Fort Taylor Corps of Engineers Payroll

Scope and Content:
Manuscript payroll of a Corps of Engineers in service at Fort Taylor, Key West, Florida. Complete in detail and shows 278 individual signatures of Engineers who acknowledged having received the amounts listed from Captain Walter McFarland.
Fort Taylor was begun in 1844 and completed two years later. Entrance West end of United Street is a Coast Guard base with artillery mounted behind fortified ramps. It was held by Union forces during the War between the States. At the beginning of the War the Government fortified Key West. Local citizens were strong Confederate sympathizers, but the city, like other port towns of Florida, was held by Federal forces throughout the war. Nearly 300 blockade runners were captured, brought there and tried in the admirality court during this time, according to Florida, A Guide to the Southernmost State.

©1998 Florida State University. All rights reserved. Created by Aimee Reist and John Nemmers. Send comments to FSU Libraries Special Collections