Fort Ann was located in the present-day Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (Wikipedia).
Fort Ann was a U.S. Army post established in November 1837 during the Second Seminole Indian War in Brevard County, Florida. It was built by 1st Lieutenant James R. Irwin and one company of troops on the eastern shore of the Indian River. Lieutenant Irwin named the post after “the prettiest girl in Pennsylvania.”
It was built to guard the “Haulover” portage between the Indian River and the Mosquito Lagoon in the present-day Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. Haulover was a strategic portage used by Indians and traders to connect the Indian River to ocean access via the Mosquito Lagoon. It also served as a troop housing and supply depot supporting General Thomas Sidney Jesup’s military offensive against the Seminole Indians.
It was abandoned in April 1838. Today, no remains of the fort remain except a marker for the Haulover Canal that mentions it. The site is located on the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville, Florida.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated October 2026.
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