{"nrhp_refnum":"73001358","name":"Fort Branch Site","other_names":[],"category":"site","location":{"address":"SE of Hamilton on SR 1416","address_restricted":false,"city":"Hamilton","county":"Martin County","state":"NC","lat":35.92765158700007,"lon":-77.17163166999995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-06-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Military"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Civil War Confederate earthwork fort on a bluff above the Roanoke River, southeast of Hamilton in Martin County, North Carolina, built in 1862-1863 and garrisoned from August 1863.","why_significant":"The fort was built to defend the Roanoke River against Federal gunboats, protecting the Weldon railroad bridge on the Wilmington-to-Petersburg supply line and the ironclad C.S.S. Albemarle under construction upstream. Although it saw no major battles, it is described as one of North Carolina's best-preserved earthwork fortifications and a remarkable Civil War landmark.","narrative":"Fort Branch is a Confederate earthwork fortification on a high bluff above a bend in the Roanoke River southeast of Hamilton, North Carolina. Construction began in late 1862 under engineer W. G. Bender, using enslaved laborers from nearby farms and plantations, and enlarged an earlier small battery. It was completed in early summer 1863 and garrisoned that August by companies of the Tenth North Carolina Troops (First Artillery). The fort was meant to stop Federal gunboats from reaching the Weldon railroad bridge, a key link in the supply line from Wilmington to Petersburg, and to shield the ironclad Albemarle being built upstream. It never figured in a major battle and was abandoned for the last time on April 10, 1865. Its walls, ditch, ramps and projecting bastions remain largely as built, stretching about 1,400 feet along the river. The sites of the commissary and magazine and a small burying ground can still be traced inside the walls. It is valued as one of the state's best-preserved earthwork forts.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Built under the supervision of W. G. Bender, first lieutenant, engineer, C.S.A.; labor superintendent Private Carroway; site recommended by Lt. J. Innis Randolph","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as excellent; earthworks virtually intact though somewhat overgrown with trees. The form marks it unoccupied.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:58.567135-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/19/7212/47721219/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/73001358.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47721219","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Branch_Site","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19461799"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/martin-county/fort-branch-site-73001358/"}