Fort DeRussy on Civil War topo map
Extract from Topographical map of defenses north of Potomac, 1863, by Robert Chodasiewicz
Description
The Works Progess Administration (WPA) did landscape cleanup around Fort DeRussy in Rock Creek Park. Crews removed underbrush, poisonous plants, and dead trees from the old earthworks, which were then (and are now) heavily forested.
Fort DeRussy is a Civil War-era fortification constructed in 1861 on a hilltop on the west side of Rock Creek, as part of the defenses of Washington. It is a trapezoidal earthwork with a perimeter of 190 yards and places for 13 guns. It is maintained today by the National Park Service.
Source notes
District of Columbia Works Progress Administration, “Improving Parks of Capital,” Work: A Journal of Progress, Vol. 1, No. 1, Sept. 1936, p. 10
https://www.nps.gov/places/fort-derussy.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_DeRussy_(Washington,_D.C.)
Project originally submitted by Brent McKee - wpatoday.org on June 5, 2015.
Additional contributions by Richard A Walker.
We welcome contributions of additional information on any New Deal project site.
SUBMIT MORE INFORMATION OR PHOTOGRAPHS FOR THIS SITE