Only a few minutes from historic downtown Philadelphia lays the only Revolutionary War battlefield completely intact. Located on the scenic Delaware River, Fort Mifflin was originally built by the British in 1771. It is the site of the largest bombardment the North American continent has ever witnessed. In 1777, during the American Revolution, a valiant five-week battle took place when the British Navy attacked Fort Mifflin on Mud Island. The British had the garrison of approximately 400 Continental soldiers surrounded from three sides. Attempting to open the supply line for the British Army already in the Rebel capital of Philadelphia, the British shot over 10,000 cannonballs at the Fort, causing the garrison to eventually evacuate. Over 150 Continental soldiers died as a result of the battle. This allowed General Washington and the Continental Army to repair to their winter quarters in a place called the Valley Forge. Too late in the season for British General Howe to chase them, the garrison at Fort Mifflin thus extended the war and allowed the American army time to regroup until the spring of 1778.
Forever after that known as the “Valiant Defender of the Delaware”, Fort Mifflin was reconstructed in 1798 as one of the coastal defenses of the era. An active military post until the Korean War, this made the Fort one of the longest continually used military posts in the nation up until that time. The Fort has played many roles in the security of our Nation in its 235 years of existence; garrisoned in the War of 1812, a Confederate prison during the Civil War and a munitions depot in World Wars I & II.
The Fort is home to 14 restored historic structures constructed from 1778 to 1875, including an Enlisted Barracks, Officer’s Quarters, Blacksmith Shop and the casemates (or as the students like to call them, the dungeons.) It is here, in the casemates, where we conducted our investigation throughout the night. Click here to see the Fort Mifflin Photo Album.
Sleeping With The Ghosts
Throughout the year individual ghost hunters and paranormal investigation groups are permitted to spend a Saturday night investigating the Fort and the casemates. My daughter, Jaclyn, and I arrived at 6:00 pm on July 26, 2008. We were greeted by our tour guide and groundskeeper, Wayne, who graciously showed us to our sleeping quarters for the night. After settling in and unpacking our gear in the Enlisted Barracks, we then waited for the 7:00 pm tour to begin. There were a total of 24 ghost hunters who signed on for this night’s investigation, and we were all anxious to start spreading out to explore the casemates. As Wayne led us around the Fort he told us about it’s remarkable history from the time it was built up to 1952.
After the tour we attended a one hour question and answer session hosted by The South Jersey Ghost Hunters Society who presented us with a slide show of their photos and EVP’s of a past investigation of Fort Mifflin. For the next several hours after that, Jaclyn and I explored the casemates, Blacksmith’s Shop, Officer’s Quarters and the living quarters of Elizabeth Pratt. Legend has it that Elizabeth Pratt and her daughter lived at the Fort sometime during the Civil War. Her daughter wanted to marry an enlisted man, but this news enraged Elizabeth and her officer husband to the point where she and her daughter fought so much that they stopped talking to each other. In those days you were supposed to marry up, not down. Some time had passed until one day the daughter came down with a fever and died. Elizabeth was so distraught with grief over losing her daughter before they could reconcile she tied a rope around her neck and threw herself over the balcony of the Officer’s Quarters. Apparently, to this day, you can still hear Elizabeth’s mournful screams as her ghost replays the moment of her death. Wayne has told us that there have been times when people outside of the fort have heard the sound of a woman screaming and have called the police. Upon entering the fort and searching the surrounding area they could find nothing.
Below is an EVP’s we managed to pick up in the Blacksmith's Shop. Jacob was the blacksmith for the fort during the Civil War.
"That's me!" - In response to our question if Jacob was with us tonight.
If sleeping with the ghosts sounds like something you or your group would like to experience, please contact Lorraine at 215-685-4167 for more information or visit www.fortmifflin.us .
