Atlas Obscura Covers Castle Williams on Governors Island

Castle Williams | Castle Williams on Governor's Island was constructed between 1807 and 1811 as a defensive fort protecting New York Harbor.

National Register of Historic Places 72000864

Inside Castle Williams | A short tour on 09.29.12 inside Castle Williams during the last weekend that Governors Island was open in 2012.

Governors Island - One of the telescopes mounted in the courtyard of Castle Williams

NYC - Governors Island: Castile Williams | Castle Williams, located on the northwest point of Governors Island, was designed and erected between 1807 and 1811 under the direction of Lieutenant Colonel (later Colonel) Jonathan Williams, Chief Engineer of the Corps of Engineers and first Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point. The nearly circular fort, measuring 210 feet in diameter with 40-foot high and 7 to 8 feet thick red sandstone walls, established a prototype for American coastal fortification design for the rest of the 19th century with its multiple levels of enclosed or fortified gun enplacements (casemates)...During the Civil War, the casemates of Castle Williams alternatively housed newly recruited Union troops, served as a barracks for the garrison's troops, and imprisoned Confederate enlisted men and deserters from the Union Army. Following the war, it became a low-security military prison until the Coast Guard arrived in 1966 and converted it into a community center.

Casemate inside of Castle Williams | Originally used to house cannon, it held Confederate soldiers during the Civil War, and then used as a military prison for members of the Army who were AWOL or committed other military crimes.

Governors Island-Castle Williams, 09.06.14 | A visit to Governors Island on 09.06.14 for an instameet to "Capture Governors Island". I took the Castle Williams tour, one of the island's historic forts, and afterwards roamed around for a little bit. The new parks at the southern part of the island are still under construction, hopefully, they will be completed when the island opens next season.

Castle Williams | <a href="http://www.govisland.com/html/home/home.shtml" rel="nofollow">Governors Island</a>

This finally reopened after renovations. The two purposes of this building was for military defense and then it was converted as a prison.

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Governors Island Aerial | NEW YORK - AUGUST 2: Aerial view of Governors Island on August 2, 2012 in New York. Located in Upper New York Bay between Manhattan and Brooklyn, Governors Island is home to historical fortifications, Fort Jay and Castle Williams.
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Contributing writer ARedd at Atlas Obscura recently posted a brief history of Castle Williams on Governors Island.

Although the Governors Island off the coast of Manhattan has seen an off-and-on military presence since the Revolutionary War, one need not enlist to reach it any longer. In 1996 the Coast Guard – the last of the military tenants of the Island – finally folded up their charts, and while it took a few years and some (luckily) unfulfilled development plans, Governors Island is now open to the public from May to September, finally allowing access to historic Castle Williams

Check out the full article for more history on Castle Williams.

via Atlas Obscura

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Castle Williams

Governors Island, New York, NY 10004
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Matt Coneybeare

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Matt enjoys exploring the City's with his partner and son. He is an avid marathon runner, and spends most of his time eating, running, and working on cool stuff.

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