Fort Mott

[MikeBickerson]

I hadn't been out in a while (11 hour working days of late, no breaks), so my friend and I headed down to Fort Mott and then Greenwich to see the tea burning monument. It was my first time to see either of those places.

First off, Fort Mott is quite a state park! I didn't get to go on the ferry (the ferry takes you to the fort in the middle of the river I believe/hope), but the fortifications were impressive! I am far too young to have ever made it inside of/on top of the bunker down in Cape May, so I can't compare the twon, but this one was massive! It is definately a place to revisit so I can go on the ferry/ go into the other gun embankments that there are tours of/ go up the observation tower. Even without all of those things and in the sweltering heat, it was good time. We walked down to the national cemetary too, as I am facinated with the War Between the States. It's very well kept (except for, I noticed, the graves of the dozen or so Nazi POWs that are buried there), and very strange to think of so many dying so close to home.

The Greenwich tea burning monument was also a good time, it was nice to see a place that I'd read about many times. The monument could use some work though, the brass/copper (not sure) relief on the side looks like it used to be very impressive, but is hard to make out with the piece looking like a penny that's been out in the rain for a few years.

I don't have a picture editor at the moment, so unforunately I can't resize and share any of my pictures. Grrrr...

Mike

 

[Teegate]

Wasn't Fort Mott where Andrew Cunanan killed the man mowing the grass??

In any event, it sounds nice. Thanks for sharing it.

Guy

 

[BEHR655]

I believe the ferry ride takes you to Fort Delaware. I took the family there when the girls were little. Well worth the trip.

Steve

 

[Stu]

Wasn't Fort Mott where Andrew Cunanan killed the man mowing the grass??

In any event, it sounds nice. Thanks for sharing it.

Guy

That was at Finn's Point Cemetery, up the road from the fort - one of the handful of cemeteries to inter both Union & Confederate soldiers.

The ferry runs among forts Mott, Delaware, and DuPont.

 

[davensj]

Wasn't Fort Mott where Andrew Cunanan killed the man mowing the grass??

In any event, it sounds nice. Thanks for sharing it.

Guy

Yes is it, there`s a park bench there in the memory of the caretaker.

 

[piker56]

My wife has taken her 6th grade class there for trips, they always have a good time. I'll have to go next time, I haven't been there since I was a kid.

 

[Piney Boy]

First off, Fort Mott is quite a state park! I didn't get to go on the ferry (the ferry takes you to the fort in the middle of the river I believe/hope), but the fortifications were impressive! I am far too young to have ever made it inside of/on top of the bunker down in Cape May, so I can't compare the twon, but this one was massive! It is definately a place to revisit so I can go on the ferry/ go into the other gun embankments that there are tours of/ go up the observation tower. Even without all of those things and in the sweltering heat, it was good time. We walked down to the national cemetary too, as I am facinated with the War Between the States. It's very well kept (except for, I noticed, the graves of the dozen or so Nazi POWs that are buried there), and very strange to think of so many dying so close to home.

The Greenwich tea burning monument was also a good time, it was nice to see a place that I'd read about many times. The monument could use some work though, the brass/copper (not sure) relief on the side looks like it used to be very impressive, but is hard to make out with the piece looking like a penny that's been out in the rain for a few years.

I don't have a picture editor at the moment, so unforunately I can't resize and share any of my pictures. Grrrr...

Mike

Now that is a nice day out and about Mike. So much history around that area; Civil War, Spanish America, WW II. What else could one ask for! I think you've inspired me to make my way back down there, its been to long.
Speaking of the Cape May Bunker, I wish they would seal it off. Kids have demolished the inside, it deserves better then that.
Can't forget to mention The Greenwich Monument, one of my favorite Jersey Rev. War sites. I've long thought about offering my conservation services to the town to clean up the monument. I'd love to help keep N.J. history strong, its always been my inspiration in work, it seems the least I could do. Glad you posted.

 

[Stu]

I'm surprised they haven't sealed the bunker like they did the tower up the street. The tower's supposed to be a tourist attraction sometime in the near future, but I don't know when or if they're even considering it now. There are a lot more towers in Delaware and you can climb some of them.

 

[Piney Boy]

I'm surprised they haven't sealed the bunker like they did the tower up the street. The tower's supposed to be a tourist attraction sometime in the near future, but I don't know when or if they're even considering it now. There are a lot more towers in Delaware and you can climb some of them.

I was there in spring last year and the entry was wide open. Looks like they used cheap plywood to close the opening, and vandals ripped it down. Inside was littered with trash, liqour remnants, and grafitti. For whatever reason NJ refuses to invest money and resources into protecting natural and cultural resources. If the powers that be had any sense whatesoever they'd realize eco and cultural tourism could be a great boon to the state, instead we deal with unstaffed sites, vandalism, and great locations lost to shopping malls and housing developments. We should take a page out of Pennsy's book, they not only protect and fund sites, but advertise and have a successfull eco-tourism industry.

 

[Frolickin]

The bunker was supposed to be disposable. I do not fault the state for not putting any money into it. They are going to have to clean it up someday when it actually collapses.

Having said that, my friends and I used to climb all over that in the early to mid 1970s. It was a fun place for hide and seek as children. I wouldn't want to be anywhere on it now particularly with all the bird droppings. :O

 

[Piney Boy]

visited ol' Fort Mott and Finns Point over the weekend. Posted some pics already and I'll see about writing up a little trip report. It was a nice time, to bad the ferry is out of service for the season.