Fort William through time

Cape Coast 1966–2012 4 photos of this spot

4 photographs taken at the same spot in Cape Coast, spanning 1966–2012 — 3 of them from before 1980. Line them up and watch the place change.

Fort William stands on a hill above Cape Coast, Ghana, one of several coastal fortifications raised during the European trading era on the Gold Coast. By the time this picture was taken in 1966, the old fort had long been repurposed as a lighthouse guiding ships toward the harbor below.

EU: Fort William (1966) 1966 Fort William stands on a hill above Cape Coast, Ghana, one of several coastal fortifications raised during the European trading era on the Gold Coast. By the time this picture was taken in 1966, the old fort had long been repurposed as a lighthouse guiding ships toward the harbor below.

EU: Voormalige ingang tot Fort William, aan de oostzijde (1966) 1966 The former east-side entrance to Fort William in Cape Coast, photographed in 1966. Like the town's other coastal forts, the structure dates to the period of European trading posts along the Gold Coast before later being adapted to civic use.

EU: Voormalige ingang tot Fort William, aan de oostzijde 2 (1966) 1966 A second 1966 view of the disused east entrance to Fort William in Cape Coast, Ghana, showing the weathered stonework of an opening that once controlled access to the fortified hilltop site overlooking the town.

Fort William 2012 Fort William stands on the coast at Cape Coast, Ghana, part of a chain of forts and castles built by European traders along the Gold Coast from the seventeenth century onward, several of which still overlook the town today. Image taken in 2012.