the forts themselves were connected to Washington via telegraph wire. Signal detachments were present at Fort Stanton, near Uniontown, and sometimes visited Fort Greble as part of training efforts. The garrison In accordance to a plan laid out in an October 1861 report by General Barnard, "rear line" forts were to receive one man per yard of fort perimeter when fully garrisoned. Front-line forts were to receive two men per yard, when needed. However, most forts were not kept fully garrisoned at all times. Due to its location north of the Potomac River, Fort Greble was considered a rear-line fort. To man Fort Greble's of perimeter, Barnard designated a force of 165 men. If the fort needed to be fully garrisoned due to an impending attack, the difference in the actual garrison and the plan would be made good from Washington's reserve force. As General Barnard would say in a December 24, 1862 report, "It is seldom necessary to keep these infantry supports attached to the works." However, this plan only applied to men manning the walls of the fort, not the artillerymen who would be serving the fort's guns. To man the guns of Fort Greble and those of Washington's other forts, Barnard designated three crews for each gun. These crews would be permanently located at the fort, unlike the men assigned to the walls of the fort. To fire Fort Greble's planned complement of 15 guns, Barnard assigned 255 artillerymen. This plan was affected by the needs of the war. As the fighting dragged on and casualties mounted, the various commanders of the Army of the Potomac repeatedly raided the Washington garrison for trained artillerymen and infantry replacements. By 1864, Washington had been stripped to a total less than half that of Barnard's 1861 recommendation. According to a May 1864 report by General Albion P. Howe, Inspector of Artillery, the garrison of Fort Greble consisted of a single company of the Seventh Unattached Heavy Artillery, Massachusetts Volunteers, commanded by Captain George S. Worcester. 125 men of various ranks served six 12-pounder field howitzers, six 32-pounder barbette guns, one siege howitzer, one Coehorn mortar, one mortar, and one 30-pounder Parrott rifle. The same report lists the garrison as "drilled some at artillery and infantry," putting it a step ahead of the garrisons of neighboring forts Wagner and Ricketts, which were judged as "Drilled but little at artillery and infantry;