Fort Raleigh National Historic Site ⓘ

While it's not often spoken of in the same sentences as the Battle of Gettysburg, Antietam, Siloh, or Sumter, the Battle of Roanoke Island was a major development during the early years of the Civil War and set the stage for the rise and fall of one of the U.S. Army's most well-known generals, Ambrose Burnside. As an action in the Civil War, it was a small engagement, but its repercussions far outweighed its immediate results.

Early in the Civil War, the United States Army faced tough test after tough test, often losing more ground than it gained back from the Confederate states. After the disastrous first months of the war, the United States army looked to fully blockade Confederate ports, and the ports of North Carolina were vital targets. A raid, turned occupation, took a couple of small forts on Cape Hatteras in August of 1861, setting the stage for further incursions along the coast of North Carolina. Union Brigadier General Ambrose Burnside formulated a plan using the Outer Banks as a jumping-off point for the invasion of eastern North Carolina. He devised an expedition with troops that were trained and experienced with ocean operations. Various ferryboats, as well, were commandeered because of their shallow draft and their ability to maneuver in the tight waterways of the Outer Banks. On January 8, 1862, the so-called Coastal Division, a motley little fleet of sixty-six ships, put out to sea from Annapolis, Maryland.

Shortly after leaving, the fleet encountered a heavy fog, limiting vision and blacking out the sky. Vessels lost sight of the lead gunboat, the Picket, with Burnside on board and several became lost on their journey down to the opening of the Chesapeake Bay. Using sound to navigate, drums echoed through the night, indicating the presence of ships in the black of night. The bulk of the 70-ship fleet arrived at Fort Monroe with only minor damage and bruised expectations of what they hoped would be smooth sailing. On January 11th, the expedition headed to Colonel Rush Hawkins’ post at Hatteras Inlet. On January 12th, the fleet, struck by a nor’easter, scattered, and many of the smaller ships were almost swamped, and several ships were lost to the treacherous waters of the Graveyard of the Atlantic.

Hatteras became the staging ground for the coming invasion of Roanoke Island. General Burnside worked with Colonel Rush Hawkins, who had been in control on Hatteras Island since August. Hawkins was able to bring a local enslaved teenager, named Thomas Robinson , to Burnside's attention. Robinson had lived on Roanoke Island and was able to free himself by sailing down to Hatteras to go to the Hotel d'Afrique, an encampment of other enslaved people near Fort Clark . Robinson was able to relay the gun positions and fort locations on the island to Burnside to help with preparations for the invasion. After learning from Robinson and another enslaved person, Benjamin Tillett, about the waters around the island, Burnside launched the fleet on February 5th.

An intense bombardment of Fort Bartow and the Confederates’ small fleet, derisively called the “Mosquito Fleet”, began around 11:30 a.m. The fleet and fort were punished by the sheer weight of the Union ordinance. The fort, as well as the camp behind it, caught fire. Two ships, the Curlew and Forrest, were driven aground near Fort Forrest, with the Curlew blocks some of the fort's guns. In a little under four hours, Confederate resistance was subdued. By nightfall, the Union troops were all ashore, and the Confederate hopes were pinned on the small three-gun battery in the center of the island.

After suffering through a sleepless rainy night, the Union troops marched out from the landing area at 7:30 a.m. Pushing down the road to the battery, Union soldiers pushed back Confederate skirmishers. Coming around the turn in the road, the Union forces saw their first view of the island’s main defense – the three-gun battery. This battery, sitting astride the road, was thirty-five yards wide with a water-filled ditch eight feet wide and three feet deep guarding the front. Supporting the three guns were about 1,000 poorly armed soldiers from various regiments. The field in front of the battery was seven hundred feet long by three hundred feet wide and surrounded by marshy swamps. It was these pools of black, slimy, swampy ground that the Confederates put their faith in. They expected the Union force to funnel their attack down the roadway, as the swamps were too treacherous and impassable. They were wrong.

Although the ground was often hard to navigate, units became mixed, the air was filled with smoke from rifle and cannon fire, and the Union troops accidentally fired on each other, the various Union regiments were finally able to effectively attack the three-gun battery. Struck from the front and both ends, the Confederates abandoned the works and fled back to their camps, littering the road from the battlefield with the equipment that slowed their escape. Some of the newly arrived Confederate troops attempted to row to Nags Head and safety, but many were forced to return. Confederate reinforcements coming from the northern shore of the island met the victorious Union soldiers and were pushed back into the Confederate camps, where they were forced to surrender.

