The Fall of Fort Fisher Sealed Vital Southern Port (Wilmington)-- Part 2

**  The new commander, Col. William Lamb was a lawyer and newspaper editor from Norfolk, Virginia.  Dashing and energetic, he transformed Fort Fisher into the war's largest single earthwork.

**  The fort resembled an upside-down inverse number seven or letter "L".  It was anchored at the south end by the 60-foot high "Mound Battery."

**  The fort's two plant-sodden sand and dirt walled sections intersected in a right angle at what was called the "Northeast Bastion."

**  The walls were 12 feet high, punctuated by higher 30-foot tall traverses making the walls appear "bumpy" in linear profile."

**  The walls were 20-feet thick.  Thick enough to absorb any shell explosion.  Beneath each traverse was a dugout bombproof.

**  The length of the walls was essentially a half mile on te land side and a mile on the sea side.

Just to Give You An idea of the Magnitude (and All Hand-Dug)--Old B-Runner