Redoubt Brannan (click to enlarge)

Fortress Rosecrans Main Page

Redoubt Brannan, part of Fortress Rosecrans, is located near the corner of West College Street and Brinkley Avenue, a few miles southeast of the main unit of Stones River National Battlefield. There is a large National Park sign at the entrance to the parking area. From here you will be looking at the front walls of the fort from the outside, which today appear as small hills. A short trail located at the far end of the parking lot circles around to the rear of the fort to the sally port, or entrance. A boardwalk leads into the interior.

Brannan was one of four redoubts built within the interior of Fortress Rosecrans. These were square forts, completely enclosed and manned with cannon, that served as a place of retreat if the outer walls of the fort were breached by the enemy. Brannon was located at the northern end of the fortress and on the east side of the Stones River, which flowed through the fortress from north to south. As with all of the redoubts, it was built on the highest ground within the fortress so that soldiers could see over the outer walls. It was originally armed with three 30-pounder Parrott guns, two 12-pounder Napoleon field cannons, and one 8-inch Howitzer. (“Pounder” refers to the size of the cannon ball that the gun could shoot. A Howitzer was a short barreled artillery piece that could shoot a variety of projectiles at a higher trajectory than a typical cannon. A field cannon is one small enough to be transported on the battlefield.)

Fort Rosecrans layout

To imagine what an earthen redoubt was like, just imagine a square doughnut. You would be standing in the hole area surrounded by thick, earthen walls that were either neck high on a typical soldier, allowing him to see over the top to shoot his gun (short men had to stand on something), or much taller, requiring platforms to be built around the inside wall for men to stand on (the case with Redoubt Brannan). Today, the walls of all Civil War-era forts have been eroded away, with much of the dirt washing into the interior and filling it up. I’ve been inside of redoubts where the walls were barely up to my knees, almost to where it was like walking on the top of a hill. Keep in mind that these structures have been subjected to 150+ years of erosion.

With that in mind, prepare to be disappointed. During my visit to Redoubt Brannan the structure was overgrown with grass. The grass is there on purpose to keep the walls from eroding further, but I’m not sure if keeping it wheat-field high is standard practice or due to a lack of lawn mowing money. A boardwalk, which is positioned where the original entrance was, leads into the interior, but it’s really hard to figure out what all of the fuss was about since you are nearly level with the outer walls. When built, those walls would have towered over you. But as they say, “It is what it is.” There are a few information panels along the boardwalk. A visit takes all of 10 minutes.

Redoubt Brannan is open to the public from 8 AM to 5 PM. There is no fence to keep anyone out, but you’d be visiting in the dark after sunset.