Fort Dickerson

In 1863, Fort Dickerson was one of sixteen Union Army earthen forts and battery positions protecting Knoxville from November 1863 to May 1865. It was named for Capt. Jonathan C. Dickerson of the 112th Illinois Mounted Infantry, who was killed near Cleveland, TN on Sept. 18, 1863. The fort repulsed assaults by 5,000 Confederate cavalry under Gen. Joe Wheeler on Nov. 15-16, 1863, withstood the Siege of Knoxville from Nov. 17 to Dec. 4, 1863, and provided artillery support for the Battles of Armstrong’s Hill on Nov. 25 and 29, 1863. Construction was completed by the 104th Ohio Battery in February 1864.

Knoxville, Tennessee · United States