By Rick Wright

Staff Writer

After being neglected for many years, South Portland’s Fort Preble will soon get a lot of attention.

The Fort Preble Preservation Committee is sponsoring its second annual Fort Preble Work Day May 1 at Southern Maine Community College.

Cutting overgrown brush, hauling trash and painting steel doors and windows will be major priorities, said Tom Blake, a member of the committee.

The work will expose granite steps and foundations. It also will improve views of the old fort’s berms and batteries, Blake said.

Ultimately, the preservation committee wants to repair the fort’s concrete structures. In some places, the fort’s concrete steps and walls are crumbling, cracking and splitting.

“In a few short hours, you can be involved in uncovering a piece of history,” said committee member Paul Charpentier. “It’s very satisfying work. It honors the patriot and it beautifies the town and campus.” 

Fort Preble was built in 1808 and named for Portland native Commodore Edward Preble. Various units manned the fort from the War of 1812 to World War II. The federal government decommissioned the fort in 1950.

“Since the 1950s, no effort has been made to protect the fort,” said Blake who is also a South Portland city councilor.  

The work will focus on the area around Battery Rivardi near the McKernan Hospitality Center at SMCC, Blake said.

The doors and windows will be scraped and painted with paint to protect them from rust caused by the salt air and inclement weather.

The committee also wants to put up signs on the fort’s buildings to tell the public about its purpose. Monuments also are envisioned to describe the fort’s history.

“There’s such history here all around us. Fort Preble is a very interesting historic site,” said Charpentier, who is also SMCC’s associate dean of academic affairs.

In the short term, the committee is concentrating on work that can be done quickly, easily and cheaply, Blake said.

“We’re doing the most obvious, simple stuff now and things that don’t cost money,” Blake said.

The preservation committee is comprised of 16 members who represent the city and SMCC. The committee was formed a year ago to bring attention to the fort’s role in city history.

Volunteers on May 1 are encouraged to wear work boots, gloves, long sleeves and long pants. They should also bring safety glasses and hand tools such as clippers, pruners and saws.

Forty-nine people attended the event last spring, including SMCC students and staff plus many area residents.

Blake hopes for an even bigger showing this year. An adjunct history instructor at SMCC, Blake is offering his students extra credit if they show up for the event.

This year’s crowd will also include South Portland High School Interact Club members and SMCC resident assistants, Blake said. 

  “It’s your local history. It brings history alive,” Charpentier said.