Fortifications

Located at 13th and Quackenbos Sts. NW and originally called Fort Massachusetts, Fort Stevens was the scene of the only Civil War battle fought within the boundaries of the District of Columbia. President Lincoln and other Washington dignitaries observed the battle against Confederate General Jubal A. Early’s invading army from the fort’s ramparts on July 11 and 12, 1864. Rebel sharpshooters narrowly missed hitting Lincoln, making him the only sitting president to come under direct enemy fire while in office.

Built just after the Union defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run in July 1861 to guard the Seventh Street Turnpike that led into the heart of the city, the fort was located just seven miles from the White House. It was built partly on land known as Vinegar Hill, where free African Americans had lived since the 1820’s. The fort was enlarged in September 1862 and renamed in honor of Brigadier General Isaac I. Stevens, killed at the Battle of Chantilly, VA. 

Early’s army arrived on July 11, exhausted from its long, hot march and fighting a Union delaying force at Monocacy Junction near Frederick, MD on July 9. When his skirmishers advanced, they came under artillery fire from Forts Stevens, DeRussy, and Slocum. Seeing that the fort was lightly defended, Early decided to let his men rest and his stragglers to catch up before attacking the next morning. But by then, the Union defenders had been reinforced by veteran troops sent from Petersburg by Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. On July 12, Early’s attack was repulsed by the veteran Union troops from the Sixth Corps. In the afternoon, the Confederates were driven back from their advanced positions in front of Forts Stevens and DeRussy. Recognizing that the Union Capital was now strongly defended, Early abandoned any thought of taking the city and withdrew during the night. “We didn’t take Washington,” Early told his staff officers, “but we scared Abe Lincoln like Hell.”

The fort was partly restored by The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1937 and today contains a memorial stone designating the spot where Lincoln came under fire and a relief map showing the outline of the entire fort. Fort Stevens today is surrounded by a neighborhood of residences and small businesses.