Fort McClary

Fort McClary is a former defensive fortification of the United States military located along the southern coast at Kittery Point, Maine at the mouth of the Piscataqua River. It was used throughout the 19th century to protect approaches to the harbor of Portsmouth, New Hampshire and the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery. The property and its surviving structures are now owned and operated by the State of Maine as Fort McClary State Historic Site, including a blockhouse dating from 1844.

Coastal defenses on the site date to the late 17th century when shipbuilder William Pepperell acquired the property and erected crude defense works in 1689. Prior to that, the village was protected by Fort William and Mary at Portsmouth. The Province of Massachusetts Bay voted in 1715 to erect a permanent breastwork of six guns for the defense of the Piscataqua River, during the lead-up to Father Rale's War. Some sources state that it was intended to protect Maine from "unreasonable duties" that the governor of New Hampshire was attempting to impose on nearby citizens of other colonies. The fort was also used to collect duties from Massachusetts citizens for its own upkeep. This fortification was transferred to the United States government in 1803, known as Fort William, but none of its features are known to survive.

More information

Comments Statistics

| | Public | German