Fort Monroe, Virginia is an amazing place!

Not that long ago, Rebecca, Noah, and I visited the historical Fort Monroe outside of Hampton, Va. Having never been to the fort before we didn’t quite know what to expect. We were all pleasantly surprised with the entire experience and would definitely recommend this place to those that love American military/ Civil War history.

F/A-22 Raptor flies over Fort Monroe, Virginia. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Ben Bloker)

A sketch of an old map (above) shows Ft. Monroe in relationship to Hampton and Norfolk.

Moat surrounding Fort Monroe

The fort’s interior is surrounded by a murky moat and it’s actually the largest stone fort in all the nation. There’s a beautiful Victorian style house on the installation that was once used by Abraham Lincoln to plan an attack against the neighboring city of Norfolk. Also on the fort is General Robert E Lee’s old quarters where he and his wife had their first child. After the Civil War ended, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was imprisoned on the fort for two years. To learn about all the wonderful history associated with Fort Monroe, there is an intriguing and informative museum within the fort that offers free admission to the public.

Old Lighthouse at Fort Monroe, Virginia

The old batteries high atop the fort walls offer a picturesque view of the Virginia coastline and the old lighthouse at the fort is definitely worth a visit. The thing I found the most interesting about the entire visit was the fact that the officer’s quarters are now available to the public as long-term residential leases. The Army just decommissioned this fort in 2011. Now this historical national park is a place where the average citizen can  move in and make it their home. I would consider making the move just to have those bragging rights! “Yeah, I’m living behind the walls of an old army post where Honest Abe used to pay visits!”

These old military quarters at Fort Monroe were preferred lodging for President Abraham Lincoln during his visits.

Thank you for taking the time to read my short post about Fort Monroe. If you’re ever in the Hampton Roads area, you won’t regret taking some more time out of your day to visit this historical site. Feel free to explore other areas of my blog, post a comment, and show some love on social media. I hope you visit Big John’s Adventures in Travel again real soon.

Happy travels,

Big John


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