Casemates, Fort Macon, North Carolina - 1862

Fort Macon was located at the northern tip of Emerald Isle, north of Morehead City,straddling Bogue Sound and the Atlantic Ocean. It was built to protect the deep water port at Beaufort, North Carolina (1826-1834), and fell to Union forces on April 25, 1862. This view of an interior chamber of the fort shows casements, a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired. Originally, the term referred to a vaulted chamber in a fortress. Here one can see bunk bed like racks where soldiers slept or kept personal belongings