James Island

First settled in 1651 by traders from Courland (in present-day Latvia) on an earlier native site, James Island on the River Gambia was a cultural crossroads from the late fifteenth to the late nineteenth centuries. In 1661 the fort that the settlers had built passed into the hands of the English who renamed it Fort James. The fort has a square plan with polygonal bastions at its four corners. There were formerly curtain walls between the north and east bastions, a large stone cistern for collecting rainwater, ancillary fortifications, and a service building at the end of the island. However, in 1778 the fort was taken by the French and severely damaged during military maneuvers. The site remained in ruins after the attack.