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From LiDAR America & Hidden Archaeology 📌Fort Crafford — Fort Eustis, Virginia 📍37°07'42.08"N 76°37'05.92"W Overlooking the marshy edge of the James River on Mulberry Island, LiDAR reveals the clean pentagonal outline of Fort Crafford, a Confederate earthwork quietly preserved within the landscape. Its angular walls and enclosed interior still stand out clearly, positioned just inland from the shoreline where tidal creeks and wetlands form a natural defensive barrier. From above, it becomes obvious how carefully the fort was placed—covering approaches from both the river and inland routes while tying into the broader Warwick Line defensive system across the Virginia Peninsula. Constructed in early 1862 as part of the Confederate defenses protecting the approaches to Richmond, Fort Crafford served as a “covering work” behind the nearby Mulberry Point Battery, shielding it from overland attack and providing a fallback position if outer rifle lines were breached. Though the fort never saw direct combat—being abandoned when Confederate forces withdrew toward Richmond following the Peninsula Campaign—the earthworks remain remarkably intact. Archaeological investigations later revealed an even older layer of history beneath the fort itself, including evidence of 17th-century colonial occupation inside the enclosure. Today, LiDAR strips away the forest and marsh to expose both the strategic engineering and the enduring imprint of a fort built to guard one of the Confederacy’s most critical river approaches.