WHEN THE SPANIARDS
CARTER ED REAL FORT
By F. C. Salisbury
Two hundred years ago a fleet
of Spanish privateers entered the
Beaufort harbor and seized and
held the town for several weeks.
So far as is known, Beaufort, there¬
fore, is the only North Carolina
town over which the Spanish flag
ever has flown. Prior to this, how¬
ever, the invaders also took posses¬
sion of Ocracoke Inlet, but there
was no town on the outer banks
at that time: merely a few houses,
more or less widely scattered.
Prior to the Revolutionary War,
there was much dissension among
the several counties of North Caro¬
lina, and this is said to have left
the new state in a defenseless con¬
dition. People were so busily en¬
gaged in quarreling with one
another that they had little time
to protect themselves against out¬
side invaders.
During the period of unrest in
1741, Spanish privateers, which
had been operating along the coast
of the Carol inas, took possession
of Ocracoke Inlet, seizing a num¬
ber of vessels arriving with badlv-
needcd supplies for the colonists.
Not only did they loot the vessels
but they also landed a force on the
banks, carrying otT the cattle and
other possessions of the inhabi¬
tants.
Again in 1744 they harassed the
coast, and in 1747 they climaxed
their activities by boldly entering
the harbor of Beaufort. A detach¬
ment of militia was hastily
gathered under command of Mayor
Enoch Ward. They held the Span¬
iards at bay until August 26. when
the enemy finally succeeded in
gaining possession of the town.
Many of the residents fled inland.
Reinforcements were sent to the
aid of the small detachment of
militia, and these were under com¬
mand of Colonel Thomas Lovick
and Captain Charles Cogdell. An¬
other engagement took place, and
early in September the Spaniards
were forced out of the town, suffer¬
ing considerable loss.
Again the following year several
forays were made along the coast
but Beaufort was not again mo¬
lested.
As a result of these invasions,
the Assembly voted to erect forts
at several strategic points along
THE state. August 2. 1047
“A good caption for this picture,” writes Bill Sharp of the State News
Bureau, "would he ‘All this and dolphin too!’ "
Anyway, the picture shows Miss Corretta Thompson, beauty queen
of Morehend City, who caught this 20-pound. 4-foot dolphin all by her¬
self on the edge of the Gulf Stream off Cape Lookout.
The fishing at Morehead has been unusually good this summer and
some record catches have been made.
the coast, but it was not until 1756
that a fascine fort was built on or
near the present site of Fort Ma¬
con. This fort was first named after
Royal Governor Dobbs, but the
name later was changed to Fort
Hampton.
On U. S. Route 70, in Beaufort,
you may have seen the marker
which has been put up by the
State Historical Commission and
which reads as follows:
Spanish Attack.
Spanish force landed and
captured Beaufort, 1747. Driv¬
en away a few days later by
local troops.
And also on Route 70. a few hun¬
dred yards west of Morehead City,
you will see this marker:
Fort Macon.
Built 1826-34 to protect
Beaufort Inlet. Replaced Fort
Hampton. State Park. 5V£
miles southeast.
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