Preservation, Reconstruction and Excavation
From 1928 the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Macon Kiwanis Club began fundraising to create a replica of one of the blockhouses to memorialize the fort. In 1933 the government began archaeological excavations at the Ocmulgee Old Fields, supported by workers and funding of the US Works Progress Administration (WPA) under President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the Great Depression. In 1936, one of the archeologists, Gordon R. Willey, did enough work at Fort Hawkins to establish the original footprint of the southeast blockhouse. Construction of a replica of the blockhouse was done as a WPA project in collaboration with the DAR, and was completed in 1938. Some of the original stones were recovered to be used in the basement section. The upper floors were made of concrete formed to simulate the original wood timbers, intended to be more durable at a time of uncertain funding for historic work.
Because historical records had been destroyed when Washington, DC was burned during the War of 1812, in 1971 the city authorized limited archaeological excavation to establish the original dimensions of the fort. An area of the excavation revealed many ceramic artifacts, remnants of English-American styled dishes used by residents, dated from c. 1779-c. 1834. In 1977 the Fort Hawkins archeological site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NHRP).
The City of Macon acquired the historic site in 2002, with help from the state's Greenspace Program and funds from the Fort Hawkins Commission and the Peyton Anderson Foundation. After redevelopment, the city and Commission plan to use the fort site as a greenspace park and a historical center of the city. The southeast blockhouse, which is occasionally opened to the public, has become an icon of the city. Archeologists were concerned that construction of the Fort Hawkins Grammar School and a road on part of the site in the mid-20th century had destroyed the archeological record. Since 2005, archeological excavations at the fort site have shown that extensive artifacts and stratigraphy have survived and can be interpreted.
From 2005-2007, in a cooperative project supported by the city, the Fort Hawkins Commission (est. 1990), the Society for Georgia Archaeology, and the LAMAR Institute, the archaeologist Daniel T. Elliott led a team in extensive excavations of the fort site. The work revealed evidence of two forts having been constructed there. The final fort had several brick buildings and only one of wood, making it a more substantial complex than originally thought by the limited historical descriptions. In 2007 additional palisades were found, and research indicates it is likely the outer area was built from 1809-1810 by the US Army's Regiment of Rifles.
By creating a public website for the fort and the archeological work, the Commission and Society for Georgia Archeology have done extensive education on the finds already. They have also used numerous public venues to educate a variety of audiences about the fort, its role as a military and economic center, and its many peoples.
In addition, the team recovered nearly 40,000 artifacts from the fort era (1806–1821), which show the complex lives of the different peoples on the American frontier. This evidence has shown a more complex and significant history at the fort than previously known. It has provided evidence that the fort was more important than earlier understood, and the artifacts must be studied and interpreted. The Fort Hawkins Commission developed a Master Plan in 2008 for the site, which includes development to reconstruct the entire 1.4 acre (5,700 m²) complex.
Another field season of excavation is planned for October 2011 under Daniel T. Elliott. It will concentrate on the west wall of the former stockade.
Read more about this topic: Fort Benjamin Hawkins