Fort Knox was named after Major General Henry Knox, America's first Secretary of War and Commander of Artillery in the American Revolution. General Knox lived in Thomaston, Maine during the final years of his life. Army engineers began building the fort in July, 1844. Lieutenant Isaac Stevens supervised the fort's early construction. America's other Fort Knox, is located in Kentucky.

Between Castine and Bangor Maine of the Penobscot River, was the site of fierce conflicts. Great Britain and the United States fell into dispute over the northern border between Maine and New Brunswick. It was more than likely that British ships would once more sail up the unprotected Penobscot River to take over Bangor, Maine's wealthy, unprotected lumber capital. To prevent this and possible future attacks, Fort Knox was built.

Fort Knox saw two periods of military activity. Maine volunteers, as many as 117 were garrisoned here from 1863 to 1866, during the Civil War. In 1890, about 500 Connecticut troops were stationed at the fort during the Spanish-American War. The Penobscot River and its towns never saw or were threatened by an enemy ship during these wars.

The first fort built of granite in Maine, was Fort Knox. The design and construction was a model for Fort Popham, Fort Gorges, Fort Preble and Fort Scammell, all Maine forts. One of Fort Knox' impressive features was the 15-inch Rodman cannon. Rodman cannons needed about seven people to load and fire. A shell weighed about 315 pounds, had a charge of 50 pounds, and could fire as far as 4,680 yards (over 2 miles)

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