Castle Clinton National Monument
Address:
Battery Park
Manhattan
212-344-7220
Category: Harbor Defenses
Open to the public.
Built: 1808
Owner: National Park Service
Designation: National Monument
Description: The red sandstone circular fort originally called the Southwest Battery was built on rocks located 200 feet off the southern tip of Manhattan to defend the city in the War of 1812. The fort never had occasion to fire on the enemy and was later renamed for Mayor DeWitt Clinton. Substantial landfilling joined the structure the Battery. Throughout the years, the site has been a restaurant, the opera house Castle Garden, an immigration depot, and the first home of the New York Aquarium.
