Fort Washington Park
National Park Service Unit · Fort Washington, Maryland
A masonry fort on a bluff over the Potomac, built to stop a fleet reaching Washington by water and, for most of the nineteenth century, the only thing standing between the capital and the river. The first fort here was destroyed in 1814 by its own garrison, who blew it up and withdrew without firing a shot as the British came upstream. The replacement was begun the following year to a design by Pierre L'Enfant, who had planned Washington itself and who was dismissed before he finished it.
13551 Fort Washington Road, Fort Washington, Maryland, 20744, United States
The park grounds are generally open daily from dawn to dusk with a modest per-vehicle entrance fee; federal passes are accepted. THE FORT ITSELF AND THE VISITOR CONTACT STATION KEEP SHORTER AND MORE VARIABLE HOURS than the grounds — verify before travelling if going inside the walls matters. Some interior areas and the lower water battery close for maintenance and for safety after storms. Living-history and cannon-firing programmes run on a published seasonal schedule.
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