Fort Howard was a military battery from the late 1800s through 1940. In the 1700s, the site served as an important part of the transportation route between the Eastern Shore and the Port of Baltimore. The Canton, Sparrows Point, and North Point Railroad operated in the area in the 1800s. The fort, created in 1896 to protect the Port of Baltimore, was originally known as North Point, but was renamed Fort Howard in 1902. The fort was closed in 1926 and the property excised to the Veterans Administration in 1940. At that time, the military aspect of the facility ended and the property was used as a hospital for servicemen injured during the Second World War. During the years of the Vietnam War (1955-1973), parts of the Fort Howard complex were returned to military activity when a mock Viet-Cong village was set up for use by Fort Holabird as a training ground for its intelligence officers.

Fort Howard consists of a 62-acre parcel located on North Point at the end of North Point Road in Fort Howard, Baltimore County, Maryland. The site is situated in a rural/suburban area east of Baltimore City at an elevation of roughly 6 feet above mean sea level.

UXO is suspected at the site but not belived to be widespread.

n August 2008, a Site Inspection (SI) of Fort Howard was conducted focused on MEC. The findings indicated that there was not enough evidence to warrant concern.