Fort Zachary Taylor

Military presence in Key West began in 1822 with a US Navy garrison to combat piracy. Construction of Fort Zachary Taylor started in June 1845, when Florida became the 27th US state. The fortress, named after the 12th US President Zachary Taylor in November 1850, was part of a defense system for the southeastern US coast. Completion was delayed by its remote location, shortages of materials and labor, yellow fever, and hurricanes. Before the Civil War, a US unit secured the nearly finished fort for the Union. During the Civil War, it served as headquarters for a squadron that blockaded the Gulf of Mexico, capturing over 300 blockade runners. Although not completed until 1866, the already installed guns prevented a Confederate attack. As part of the Endicott building program, the fort was modernized from 1889 and served as a training ground during the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II. After being abandoned by the army in 1947 and handed over to the US Navy, which used it as a storage facility, volunteers began excavating buried Civil War cannons in 1968. This led to its inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places in 1971 and recognition as a National Historic Landmark in 1973. Since 1985, it has been open to the public as a State Park.

Fort Zachary Taylor is located in Key West, Monroe County, Florida, USA, at an elevation of approximately 7 m above sea level.

Visitors can explore the historic Fort Zachary Taylor today.

• Fort Jefferson (fortress), approx. 108.0 km away
• Fort Matanzas (fortress), approx. 575.4 km away
• Castillo de San Marcos (fortress), approx. 594.9 km away
• Fort Caroline (fortress), approx. 647.7 km away