1832 Mississippi Delta Fort, Civil War Bombardment Site
Buras, LA 70041
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
No admission fee for the surrounding park. Fort interior is closed; museum is offsite.
Access
Limited Access
Levee top, gravel paths, masonry ruins; uneven and partially flooded historically
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1832 · National Historic Landmark · Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip 1862 · Third System Coastal Fortification · Hurricane Katrina Recovery
Fort Jackson sits on the west bank of the Mississippi River 40 miles upstream from the river's mouth, in the deep delta of Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. The Federal government began construction in 1822 on the advice of Major General Andrew Jackson, who had identified the lower Mississippi's vulnerability during the War of 1812. The masonry pentagon, designed in the Third System tradition, was completed in 1832 and named for Jackson.
The fort's defining engagement was the Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip, April 16-28, 1862. U.S. Navy Flag Officer David Farragut's fleet bombarded the Confederate-held fort for twelve days before running past the guns on the night of April 24. With New Orleans below them defenseless, Union forces accepted the surrender of the city. Fort Jackson fell formally on April 28. After the engagement the fort served as a Union prison; among its inmates was the French champagne magnate Charles Heidsieck, held seven months on charges of espionage.
Fort Jackson was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960. Hurricane Katrina submerged the entire site under more than 30 feet of water in August 2005, and the fort remained underwater for approximately six weeks, destroying most of the interior exhibits and damaging walls, foundations, and drainage. Plaquemines Parish completed a major rehabilitation in 2011, but the fort's interior remains closed to visitors. The surrounding park is accessible during daylight hours, and the Fort Jackson Museum operates from a separate location approximately one mile away.
Sources
The folklore tied to Fort Jackson is sparse and almost entirely uncorroborated. The Shadowlands narrative records a one-line account: ghosts of Civil War soldiers seen walking the fort grounds at night. No newspaper, historical society, or paranormal investigation team has published an account that documents recurring phenomena, named witnesses, or specific time periods.
The site's history makes the folklore plausible without making it documented. The 1862 siege killed and wounded hundreds; the Union prison phase added years of confinement; the long Katrina submersion left the masonry visibly aged and the moat layered with delta sediment. Whatever lore exists at Fort Jackson is sustained by the geography rather than by witness records — long sightlines down the Mississippi, isolated levee approach, and the absence of any nighttime visitor program to generate first-person accounts.
The practical experience here is daytime outdoor exploration of the surrounding park, with the masonry interior closed for safety reasons. The site is best understood as a Civil War battlefield landmark with thin paranormal documentation rather than as an active investigation destination.
Walk the park surrounding the masonry walls of Fort Jackson, 40 miles down the Mississippi River from New Orleans. The fort's interior remains closed to visitors after Hurricane Katrina submerged the site under more than 30 feet of water for six weeks in 2005, but the surrounding levee and exterior moat are accessible.
Visit the Fort Jackson Museum located approximately one mile southwest of the fort at the Plaquemines Parish District 9 office, 38039 Highway 23, Buras. The museum holds Civil War artifacts and exhibits on the 1862 Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip. Call 504-934-3783 to confirm hours before traveling.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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