Description
When the British built Frederica, tabby was used in the construction of the fort town, including the surviving remnants of the magazine, soldier barracks, house foundations, and walls. Now a national monument, the expansive 40-acre site includes a visitor center.
History
James Oglethorpe established Fort Frederica on St. Simons Island in 1736 to protect the Georgia colony from the Spanish to the south. The fort was Oglethorpe’s source of defense in the 1742 Battle of Bloody Marsh, in which the British defeated the invading Spanish. Afterwards, the Spanish never again warred with the British in the New World, leaving Britain to be the major colonial power in what would become the United States. Fort Frederica went in decline after 1748 when England and Spain signed a peace treaty, and the town was abandoned after a fire in 1758.
Location
GPS: N 31°13.380 and W 81°23.338 (Fort Frederica National Monument parking lot)
Address: 6515 Frederica Rd., St. Simons Island, GA 31522
Accessibility: Open daily 9am-5pm, except on holidays; Admission is free.
For more information see the National Park Service's website on Fort Frederica National Monument and the New Georgia Encyclopedia entry on Fort Frederica.
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