Lights at Fort Fisher.
Farther north from the Baldy Head Island Lighthouse were two lights at Fort Fisher, constructed by Confederates to defend New Inlet, a major entrance and exit for blockade runners. New Inlet had been formed by a major hurricane that struck in 1761. New Inlet has since been closed off after the construction of "The Rocks," a man-made jetty across it.
According to the book, the light erected on top of Fort Fisher's massive "Mound Battery" was not an official aid to navigation, but did aid blockade-runners coming through New Inlet. The height of the "Mound" enabled an enfilading fire on Union blockaders.
After Fort Fisher's fall on January 15, 1865, the light on the Mound" was re lit and several blockade-runners, unaware of the fort's capture, ran into what they considered to be safety in the Cape Fear River, only to be captured.
Sneaky Yankees. --Old B-R'er
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