Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth
| Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1900-1950 |
| Country |
 United States
|
| Branch | United States Army Coast Artillery Corps |
| Type | Coast artillery |
| Role | Harbor Defense Command |
| Part of |
|
| Garrison/HQ |
|
| Motto(s) | We are one |
| Mascot(s) | Oozlefinch |
The Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth was a United States Army Coast Artillery Corps harbor defense command. It coordinated the coast defenses of Portsmouth, New Hampshire and the nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine from 1900 to 1950, both on the Piscataqua River, beginning with the Endicott program. These included both coast artillery forts and underwater minefields. The command originated circa 1900 as the Portsmouth Artillery District, was renamed Coast Defenses of Portsmouth in 1913, and again renamed Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth in 1925.
The first fort in the Portsmouth area was Fort William and Mary (called The Castle until circa 1692) in New Castle, initially garrisoned before 1632 and perhaps the oldest continuously fortified site in the British colonies that later became the United States. In 1680 another small fort was established on the site of the later Fort McClary in Kittery, Maine, then a part of Massachusetts. This was called Fort Pepperrell after its builder, William Pepperrell. In 1720 this became a permanent battery of six guns named Fort William. In 1746 Battery Cumberland was built at Jaffrey's (Jerry's) Point in New Castle. Both Fort William and Mary and Fort William figured in the American Revolution. On 14–15 December 1774 Fort William and Mary was raided twice. On the first night a large group of patriots led by John Langdon overpowered a six-man caretaker detachment and confiscated much of the fort's supply of gunpowder. On the second night another raid under John Sullivan seized 16 of the fort's cannon and a number of muskets. These raids were the first acts of the Revolution in New Hampshire. In 1775 Fort William was seized by New Hampshire militia and expanded. The British recaptured Fort William and Mary, but eventually abandoned it and New Hampshire; the Patriot forces probably renamed it Fort Hancock.
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