A historic brick fort with arched openings and grass-covered earthworks stands near a sandy area with coastal grasses. The ocean is visible behind the structure under a clear blue sky.

Weathered brick, sweeping dunes, and the blue Gulf beyond—this view of Fort Massachusetts captures the quiet resilience of one of Mississippi’s most storied coastal defenses.

Fort Massachusetts is located on West Ship Island, 12 miles off the Mississippi Gulf Coast; it is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore. Once known only as Ship Island, Hurricane Camille in 1969 cut the island in half, creating East and West Ship Islands. The US Army Corps of Engineers began reconnecting the islands in 2018, so they​ will be one island again one day.

The barrier islands of the Gulf Islands National Seashore create a buffer between the mainland and the Gulf of Mexico.  It is a critical habitat for shorebirds and sea turtles, making West Ship Island an excellent location for birding and nature photography. The water around the island is typically crystal clear, with visibility as much as 12 to 14 feet deep, so the island is also an excellent destination for swimming and fishing.  With something for everyone, it makes for a fun family day trip while sneaking in a little history at the old fort.

I visited in late Spring. It had been raining heavily in the weeks preceding my trip, so water visibility was terrible, and the birds were nesting in the sand dunes. ​Luckily, my destination was the fort.



A historic brick fort with a central arched entrance and grass‑covered earthworks stands along a paved walkway surrounded by sand and dune grass. The scene is set against a clear blue sky.

Fort Massachusetts rises from the dunes of Ship Island, its arched entrance and brick walls standing strong against centuries of Gulf Coast wind and salt air.


Ship Island separates the Mississippi Sound from the Gulf of Mexico. The Sound between the island and the Mississippi coastline is relatively shallow, only averaging 12 – 15 feet deep. One of the few natural deep-water harbors on the Gulf Coast lies along the island's North Shore. This harbor is a channel that parallels the shore for several miles and reaches depths of more than 20 feet. On the island's West end is the Ship Island Pass; this deep water pass is an important route for boats traveling between the Gulf and the Sound. Early French explorers named the island Ship Island because it provided the deep water anchorage they needed for their ships.


This island is where British forces staged their unsuccessful attempt to take New Orleans during the War of 1812. They had a fleet of 60 British Ships anchored here with 10,000 troops. Because of this, after the War of 1812, the US War Department recognized the island's importance as a defensive location. It was decided that fortifications were needed here to deny the enemy the use of Ship Island while protecting New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.


Delayed by hurricanes and lack of funds, things moved slowly. The United States finally declared it a military reservation in 1847 and began planning for the construction of the fort. A site was selected on the north shore, only 500 feet from the island's western tip; today, with the ever-shifting sand, it is now about one mile from the tip. Before the fort could be started, it was necessary to build temporary quarters, a storehouse, a wharf, and a plank road to the building site. The building of the fort began in 1859, with workers digging deep into the sand to put in a concrete foundation. Masons finally started laying the brick wall and arched casements. By early 1861, the exterior wall of the fort stood about 6 to 8 feet above the sand.



A panoramic view of a historic brick fort shows a circular courtyard surrounded by arched openings and a central cylindrical tower. Grass covers parts of the interior and the top of the ramparts, with metal railings along the upper walkway. The scene is set under a clear blue sky.

The sweeping curve of Fort Massachusetts forms a true D‑shaped stronghold—an architectural rarity in the Third System era and one of the fort’s most striking historic details.

A historic brick fort with circular gun emplacements and arched openings curves along a grassy earthwork, bordered by a metal railing. A tall tower stands in the distant background beneath a clear blue sky.

Although engineered for 37 artillery pieces, Fort Massachusetts ultimately mounted just 17 cannons, among them two 15‑inch Rodmans—an impressive reminder of 19th‑century coastal defense.

The Civil War Begins

In January of 1861, Mississippi was the second state to secede from the Union.  One of the first acts of war in the state occurred when the Mississippi militia took possession of the unfinished fort and Ship Island.  The US Army Corps of Engineers suspended construction and evacuated the island. When the Civil War officially started in April, the increased Union patrol of the waterways alarmed the Confederates who returned to the island in June to mount several cannons at the fort.
 