Roanoke Island was captured by Burnside at a very modest cost in casualties to his men. Official Union losses were given as thirty-seven killed, 214 wounded, and thirteen missing. Confederate losses were only twenty-two killed and fifty-eight wounded. However, 2,500 Confederate soldiers surrendered. The Union, still reeling from the Bull Run disaster, garnered much more than just war materiel from this victory. Coupled with the February 15, 1862, victory at Fort Donelson in Tennessee , the Union war effort gained a much needed boost; the Union war spirit was reborn with the capture of Roanoke Island. On a military front, Roanoke Island opened up the interior riverline port cities, such as Plymouth and New Bern, to direct invasion as well as to threaten Morehead City, North Carolina, and Norfolk, Virginia, from their weaker rear areas. By the summer of 1862, most of the coastal areas of North Carolina had fallen to Union forces. They began seriously threatening the vital rail line from the Confederate capital in Richmond, Virginia, to the last open port in North Carolina, Wilmington. With the huge success at Roanoke Island, the Union stranglehold on the South was ever tightening. In the immediate aftermath of the battle, many of the enslaved people on the island sought freedom and formed a freedmen's colony on the island . There they created schools, jobs, homes, and more, which at its height had over 3,500 people at the colony. Though there are no battlefields or forts left on the Outer Banks, this battle and the subsequent occupation by the Union Army are important to the history of this area and the people who live here, many of whom are descendants of the people whose homes saw fighting and who built the freedmen's colony on Roanoke Island. Though the victory of Roanoke Island may seem small compared to the major battles like Gettysburg and Vicksburg, this short battle on a tiny island on the Outer Banks helped change the direction of the Civil War and the country.

Beauty blooms, mysteries unfurl, and the past speaks at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site.

On these small wooded grounds lie many stories of families and their struggles that have continued through time, resulting in the creation of a nation and its people. Here, the first infant cries of English colonization in the New World (1584-1590) burst upon the world. These efforts, sponsored by Sir Walter Raleigh, ended with the disappearance of 116 men, women and children, including two that were born in the New World. The fate of this “lost colony” remains one of the world’s great mysteries.

This site also celebrates the preservation of Native American culture and was the location of an important Freedmen's Colony during the Civil War. One of the early radio pioneers, Reginald Fessenden, conducted many of his experiments here.

The American tradition of sacrifice, inventiveness, and courage in the face of great adversity was defined by the actions on these grounds and continues to thrive in our national spirit. Visit Fort Raleigh National Historic Site for a visit into our past and a glimpse of our future.

Close-up of the stonework National Park Service 1896 Monument See the monument that marks the beginning of on-site preservation efforts. The stone marker commemorates the birth of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in North America, and the baptism of the Croatoan native Manteo by the English.

Part of the reconstructed earthwork National Park Service Earthwork Archeological evidence reveals an earthwork and metallurgical activity were present on this site in the 1580's. Copper nuggets, charcoal, antimony ore and furnace bricks were discovered just west of the earthwork and could be the workshop site of Joachim Gans, a metal expert on the 1585 expedition. The earthwork seen today was reconstructed in 1950.

Detailed etching on the First Light of Freedom monument National Park Service First Light of Freedom The First Light of Freedom monument commemorates the Roanoke Island Freedman's Colony that was set up during the American Civil War. The colony provided a safe haven and education for the formerly enslaved to help prepare them for a new life.

View of the Croatan Sound National Park Service Freedom Trail Explore the maritime forest along this 1.25-mile trail that ends with views of the Croatan Sound on the western edge of the park. The trail ends near the location where the Freedmen's Colony and Civil War forts once stood. Return by the trail or use the bike path along Hwy. 64 for a loop back to the visitor center of 2.5-miles.

Path through the maritime forest National Park Service Thomas Hariot Trail Walk this 0.3-mile loop through the island's maritime forest to the sandy shores of Albemarle Sound. Enjoy interpretive signs along the way describing the forest habitat, the Algonquian methods for gathering food and resources the English found valuable on Roanoke Island.

Main stage of the Waterside Theatre National Park Service Waterside Theatre View the home of The Lost Colony , an outdoor symphonic drama performed by a park partner, the Roanoke Island Historical Association. The performance is the nation's first and longest running outdoor symphonic drama.

Etheridge Point Beach offers spectacular views and calm, warm waters. NPS Photo Etheridge Point Beach At Etheridge Point, a small, sandy, southside beach is the perfect place to explore the calm waters of the sound. The sound is usually calmer and warmer than the ocean, and is a great place to play, swim, or just relax in the water.

Etheridge Point provides some of the most expansive views of the Outer Banks. From this location, you can see Jockey's Ridge, the Wright Brother's Monument, and Colington Island.

This beach is not lifeguarded. All pets must be on a leash for the safety of the park wildlife and other visitors.