Annual Exhibition 2020

The Coastal Forts of Eastern Long Island Sound: Abandonment, Ruination and Repurposing

Looking beyond the visually compelling crumbling facades of gun pits, the striking through-line of this exhibition is the active repurposing of large sections of these former military reservations by scientists, naturalists and conservationists into nature sanctuaries and, in the case of Great Gull Island, a tern research center. While tracing the fascinating histories of each of these forts, this exhibition acknowledges and celebrates all who are working to keep these ex fort properties as habitat for the full range of our region’s diverse flora and fauna, with humans included at some sites.