The Confederate Battery built on Gibson's Point was named after the landowner, Richard T. Gibson, who acquired the property from his father Robert S. Gibson in 1834. Constructed in early 1864 to protect the Confederate held city of Savannah, Georgia, the Battery was built by enslaved labor to protect Whitemarsh Island, which had become a battleground between Union and Rebel forces over the last two years of the war.
Gibson's Point Battery consisted of two gun implacements closer to Richardson Creek and the central redoubt which was armed with two 8-inch siege howitzers and two 32-pounder cannons. The redoubt is all that currently remains and was the area that an archaeological survey was conducted in 2025 and 2026. The artifacts and research conducted on the Battery are represented in this database.
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Map of Savannah Defenses December 1864
Orlando M. Poe
A map detailing defensive points around Savannah, Georgia and Whitemarsh Island, featuring specific illustrations of how certain defensive points were laid out, published by the Library of Congress in 194
Orlando M. Poe, Map Illustrating the Defence of S2avannah, Ga. and the Operations Resulting in its Capture by the Army Commanded by Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman, compiled 1880–1881, map, 55 x 50 cm, Library of Congress Geography and Map Division, Washington, DC
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Map of Savannah, Ga. and Vicinity, 1864
Confederate Publishing Company.
A map of Savannah, Georgia and vacinity from 1864 found in Confederate Military History - Georgia, vol. 6, published in 1899.
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Map of the Siege and Investment of Savannah, Georgia
United States Army, Corps of Engineers (Washington, D.C.)
A copy of a map detailing General William T. Sherman's military investments and siege of Savannah, Georgia, created in 1864.
United States Army, Corps of Engineers. Map showing the investment and siege of Savannah, Georgia, by Genl. Sherman's army, Decr. 1864. [Washington, D.C.]: U.S. Coast Survey, 1864. Map
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Map Showing the Defences of Savannah, On the Approaches of Wilmington and Savannah Rivers, Georgia
Bowen & Company (Philadelphia, PA)
A map showing the defences of Savannah, Georgia during the Civil War published by Bowen & Company of Philidelphia, Pennsylvania on February 8, 1865.
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Memoirs of the Fort and Fannin Families
John Porter Fort
A historical account of the First Georgia Regular's December 1864 defense and subsequent retreat from Savannah, Georgia, published by the Press of MacGowan & Cooke Co. in 1903.
Fort, John Porter. "History of the Last Campaign of the First Georgia Regulars of the Confederate States Army in the Civil War 1864-65." In Memoirs of the Fort and Fannin Families, 146–150. Chattanooga, Tennessee: Press of MacGowan and Cooke Co., 1903.
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Miscellaneous Reports for the Military Districts in Georgia, 1864
Lafayette McLaws
Miscellaneous reports from military districts in Georgia from Confederate officers on the defences at Savannah from the spring and summer of 1864.
U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 128 vols. (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1880–1901), Series I, Vol. 35, pt. 2, multiple entries.
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Old Fort Jackson Still Stands at Five Fathom Hole on the Savannah River
Bob Ruegsegger
An article on the flags and signals used by the Confederate Signal Corps along the Savannah River during the American Civil War, written by Bob Ruegsegger on December 7, 2021.
Ruegsegger, Bob. "Old Fort Jackson Still Stands at Five Fathom Hole on the Savannah River." Last modified January 25, 2024.
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Rebellion Record Vol 4.
Frank Moore
A record of events and documents regarding the Thirteenth Georgia Regiment, published by G.P. Putnam in 1862.
Frank Moore, ed., The Rebellion Record: A Diary of American Events, with Documents, Narratives, Illustrative Incidents, Poetry, etc., vol. 4 (New York: G. P. Putnam, 1862), p. 81, 501-502.
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Savannah Newspaper Paper Digest: January 1, to December 31, 1862
Works Prograss Administration of Georgia.
Abstracts of articles related to Whitemarsh Island, Georgia in Savanna newspapers from 1862 taken from the Annals of Savannah, volume 13, part 1, pages 131, 322, and 323.
Works Progress Administration of Georgia. Annals of Savannah, 1850–1937, vol. 13, pt. 1, Savannah, GA: Works Progress Administration, 1937–1938.
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Siege of Savannah in December
Charles C. Jones Jr.
A historic detail of the Confederate defenses around Savannah, Georgia, and the subsequent evacuations of the city published in 1874.
Jones, Charles C. The Siege of Savannah in December, 1864... Albany, NY: Joel Munsell, 1874.
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Skirmish on Whitemarsh Island, Ga.
