Joseph Gardner Swift - 1802-1814

1802-1814

Swift remained at West Point until 30 April 1804, and in June of that year, became the superintending engineer of the construction of the defenses of the mouth of the Cape Fear River in North Carolina. In January 1805 he became the commander of Fort Johnson, North Carolina.

Swift returned to West Point in 1807 and took command of the Academy in Williams' absence. He remained there until 23 November of that year, when the Academy was closed for the winter vacation. Swift was promoted to Major in February 1808 and assigned to lead the defenses of the Eastern Department covering the New England coast. He was assigned with Joseph Gilbert Totten and Sylvanus Thayer, also graduates of West Point. Once again, Swift was assigned to his old station at the mouth of the Cape Fear River where he was charged with superintending and inspecting southern coast defenses until 1812. In July 1812, Williams resigned as Chief Engineer of the Army, and Swift, then a lieutenant colonel and the next senior Engineer in the Army, assumed command. His appointment as Colonel and Chief Engineer of the Army, to rank as such from 31 July 1812, was unanimously confirmed in December 1812.

Pending his confirmation, Swift was ordered back to superintend the defenses of North Carolina. Before leaving Washington, he sent orders to Captain Alden Partridge, the senior Engineer officer at West Point, to open the Military Academy (then practically defunct) in the coming spring. Swift, upon becoming Chief Engineer of the Army and Superintendent of the United States Military Academy, was 30 years old.

In March 1813, Swift was called to Washington and consulted with the Secretary of War on the application of large appropriations for fortifications. He then reported to New York City to supervise the fortification process and act in his capacity as the Chief Engineer and Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy.

As Superintendent, he made frequent trips to West Point, and made plans for a new mess hall, academic building, and South Barracks. He also obtained authority to employ an acting chaplain to be Professor of Ethics, History, and Geography; remodeled the functions of the academic staff; and assumed the duties of the inspector of the institution to bar the assumption of authority claimed by Partridge as local commander.

With the repairs of New York Harbor completed and fortifications against the British fleet in place, Swift requested orders for the field. He became the Chief Engineer of the Northern Army under Major General James Wilkinson. This took him to the ill-fated St. Lawrence Campaign but also won him a citation for gallantry in the battle of Chrysler's Farm. He was breveted a brigadier general on 19 February 1814.

The Secretary of War refused Swift further field service on the grounds that the coast defenses required his attention. Swift was sent to New York where, in conjunction with the Committee of Safety, he established plans for the development of the coasts of New York and Brooklyn and supervised the thousands of volunteers who worked on the project. The Corporation of New York voted him a Benefactor to the City as a result of these services.