Somers Point 1812 War Memorial - Somers Point, NJ
N 39° 18.663 W 074° 35.612
18S E 535042 N 4351373
The Somers Point 1812 Memorial is located on the beachhead and among the name are twelve members of the Somers family, the founder of this town. They indeed had something to fight for in this second Revolutionary War.
Waymark Code: WM9GQ0
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 08/19/2010
Views: 7
Beautiful, old monument to the one hundred seventeen men who defended the shores of Somers Point during the years 1812-1815. The monument is a huge rock shaped but still roughly hewn with a four-foot bronze plaque, heavy duty and greater than any shore town's erosion factor. The top of the memorial reads:
In Memory of All Who Served Their
Country in the War of 1812-1815
Near This Site a Volunteer Company
Erected and Defended a Sand Fort
The bottom of the marker reads:
Erected in 1923 By
Century Chapter National Society
United States Daughters if 1812
I found the following sweet description and historical reference to this site from a Somers Point historical website
Sand Fort
The sand fort was located on Bay Avenue and New Jersey Avenue in Somers Point. A memorial to volunteers defending Somers Point during the War of 1812 was placed by the Daughters of 1812. The sand fort itself was said to have been carrying "quaker guns" This was because it was said that a canon ball was shot into the Quaker meeting house. Research by Amy Plantarich. Source: NJ Pinelands and Downjersey website.
Mr. Henkels discovered the following at the Atlantic County Library, Mays Landing.
"A company of infantry was formed by John R. Scull who lived near Somers Point. This organization was known as the 1st Battalion, 1st Regiment, New Jersey Militia. It was organized to protect the coast. All the men were volunteers. They built a fort near Great Egg Harbor River that commanded the inlet and the harbor. It was built in the shape of a semi-circle - 50' in diameter, 6 1/2 to 10 feet high. It mounted cannon that fired 4" and 6" shot. The men were on duty 24 hours a day. Their orders were when they sighted an enemy they were to ride on horseback to the local villages and give the alarm. The fort disappeared in the early 1880's."
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