On July 9, the Union’s USS Massachusetts came within firing range, and a 20-minute exchange of cannon fire ensued. Not much damage was done to the fort; there were no casualties and no clear victor. This skirmish was the only military action in which Ship Island and the fort were directly involved.

The Confederates abandoned the fort again in mid-September, and the Union quickly took possession.
A large historic cannon on a wooden and metal carriage sits on a brick fortification overlooking a body of water. A pier with boats extends into the water in the background, with grassy earthworks and a partly cloudy blue sky completing the scene.

The only cannon that still remains at Fort Massachusetts is this massive 15‑inch Rodman. Designed as one of two mounted on the fort, its 50,000‑pound barrel sat on a circular track so it could rotate toward the Mississippi Sound and Gulf Coast. Built to fire 300‑pound explosive shells or 400‑pound solid shot nearly three miles, it was never used in combat.

Broken pieces of a large historic cannon rest inside a circular brick and concrete gun emplacement with concentric metal mounting rings. Grass fills the interior area, and a low brick wall curves around the structure beneath a clear blue sky.

These fragments are all that remain of a 15‑inch Rodman cannon. Once made obsolete by the smaller, more accurate Parrott Rifle, the Rodmans were broken apart with explosives for easier removal. Except for the single surviving Rodman still at the fort, all were sold for scrap in 1901.

A curved brick fort wall borders a narrow brick pathway that winds through grassy terrain. In the distance, circular gun mounts with historic cannons sit on a raised earthwork beneath a clear blue sky.

What remains here are the fragments of two 100‑pound Parrott rifles that once stood on these granite platforms in the 1870s. Their rifled barrels, cut with spiral grooves for spin and accuracy, made them far more precise and destructive than earlier smoothbore cannons.


By the spring of 1862, Ship Island had as many as 20,000 troops stationed there. It was like a small city, with nearly 40 buildings constructed, including a hospital, barracks, mess hall, and a bakery. Soldiers and sailors were busy unloading supply ships, cleaning stables, guarding prisoners, cooking meals, tending to the sick, and doing all the other things that were part of everyday military life. For the remainder of the war, the Union used the island as a place to put in for ship repairs and to pick up supplies. They found the island to be the perfect location for staging raids on Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida panhandle and successfully captured New Orleans this way.

 

The environment was harsh; more than 230 soldiers died, and there was little that could be done but to bury them there. Later on, the Union relocated their soldier's remains to Chalmette National Cemetery near New Orleans, but there were 153 identified Confederates still interred on the island.

 

The US Army Corps of Engineers resumed construction on the fort. Before the Civil War started, bricks came from nearby Louisiana. The year the Confederacy had possession, no work was done. After the Union retook possession and during the war, bricks were shipped down the East Coast from New England and around the tip of Florida. After the war ended in 1865, bricks were again obtained from Louisiana. This is why the apparent differences in color and ​different types of bricks are seen on the fort walls. The fort was finally completed in the fall of 1866.


Although the fort was never officially named, people started referring to it as Fort Massachusetts, most likely in honor of the USS Massachusetts incident. Most official documents refer to the fort only as “Fort on Ship Island.” 


A series of brick archways forms a long corridor inside a historic fort. The repeating arches create a tunnel‑like passage with textured brick walls and a stone floor, illuminated by natural light.

A corridor of brick arches leads deep into the heart of Fort Massachusetts, revealing the craftsmanship and symmetry that define this 19th‑century coastal stronghold.

A brick casemate inside a historic fort features a series of arched ceilings and walls leading toward a bright rectangular opening at the far end. Natural light highlights the weathered brick and the shadowed interior passage.

A brick casemate inside Fort Massachusetts frames a bright opening to the outside, highlighting the strength and symmetry of this 19th‑century coastal fort.

A brick Hot Shot Furnace with an arched firebox opening and a tall chimney stands inside a historic fort. The structure sits on a grassy floor beneath high brick arches, illuminated by natural light.

Never used, this Hot Shot Furnace was built to heat cannonballs until they glowed red‑hot, ready to ignite wooden ships. Designed to hold up to 60 cannonballs at once, it arrived as a kit but proved the wrong size. With the rise of ironclad ships during the Civil War, the furnace quickly became obsolete.

