Howard S. England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Howard S. England (1914-1999), was the man responsible for the transformation of Fort Zachary Taylor from a forgotten eyesore to a popular historic landmark and state park.
England, a civilian architect for the Navy, was born in Key West, Florida and, except for service as a photographer in the U.S. Marine Corps overseas, was a lifelong resident. After World War II, Fort Zachary Taylor, no longer of use to the army, was turned over to the U.S. Navy for maintenance. In 1968, England was assigned to investigate and report on Fort Zachary Taylor, a brick fortress located on a small island in Key West harbor constructed prior to the Civil War. At that time it was an overgrown dumpsite where it was used as a storage yard for scrap metal. He completed his report, in which he recommended further research and excavations, but was told there was neither manpower nor funds available for that purpose. He persisted, and the Navy told England he could volunteer his time, if he wished, and examine the fort. England gathered a group of volunteers and they went to work. During a ten-year period, England and his "sandhogs" searched long-abandoned parts of the fort, where they uncovered the largest collection of Civil War armaments in the United States, including cannon, guns, a desalinization plant and thousands of cannon balls and projectiles.[1]
After retiring from his career as a Navy Civil Service Architect, England voluntarily continued his research for nine years and discovered how the armaments came to be buried, created a museum for the artifacts, wrote his memoirs and donated them to the Friends of Fort Taylor.[2] As part of his research, England created 84 architectural and technical drawings which included physical dimensions: elevations, floor plans, details (e.g. handrails and doors), several types of large guns, their carriages and equipment as well as their projectiles. England donated his Architectural and technical drawings of Fort Zachary Taylor 1969-1980 to the Bureau of Archaeological Research, who transferred them to the State Library and Archives of Florida, where they reside today.
After the historic significance of the Fort was established, the Navy transferred the property to the Department of the Interior in 1970, which subsequently deeded it to the State of Florida in 1976 to be developed as a public park.
In 1971, Fort Zachary Taylor was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, designated a National Historic Landmark in 1973 and in 1985, became Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park. Due to the back fill of sand around the fort, the park boasts the best beach in Key West[3] and is visited by thousands of visitors each year. The park now occupies 87 acres (352,000 m²).
Howard England died in 1999 and was recognized as a Great Floridian, a Florida Department of State program honoring deceased individuals who made significant contributions to the history and culture of our state. His Great Floridian plaque is located at Fort Zachary Taylor State Historic Site in Key West.