David Hunter, Henry W. Benham, Quincy A. Gillmore, James H. Wilson, William M. Fenton, and Marcellus Douglas
A series of reports submitted by General David Hunter (USA), General Henry W. Benham (USA), Lieutenant James H. Wilson (USA), Colonel William M. Fenton, and Marcellus Douglas (CSA) related to a skirmish on Whitemarsh Island, Georgia on April 16, 1862. Includes a report on the defences of Savannah, Georgia by Lieutenant A. T. Cunningham (CSA) on October 20, 1862. Gibson Point Battery was not mentioned in the report.
U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 128 vols. (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1880–1901), Series I, Vol. 14, p. 4-13 & 335 & 645-
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Soldier's Story of His Regiment
University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI)
A soldier's writing of the actions of the Thirteenth Georgia Regiment, including notable deaths and engagements.
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Such Hard and Severe Service
Dan Clendaniel
An excerpt from Dan Clendaniel's Such Hard and Severe Service: The 85th Pennsylvania in the Civil War, Volume II ~ 1864-1865 detailing the regiments expedition onto Whitemarsh Island in Georgia.
Clendaniel, Dan. Such Hard and Severe Service: The 85th Pennsylvania in the Civil War, Volume II ~ 1864-1865. Vol. 2. Monongahela Books, 2021.
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Sumter is Avenged
Herbert M. Schiller
A document detailing military operations, strategic reconnaissance missions, and logistical preparations leading up to the siege and reduction of Fort Pulaski during the Civil War, published by the White Mane Publishing Company in 1995.
Schiller, Herbert M. "Sumter Is Avenged": The Siege and Reduction of Fort Pulaski. Shippensburg, PA: White Mane Publishing Company, Inc., 1995.
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The life of Isaac Ingalls Stevens
Hazard Stevens
A document detailing the life and experience of General Isaac Steven while stationed in Beaufort, South Carolina, written by his son Hazard Stevens and published by the Houghton Mifflin Company in 1900.
Stevens, Hazard. The Life of Isaac Ingalls Stevens. Vol. 2. New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1900.
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The Rebel Defences of Savannah, Georgia, 1864
Library of Congress. Map Division.
A map showing the Rebel defences of Savannah, Georgia, following the capture of the city by General William Tecumseh Sherman and his army on December 21, 1864.
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The Siege and Evacuation of Savannah, Georgia, in December, 1864
Charles C. Jones Jr.
An article published in the Southern Historical Society Papers, Volume 17 (1890), pages 60-84 on the siege and evacuation of Savannah, Georgia in December of 1864. The article comes fro an address delivered before the Confederate Survivors' Association in Augusta, Georgia on the occasion of its Twelth Annual Reunion, on Memorial Day, April 26, 1890. The article mentions that there were two 8-inch howitzers and two 32-pounders at Gibson's Point before the exacuation.
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Three Month War
William S. Hendon
A historical narrative that follows members of the 13th Georgia Infantry Regiment and their families during the America Civil War, written by William S. Hendon in May of 2012.
Hendon, William S. Three Month War. Unpublished manuscript, May 21, 2012.
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Treatise on Field Fortification
D. H. Mahan
A 19th-century military manual that provides detailed instructions on engineering, design and strategic tactics for building and defending fortifications, published by John Wiley And Sons in 1856.
Mahan, D. H. A Treatise on Field Fortification. 3rd ed. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1856.
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Two Years at Fort Bartow. 1862-1864
Rogers W, Young
An article detailing the history and role of Fort Bartow near Savanah, GA, from its establishment in 1862 to its evacuation in 1864, published by The Georgia Historical Quarterly in September 1939.
Young, Rogers W. "Two Years at Fort Bartow, 1862-1864." The Georgia Historical Quarterly 23, no. 3 (September 1939): 253–64.
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Under the Stars and Bars
Walter A. Clark
A chapter from Under the Stars and Bars detailing the transfer of Confederate Oglethorpes infantry unit to the 2nd South Carolina Artillery in Savannah, published by the Chronicle Printing Company in 1900.
Clark, Walter A. Under the Stars and Bars; Or, Memories of Four Years Service with the Oglethorpes, of Augusta, Georgia. Augusta, GA: Chronicle Printing Company, 1900, 79–84.
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Whitemarsh Island
Allen D. Candler and Clement A. Evans
An entry found in Volume 3 of Georgia: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form, titled "Whitmarsh Island."
Candler, Allen D., and Clement A. Evans, eds. Georgia: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form. Vol. 3, 573-574. Atlanta: State Historical Association, 1906.
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Works at Eastern Point of Whitemarsh Island
Library of Congress. Map Division.
Engineer's diagram of Gibson Point Battery following the capture of Savannah, Georgia by Federal troops under the command of General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1865. Housed at the Library of Congress, Map Division.