African American Soldiers Stationed at the Fort

Five months into the Union’s occupation of New Orleans, the army enlisted the Confederate Louisiana Native Guard. Organized into three regiments. These were free black and enslaved men who fled slavery to fight with the Union. Entering service in September 1862, they officially became the first black men to join the military. The Guard faced many hardships, being paid less, being subjected to racial slurs, and white officers refusing to drill alongside the black troops. At the time, many white soldiers did not believe black men could learn to be soldiers and fight, but they fought well and eventually gained the respect of their superior officers.


Very shortly after the Emancipation Proclamation took effect in January of 1863, the 2nd Louisiana Native Guard was sent to Ship Island, where they drilled, erected batteries, and guarded military convicts and Confederate prisoners of war. They were stationed on the island for almost three years.


In April 1863, 180 of the Ship Island Native Guard were sent to Pascagoula, Mississippi, to participate in a Union raid. It was one of the first fights where black soldiers directly fought with the Confederate forces. During a lull in the fighting, some of the Guards entered a hotel and raised the United States flag. Although this raid had very little military importance, their actions demonstrated their hopes for a free and equal life, and it is historically significant as the first instance of civil rights history.


At the Civil War's end, several black units remained on Ship Island. They assimilated in 1869 into the 25th infantry regiment of the United States Colored Troops and finally left the island in 1870. These men were sent West and became the Buffalo Soldiers.


A historic brick fort sits along a sandy beach with people walking, swimming, and sitting under colorful umbrellas near the shoreline. The fort’s red brick walls rise above the sand, topped with grass, beneath a clear blue sky.

Sunlight, surf, and centuries of history meet along the beach at Fort Massachusetts, where the red‑brick walls watch quietly over a shoreline now filled with swimmers and families.

A Notorious Civil War Prisoner  

Before the Civil War, Eugenia Levy Phillips had been suspected of being a Confederate spy while she was living in Washington with her Alabama Congressman husband. Although federal troops raided her home, they were not able to find any evidence. Her husband resigned from office, moving the family to New Orleans.


After the Union took New Orleans, General Benjamin Butler, one of the most disliked generals of the Civil War by both the North and the South, was appointed as the city's military governor. One of his controversial orders during this time was Order 28. It stated any lady in New Orleans who showed contempt for Union soldiers would be treated as though they were prostitutes.


Shortly after, Butler accused Mrs. Phillips of mocking a Union funeral procession because she smiled when it passed her home. She was sentenced to two years of close confinement and sent to Ship Island. Mrs. Phillips and her maid were initially confined to an abandoned railroad boxcar on the island. Although Mrs. Phillips had told her husband not to intervene on her behalf, he secured her release after ten weeks. As a condition of the release, she had to take an oath not to aid the enemies of the United States any further.



A long wooden pier extends over calm blue water with several anchored boats nearby. People sit under colorful umbrellas and relax along the sandy beach, with grassy dunes in the foreground and a clear sky above.

Looking out over the Mississippi Sound, the long wooden pier, anchored boats, and calm blue water capture the serene beauty of this Gulf Coast haven.

Getting to West Ship Island

A wooden sign for West Ship Island stands in a grassy coastal area. The sign reads “West Ship Island, Gulf Islands National Seashore” with the National Park Service emblem on the right, set against vegetation and a clear blue sky.

The West Ship Island sign stands at the edge of sea grass and salt air, marking the start of a quiet Gulf Islands National Seashore escape.


There are only two ways to get to West Ship Island, by personal boat or on the Ship Island Ferry.


The ferry leaves out of two locations, Gulfport and Biloxi. While they sell walk-up tickets, it is better to purchase in advance. During the busy season, they do sell out. Check their site for more information.



Not every image makes it into my blog. If you enjoyed the photos in this article, please check out my Mississippi Collection for more pictures of this beautiful state, or visit my Gallery with over 4000 images of locations around the United States.

A framed photograph of a brick archway corridor hangs above a dark brown leather sofa with striped and solid beige pillows. Matching leather armchairs flank the sofa, and a rustic wooden coffee table sits in front. The room includes warm lighting, wooden side tables, and a neutral wall backdrop.

A beautifully framed study of repeating brick arches, this artwork captures the craftsmanship and character of a bygone era—perfect for collectors of historic architecture.

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