinois Cavalry (Noble)
• Company C, 2nd US Cavalry (Powell)
• Company I, 4th US Cavalry (Powell)
• Carmichael’s Illinois Cavalry
• Dollins’ Illinois Cavalry
• O’Harnette’s Illinois Cavalry
• Stewart’s Illinois Cavalry (King)

2nd Brigade (W.H.L. Wallace)

• 11th, 20th, 45th, 48th Illinois Infantry
• Battery B, 1st Illinois Light Artillery (Taylor)
• Battery D, 1st Illinois Light Artillery (McAllister)
• 4th Illinois Cavalry (Dickey)
• 3rd Brigade (Morrison—wounded, Feb. 13, command passed to W.H.L. Wallace on
• Feb. 15, Ross senior officer present)
• 17th, 49th Illinois Infantry

Second Division (C.F. Smith)
1st Brigade (McArthur)

• 9th, 12th, 41st Illinois Infantry

3rd Brigade (Cook)

• Battery D, 1st Missouri Light Artillery (Richardson)
• Battery H, 1st Missouri Light Artillery (Welker)
• Battery K, 1st Missouri Light Artillery (Stone)
• 7th, 50th Illinois Infantry
• 12th Iowa Infantry
• 13th Missouri Infantry

4th Brigade (Lauman)

• 25th Indiana Infantry
• 2nd, 7th, 14th Iowa Infantry
• Birge’s Western Sharpshooters

5th Brigade (M.L. Smith)

• 8th Missouri Infantry
• nth Indiana Infantry

Third Division (L. Wallace)
1st Brigade (Cruft)

• 31st, 44th Indiana Infantry
• 17th, 25th Kentucky Infantry

2nd Brigade (attached to 3rd Brigade)

• 46th, 57th, 58th Illinois Infantry

3rd Brigade (Thayer)

• 1st Nebraska Infantry
• 58th, 68th, 76th Ohio Infantry

Not Brigaded

• Company A, 32nd Illinois Infantry
• Battery A, 1st Illinois (Chicago) Light Artillery (Wood)

Navy:
FOOTE: (6-8 iron- and timber-clad gunboats)

At Fort Henry
Cincinnati (Stembel); Essex (Porter); Carondelet (Walke); St. Louis (Paulding); Conestoga (Phelps); Tyler (Gwinn); Lexington (Shirk)

At Fort Donelson
St. Louis (Paulding); Carondelet (Walke); Louisville (Dove); Pittsburg (Thompson); Tyler (Gwinn); Conestoga (Phelps)

Fort Heiman, Kentucky: An *Almost* Forgotten U.S. Civil War Fort

Fort Heiman is a somewhat unknown part of the Fort Henry/Fort Donelson battle of 1862. There is very little information available on Fort Heiman at the moment. While there is a little more information available today about Fort Heiman than when I first started researching the U.S. Civil War 15+ years ago, unfortunately, when you are lucky enough to come across anything about it it's usually just a passing mention in the accounts of the Fort Henry/Fort Donelson battle.

Fort Heiman was a Confederate battery during the early stages of the United States Civil War (1861-1865). It was named after Colonel Adolphus Heiman and in December of 1861 was "constructed" across the river from Fort Henry. Both forts were situated in an area where they could easily spot and stop river traffic. While Fort Heiman was located on a hill Fort Henry was located on low, swampy land. On February 4, 1862 Fort Heiman was abandoned when General Lloyd Tilghman (Confederate commander in charge of Forts Henry and Donelson) realized Fort Henry was doomed to fall. Fort Henry was taken on February 6, 1862 and by February 8, 1862 it was completely underwater. Fort Donelson fell to the Union Army on Febuary 16, 1862.

Unfortunately, the gentleman who owned the property Fort Heiman is located on could not keep it. The land was divided up into lots and sold to the highest bidder. Historians and local politicians have worked hard to bring a bit of attention to the plight of Fort Heiman and thanks to their efforts the fort was saved!

A $60,000 federal land grant was awarded to Calloway County, Kentucky to go towards the preservation of the lands comprising Fort Heiman. The Fort has been on the National Register since December 12, 1976. I have scans of newspaper articles related to this grant that I will post later.

On October 30, 2006 Calloway County, Kentucky transferred 150 acres belonging to Fort Heiman to the National Park Service. The NPS now manages the land of Fort Heiman and it has become part of the Fort Donelson National Battlefield.

I have been lucky enough to visit the Fort Heiman location several times and on two occasions snapped some photographs that I will be posting over the next few days. The first set of photographs were taken in the late 1980's so quite a bit has changed since. The second set of photographs were taken on June 8, 2002. They are new photos of what remains of Fort Heiman--which isn't much. Each set of photographs are contained in their own post and there is a description of each photo.

I truly hope you enjoy the photos of a little-mentioned and mostly forgotten part of the United States Civil War. Hopefully, Fort Heiman, now that it is under the preservation and control of the National Parks Service it will be able to take its rightful place in the history books along with Forts Henry and Donelson.