Fort Frederica

In the 1700’s Georgia was known as debatable land to the British owned South Carolina and the Spanish owned Florida.  It was on St. Simons Island that the battle between the Spanish and the British over who would own Georgia was fought.  James Oglethorpe established Fort Frederica on the Frederica river in 1736.  In 1742, Spanish from Cuba and Florida landed on St. Simons for battle.  The Battle at Bloody Marsh led to the retreat of the Spanish and allowed the British to claim Georgia as its territory.  Unfortunately, the victory led to the closure of Fort Frederica and the demise of the town Frederica within the boundaries of the fort.  Fort Frederica is run by the National Park Service.  

The Fort was surrounded by a moat created by it’s proximity to the river.  The moat can be seen today as well as the remnants of several of the buildings.  

The deer roam freely around–we were treated to a couple of fawns playing in the fields.  Although it was in the upper eighties when we visited, we were kept cool by the large trees covered in moss which shaded most of the park. 

Joy