Fort Craig (Virginia)
Fort Craig was a small lunette that the Union Army constructed in September 1861 in Arlington County (at that time Alexandria County) in Virginia during the American Civil War. The lunette was part of the Civil War defenses of Washington (see Washington, D.C., in the American Civil War). The lunette stood less than a mile away from Arlington House, the Union-occupied estate of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. It remained in use throughout the war. The lunette was part of the Arlington Line. It tied into Fort Tillinghast approximately 0.6 miles to the north and Fort Albany approximately 0.9 miles to the south. The fortification helped guard the capital from an approach along the Columbia Turnpike and over the Long Bridge on the Potomac River. Construction Constructed on local farmland in August 1861, the lunette was named for Lt. Presley O. Craig, 2nd U.S. Artillery Regiment, who was killed at the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861. Oriented to the southwest, it had a perimeter of 324 yards, emplacements for 11 guns, and 2 magazines. The fort's armament included four 24-pound guns, one 24-pound field howitzer, five 30-pound Parrott rifles, a 10-inch mortar, and a 24-pound Coehorn