The SMITHFIELD Is Seen Here Underway

The SMITHFIELD Is Seen Here Underway

The SMITHFIELD is seen here underway, at an unknown location, along the shore. She was built as the HAMPTON in 1901 and renamed the SMITHFIELD in 1909. In the distance, one can see Castle Williams. Castle Williams is a circular fortification of red sandstone on the northwest point of Governors Island, part of a system of forts designed and constructed in the early 19th century to protect New York City from naval attack. It is a prominent landmark in New York Harbor.

Castle Williams was designed and erected between 1807 and 1811 under the direction of Lieutenant Colonel (later Colonel) Jonathan Williams, Chief Engineer of the Corps of Engineers and first Superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Williams was also a relative of Benjamin Franklin. The castle was one component of a defensive system for the inner harbor that included Fort Columbus (later renamed Fort Jay) and the South Battery on Governors Island; Castle Clinton at the southern tip of Manhattan, Fort Wood on Liberty Island, and Fort Gibson on Ellis Island.

Its pioneering design consisted of multiple levels of enclosed or fortified gun emplacements (casemates). It established a prototype for American coastal fortification design for the rest of the 19th century.