Fort Pulaski
Unknown Union soldiers and Confederate specters may forever patrol this Georgian island fortress
Paranormal Activity
at Fort Pulaski
- Disembodied screams and cries are heard
- Shadow figures are seen patrolling the grounds
- Heavy, eerie feelings are noted in particular areas
- Ghostly gunshots are reported around the fort
- Sounds of a baseball game are heard from the fort’s empty courtyard
- Phantom footsteps are reported
- Apparitions of both Union and Confederate soldiers are spotted
- A Confederate spirit was once encountered reprimanding visitors in costume
War-Torn Past of Fort Pulaski
When most people think of Civil War forts, their mind goes to Fort Sumter. But many more forts than Sumter played pivotal roles in America’s bloodiest war. One of the most important fortifications still sits on Cockspur Island just outside of Savannah, Georgia.
Fort Pulaski was seized by Confederates early in the war, and Union attempts to take it back changed fortress warfare forever.
Now a treasured national monument, the walls of Fort Pulaski have been dormant for generations. But, as part of the National Park Service, the old fort still garners lots of attention, and not just from tourists.
Some say Civil War spirits join tourists in traversing the fort’s walls and corridors, forever guarding it from spectral attacks.
Timeline of Fort Pulaski's History
Swipe or use timeline points to see Fort Pulaski through the years
1829
The War of 1812 was an all-American embarrassment. British troops invaded American soil, and burned Washington D.C. to the ground. In the years that followed the war’s end, the United States greatly expanded their defenses, preparing for any and every new enemy. In 1829, the US focused on Cockspur Island for a highly-advanced fortress meant to guard Savannah’s waterways and ports, and construction soon began.
1847
It wasn’t until 1847 that work finally finished at Fort Pulaski. Observers and engineers of the new fort’s construction, including a young Robert E. Lee, considered it impenetrably strong when it was completed. Despite its perceived strength, the fort was immediately put in stasis. US forces wanted to be prepared for anything. But in the late 1840s, there didn’t seem to be many threats to prepare for in the seas off Savannah. Some wondered if the state-of-the-art fortress would ever see use.
1861
In 1861, Fort Pulaski remained empty and un-garrisoned. But as southern states started peeling away from the nation to form the Confederacy, all eyes fell on southern sea forts. The Georgian governor ordered state guard units to garrison the fort for the first time, taking it bloodlessly for the Confederacy. At first, it seemed that Fort Pulaski would make Savannah’s shores impenetrable. And as Union naval blockades inched closer through the year, the fortress stood ready to face them.
1862
Winter, 1861, brought Union troops to Fort Pulaski’s doorstep, but the Confederates held fast. In early 1862, Union troops built artillery supports on nearby islands, eventually demanding the Confederates vacate the fort. Confederate troops declined, figuring the fort out of range of Union cannons. But they were surprised when the Union troops brought rifled barrels into battle, sending artillery straight through the fortress’s supposedly impenetrable walls. After just thirty hours, the Union took Fort Pulaski.
1880
Union forces taking Fort Pulaski gutted the Georgian economy. Without Savannah as an operable port, the entire state slowed, as did Confederate hopes. Union forces on Cockspur Island dwindled throughout the war as the south weakened. After the war ended in 1865, troops left the fort un-garrisoned once more. It still kept regional defenses prepared. But after its stunning defeat in 1862, Fort Pulaski was no longer considered an impenetrable force. By 1880, only a caretaker and a nearby lighthouse keeper tended to the forgotten fort.
1924
The 1920s brought new life to the crumbling walls of Fort Pulaski. In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge declared the fort a national monument, kickstarting renewed interest in Cockspur Island. Restoration work did not begin until 1933, when the fort was transferred to the National Park Service. With help from the Civilian Conservation Corps, the National Park Service started the slow process of bringing Fort Pulaski back to life.
1947
After a brief reuse by the US Army during World War II, Fort Pulaski finally opened to the public for the first time in 1947. It has been a publicly-accessible monument ever since. In the nearly 80 years since opening, Fort Pulaski has greeted countless visitors and seen further restorations of its surrounding island, opening even more spaces for exploration and education. But, local lore suggests specters from the Civil War haven’t forgotten their old fortress.
Is Fort Pulaski Haunted?
Some of the most common paranormal reports around Fort Pulaski are of disembodied voices and unexplained sounds. Many stories of Fort Pulaski’s phantom sounds tell of the loud, painful noises of war, like gunshots and cannon blasts.
While show cannons are sometimes set off as part of events, reports of ghostly cannon blasts don’t correspond with any public events.
Additionally, visitors to the fort have claimed to hear the sounds of distant screams and pained cries from particular areas of Fort Pulaski.
Phantom Sounds Around the Fort
Not every out-of-place sound around Fort Pulaski comes from war. Disembodied footsteps are often heard on stairs and across ramparts, though no one can figure out where the ghostly footsteps seem to be heading. Another Fort Pulaski paranormal report suggests the fortress’s ghosts sometimes get into games of baseball.
A popular historical story tells of games of baseball played in the fort during the Union’s occupation in the 1860s. Now, tourists and tour guides alike say they hear a game of baseball being played in the fort’s courtyard, including everything from cracking bats to a cheering audience.
Spiritual Soldiers on Paranormal Patrol
Many ghost stories out of Fort Pulaski suggest seeing ghosts around the grounds can be just as common as hearing them. Around the same areas where a visitor might hear the disembodied footsteps, they may also spot shadowy figures.
Some tales say these figures are nothing more than translucent shadows, but other reports tell of exceptionally vivid apparitions. Those who have claimed to see clear apparitions say that both Union and Confederate soldier spirits will patrol different areas of the fort at different times, always on the lookout for each other.
Fort Pulaski’s Glorious Ghosts
Perhaps the best-known story of an apparition at Fort Pulaski comes from the 1980s film production, ‘Glory.’
The film was partially shot in and around Savannah. And in downtime between shoots, a few extras dressed as Confederates purportedly toured Fort Pulaski.
During their exploration, another figure in Confederate uniform approached them.
This gray-clad figure chastised the group for not saluting him as they walked by. Then, the strange Confederate disappeared before their eyes, or so the popular Savannah ghost story goes.
The Fort’s Uncertain Entities
Along with all the well-known and established paranormal claims at Fort Pulaski, numerous other reports are still being learned about.
Some visitors over recent years have reported eerie, heavy, or overly-emotional feelings in certain areas. Most commonly, this kind of activity is reported around the casemates, as well as areas once outfitted to house Civil War POWs.
Fort Pulaski: Paranormal National Park
As a National Parks Service property, Fort Pulaski does not regularly host any ghost-centered tours or paranormal programs.
But, the National Parks Service keeps regular hours around Cockspur Island so that every interested tourist can come and see the fort’s preserved spaces. It is on these regular, day-time tours that many visitors have their reported paranormal encounters.
While it is unlikely that Fort Pulaski will ever open its doors to formal ghost hunts or overnight paranormal tours, it doesn’t seem like the fortress’s spirits shy away from daylight.
Maybe, if you wear enough gray before you go, you might meet the same reprimanding Confederate ghost that the film extras did. And as he disappears before your eyes, you can learn first-hand why Fort Pulaski is said to be Georgia’s ghostliest garrison.
