Blockhouse (Central Park)
Coordinates: 40°47′55″N 73°57′23″W / 40.79866°N 73.95629°W
Blockhouse No. 1, colloquially known as The Blockhouse, is a small fort in the northern part of Central Park, in Manhattan, New York City, and is the second oldest structure in the park, aside from Cleopatra's Needle. It is located on an overlook of Manhattan schist, with a clear view of the flat surrounding areas north of Central Park. Finished in 1814, the fort was part of a series of fortifications in northern Manhattan, which originally also included three fortifications in what was then called Harlem Heights, now known as Morningside Heights. The fort is the last remaining fortification from these defenses. Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, the designers of Central Park, treated Blockhouse No. 1 as a picturesque ruin, romantically overrun with vines and Alpine shrubbery.
The Blockhouse was likely built on a foundation of a structure dating back to a much earlier date. In 1776 during the Revolutionary War, British and Hessian troops sealed off lower Manhattan from colonial armies by controlling the pass and defending it through a series of fortifications. From trial excavations performed in 1995, it has been determined that the foundations of Blockhouse No. 1 date back to this time of British occupation of Manhattan.
The current fort was constructed in three phases:
In the first phase, under the direction of General Joseph Gardner Swift, the fort was hastily constructed by New Yorkers during the War of 1812 in anticipation of a British invasion. The building was assembled by volunteers who brought the building materials with them, hence the red sandstone blocks included with the Manhattan schist. The fort consists of a two-story bunker surrounding a small area, inside which a wooden platform would originally have stood. The wooded platform was sunken with a revolving turret for a cannon. The sides hold small gunports. This structure was likely connected to the ground by a small staircase. Construction on the tower was completed in 1814, two days before the Treaty of Ghent was signed to end the war.
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