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Johnson Island Civil War Prison and Fort Site

Ottawa County, US

Johnson Island Civil War Prison and Fort Site

Johnson's Island is a 300-acre (120 ha) island in Sandusky Bay, located on the coast of Lake Erie, 3 miles (4.8 km) from the city of Sandusky, Ohio. It was the site of a prisoner-of-war camp for Confederate officers captured during the American Civil War. Initially, Johnson's Island was the only Uni

on prison camp exclusively for Confederate officers but eventually it held privates, political prisoners, persons sentenced to court martial, and spies. Civilians who were arrested as guerrillas, or bushwhackers, were also imprisoned on the island. During its three years of operation, more than 15,000 men were incarcerated there. The island was named after L. B. Johnson, the owner of the island beginning about 1852. It was initially named 'Bull's Island' around 1809 by its first owner, Epaphras W. Bull (later misspelled "Epaproditus" Bull, by local historians.)

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