For Lots of Reasons, This Island Is a Plum

By Rhoda Amon | Staff Writer

THE TROOPS LINED UP in front of the guardhouse at Fort Terry on Plum Island in 1913 represent some of the many different inhabitants of the island over the years.

At various times the island at the eastern end of Long Island Sound has been an Indian settlement, a farm and a cattle-raising area. It almost became a summer resort in the 1890s, but developer A.S. Hewitt's plans never materialized. Part of the island served as a military fortification during the Spanish-American War and the War Department acquired the rest in 1901.

Though it never had to defend Long Island, Fort Terry was ready by the close of World War I with 11 gun batteries, antiaircraft guns and equipment to set a line of mines to stop submarines from entering the Sound. The fort was reactivated during World War II.

The guardhouse, built in 1912, also had a varied history. The Plum Island Animal Disease Center, which took over the island in the 1950s, used the guardhouse for breeding mice until 1977. The Mouse House, as it was known, later was used as a library, offices and storage. It's no longer used.

The animal disease lab has been a secret, off-limits place, but that may change. A visitors center is scheduled to open later this year at Orient Point, according to assistant director Carlos Santoyo. Tours of the island are contemplated.