Big guns near Richmod.
The narrow reach of the
James is swept in both directions by the gun in the upper picture — a large Brooke rifle, made at the Tredegar Iron Works in the
Confederate Capital.
The gun below is a Columbiad with
Brooke reinforcement.
It is mounted within
Fort Darling, and points down the
James toward Chaffin's Bluff, visible beyond the bend to the left.
Drewry's Bluff commanded this portion of the river so completely that it was chosen as the site of the first hastily constructed defenses of
Richmond in 1862, and was subsequently so strengthened as to be almost impregnable.
The guns there mounted remained the guardians closest to the
Capital on the
James until the withdrawal of
Lee with his remnant of the Army of Northern Virginia from
Petersburg rendered them useless in 1865.
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Fort Darling James river |
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Big guns near Richmond: Fort Darling James river |
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