Fort Panorama

Fort Panorama is a view of the inside of the fort as it appears today. Ft. Drewry was actually built in 1861-2. Its heavy guns were brough up from the wreck of the CSS Virginia after the fall of Hampton Roads. This was after the famous battle where the Virginia and Monitor fought, the first time two iron warships ever fought each other. When they came up the river in the summer of 1862 to try to reach Richmond and perhaps force a surrender from the river, the Monitor again faced the guns of her old adversary. The Monitor could not bring its guns up far enough to be effective against the fort and drew off to let the other ships fight. The Galena was the main participant and was severely damaged, but survived the battle to joing the blockade of southern ports. The fort itself was attacked several times during the war from land and river, but fell only after being abandoned in April of 1865. The battle in 1862 also marks the e vent of the first Congressional Medal of Honor (the highest US Military honor) being awarded to a member of the US Marine Corps.