Constructed on local farmland in August 1861, the lunette was named for Lt. Presley O. Craig, 2nd U.S. Artillery Regiment, who was killed at the
First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861. Oriented to the southwest, it had a perimeter of 324 yards, emplacements for 11 guns, and 2
magazines. The fort's armament included four 24-pound guns, one 24-pound field howitzer, five 30-pound
Parrott rifles, a 10-inch mortar, and a 24-pound
Coehorn mortar. Units garrisoned at the lunette included the
1st Massachusetts Heavy Artillery,
138th Ohio Infantry,
6th Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, and
16th Maine Infantry. No trace of the lunette remains today in what has become a residential area. A historic marker, near the intersection of South Courthouse Road and 4th Street South in Arlington, shows the location where the lunette once stood. The marker depicts the fort's position on a map of the city's defenses and reads:
Here stood Fort Craig, a lunette in the Arlington Line constructed in August 1861. It had a perimeter of 324 yards and emplacements for 11 guns. == References ==