Old Fort King George State Historical Marker

Old Fort King George State Historical Marker, Darien, McIntosh County, Ga.

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OLD FORT KING GEORGE

Site of old Fort King George, built in 1721 by Col. John

Barnwell, of South Carolina, under British Royal orders.

This tiny cypress blockhouse, 26 feet square, with 3 floors,

and a lookout in the gable from which the guard could watch

over the Inland Waterway and St. Simon's Island, was flanked

by officers quarters and barracks, and the entire area was

surrounded on all but the river side by a moat and palisades.

Garrisoned by his Majesty's Independent Company, with

replacements of Colony scouts, the fort was occupied for six

years. During that time more than 140 officers and soldiers

lost their lives here and were buried on the adjacent bluff.

The first of the British 18th century scheme of posts built

to counteract French expansion in America, Fort King George

was also a flagrant trespass upon Spanish territory, and

during its occupation Spain continually demanded that it

be destroyed.

The troops were withdrawn to Port Royal in 1727, but until

Oglethorpe arrived in Savannah in 1733 South Carolina kept

two lookouts at old Fort King George.

095-19 GEORGIA HISTORICAL COMMISSION 1957

Photo: Ed Jackson

© Carl Vinson Institute of Government, The University of Georgia

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