
“The Capital Can’t Be Taken!” – The Civil War Defenses of Washington
June 28, 2018 @ 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm
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Discover how Washington went from a defenseless capital to the most fortified city in the world.

Union troops posing by Fort Stevens
At the beginning of the Civil War in 1861, there were no forts, earthworks, or other defenses to be found; the Union capital was incredibly vulnerable to Confederate attack. By 1865, Washington D.C. was one of the most heavily fortified places in the world. As the nerve center of the Union war effort, the Federal government and the U.S. Army allocated tremendous resources to the capital’s safety during the Civil War. Join Ranger Steve T. Phan (NPS) to learn how the Defenses of Washington evolved over the war.
Steve T. Phan is a Park Ranger and historian at the Civil War Defenses of Washington. A military history scholar of the Civil War era, Steve’s research focuses on military occupation, operational command, fortifications, and the Western Theater during the Civil War. He holds a Masters degree in American History, with a concentration in Public History.
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