A Guide to Fort Mott State Park
A 19th century coastal defense site
Fort Mott State Park
454 Fort Mott Rd
Pennsville, New Jersey
GPS Coordinates
DMS 39° 36' 09.80 " N 75° 32' 55.39" W
(856) 935-3218
Open daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
No entrance fee.
Website
Fort Mott is located at Finns Point in Salem County on the bank of the Delaware River. It consist of 104 acres, is listed as a historic site on the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail.
In the 1800's, Fort Mott was established as a part of a coastal defense system designed for the Delaware River.
The fortifications that remain to date were erected in 1896 in anticipation of the Spanish-American War. Visitors can view the old batteries with interpretive signs and detailed descriptions.
During the height of it's existence, Fort Mott was a self-contained military post with more than 30 buildings made up of officers housing, a hospital, Post Exchange store, and a school for the children.
The armament for defense included three 10-inch and three 12-inch guns with a range of eight miles. There were also several batteries of rapid fire guns. The guns stood behind a 700 foot long, 35 foot thick embankment slopping to the rivers edge to form a parapet.
Fort Mott became obsolete when the construction of Fort Saulsbury near Milford, Delaware was completed, shortly after World War I.
Troops were regularly stationed at Fort Mott from 1897 to 1922. The federal government maintained a care taking detachment at the fort from 1922 to 1943. New Jersey acquired the military reservation as a historic site and State park in 1947. The park was opened to the public on June 24, 1951.
Fort Mott State Park provides educational and fun events that are family oriented. All events sponsored by the park are free to the public.
Ferry Service is available from Delaware City, DE to Fort Mott via the Three Forts Ferry. Ferry Website
Things to Do
Visitors can walk around the area, enter some of the dungeons, and getting up close to the remains of gun emplacements. Kids will enjoy climbing on some of the structures and lookouts towards the river.
Nature Trail
A quarter mile nature trail which runs through the trees and over to the cemetery gives hikers and bikers an easy journey amongst nature. In the winter, this trail serves as a cross-country ski trail, as well as access to sledding on the hills
Picnics
There are picnic tables, shelters, play fields with playground equipment with heated and handicap-accessible bathrooms. For larger groups, they have a group picnic area for up to 100 people. The shelter can be reserved for a fee: New Jersey Resident $80 per day Non-Resident $90 per day
Finn's Point National Cemetery
Finns Point National Cemetery is listed in The National Register of Historic Places. It is a burial place for a large number of Confederate Civil War dead along with graves of Union soldiers, guards at the Fort Delaware prison, men who died in the Spanish-American War, and veterans of later wars, including Nazi prisoners who died while being housed at Fort Dix during WWII. In 1910.
Finn's Point Rear Range Light
Located at Fort Mott & Lighthouse Roads, near the entrance to Fort Mott State Par. The lighthouse is a 115-foot tall black iron skeletal tower built 1877 and is listed National Register of Historic Places. It was automated in 1939. It served as a marker for the nearby channel of the Delaware River. The lighthouse was decommissioned in 1951. Today the lighthouse is open to the public on on the the third Sunday of each month from April to October.
The Hancock House
Located around the corner from Fort Mott State Park. Built in 1734, the Hancock House is an important to reminder of the History of Salem County and our Nation's struggle for independence. It is an excellent example of English Quaker patterned end wall brick houses associated with the lower Delaware Valley and southwestern New Jersey. It was also the scene of a British- led massacre during the Revolutionary War.
