Fort McRee on Perdido Key, Florida

Visited 26 Apr 2013 - Fort McRee (1834-1947) was originally a brick Third System coastal fort that saw service during the U.S. Civil War and was almost completely destroyed in the 1861-1862 battles for Pensacola and it's harbor. 

Early Photo of the Old Fort McRee Ruins

The old brick fort lay in ruins after the Civil War and all trace of it were eventually covered by the changing sands on the key. Two concrete Endicott Period gun batteries were built on the old military reservation in 1898-1899. Battery Center had four 3" gun emplacements and Battery Slemmer had two 8" gun emplacements. 

A 1906 hurricane with a 12 foot storm surge covered the island, damaged the batteries and killed several military members and dependents. The batteries were rebuilt and an 11 foot high seawall was built around the reservation. 

1928 Photo of Fort Mcree with the two Endicott Period Gun Batteries and the Seawall

CDSG Members landing at Fort McRee

World War I saw both Endicott Period batteries disarmed and fire control stations built on the Island. During World War II, a modern 6" coastal gun battery, Battery 233, was built on the reservation along with support facilities. The battery was never armed and it was abandoned after the war in 1947. The old military reservation is now part of the Gulf Island National Seashore administered by the National Park Service.

Battery 233 Rear Entrance

You can visit Perdido Key via private boat and land in a cove directly below the World War II Battery 233. I did this along with other members of the Coast Defense Study Group (CDSG) as a part of their annual meeting. Our group departed from the Navy mariana at Sherman Cove for the very short trip across the channel to Perdido Key. We were accompanied by a National Park Service historian who supervised our access to the interior of Battery 233. The battery is normally locked up to protect it from vandals and graffiti artists.

Battery 233 Internal Generator Room

Battery 233 was build along a standard plan for this type battery so the interior was familier but still interesting and a bit dangerous because it's pitch black inside and there are some unexpected drop-offs. Lots of graffiti on the walls, some dating back to the 80s. There are three entrances to the battery, one for each of the two gun positions and a central entrance at the back of the battery. 

Battery 233 Gun Emplacement #2 Entrance

Battery 233 Emplacement #1 Gun Pit

The gun positions are located on either side of the central structure and you can find the empty gun pits in front of the emplacement entrances. If you climb up to the top of the battery you can see all the entrances and the gun pits as well as a great view of the whole reservation inside the seawall.

Battery Center Gun Emplacement #4

Battery Center is located at the north end of the reservation while Battery Slemmer is on the south end. Both of these batteries are pretty much buried in sand but there is enough of the upper level exposed on both of them to identify the gun emplacements. Battery Slemmer was disarmed in 1918 and later overbuilt with a fire control station and a 60" searchlight position.

Battery Slemmer Crows Nest Observation Post

The remains of two fire control towers can still be seen on the key, one is a tall concrete tower at the southwest corner of the seawall and the other is a collapsed concrete BC/CRF station and steel tower behind Battery 233. Only the foundation, or perhaps it is the roof, of the fire control station built into Battery Slemmer is visible.

Concrete Pillar from Fire Control Station

At the north end of the reservation here are a number of concrete pads and a couple of very short roads that were a part of the WWII facilities built to support Battery 233. The Battery 233 structure is the only intact building within the seawall perimeter.

There was no sign of the original brick fort on the beach.

Fort Massachusetts on Ship Island, Mississippi

Visited 18 Apr 2013 - Fort Massachusetts is a brick Third System coastal fort that was started just a year before the U.S. Civil war began and was incomplete when the war started. 

Fort Massachusetts on Ship Island

Casemates Inside the Fort

The fort was located on Ship Island just off the Mississippi Gulf coast and after a brief occupation by Confederate forces it was occupied by Union troops for the duration of the war. It was used during the war as a Confederate prisoner of war camp. The fort was completed after the war in 1866 and armed with 17 large caliber cannons including two huge 15" Rodman smoothbore cannons and two 100-pounder Parrott rifles.

You have to take a boat to visit Fort Massachusetts and you catch the excursion boat to the island from the Port of Gulfport, Mississippi. 

Fort Massachusetts Excursion Boat, Capt. Pete

The boat travels the 11 some miles to the island in about an hour each way. The schedule is seasonal and for 2013 it begins on the 16th of March and ends on October 27th. Within that season there is a spring, summer and fall schedule and within those, the schedule varies by day of the week. Call ahead! The cost is $27 per adult, $25 per senior and $17 per child.

Ship Island is a popular recreation area as well as the site of Fort Massachusetts. The snow white beaches and the historic fort draw groups from all over the country and the excursion boat may have a number of good sized groups on it.

Inside the Fort, Circular Staircase on Right and
Hot Shot Furnace in the Corner

The boat lands at the Ship Island pier which is right at the fort. You exit the boat on a long boardwalk which goes past the fort and on to the Gulf side of the Island and the recreational beaches. This is a very small island and it is not far from one side to the other.

The fort itself is in remarkably good condition considering the number of major hurricanes it has weathered, including Camille (1969) and Katrina (2005). The National Park Service has done a remarkable job in restoring and maintaining the fort. The park rangers conduct tours of the fort usually starting right after the boat docks. On my visit they conducted the first tour for the non-group people and later they did separate tours for each of the two student groups. 

15" Rodman Cannon in North Bastion

The tours begin at the signs in front of the fort and continue through the sally port across the parade and over to the casemates. The tour moves up to the Barbette level via the central spiral staircase and moves around to the north bastion where the 15" Rodman Cannon is mounted. This Cannon is in pretty good shape and the barrel is not plugged as so many are. It's unclear if the carriage is original or a reproduction but in any case it is in great shape. The tour continues across the parapet tier from the north to the south bastion passing by the two 100-pounder Parrott gun positions to the second 15" Rodman Cannon position. These last three positions contain only broken up pieces of the original guns. The tour ended on the south bastion.

Outside Embrasure, Note the Different Color Brick

The tour may or may not include a peek inside the parade level magazines and the two guard rooms, make sure you check them out if they are not on the tour. Only the central spiral staircase was open on the day I visited but there are two more that you can view. A walk around the outside perimeter of the fort gives you some insight into the construction stages and the water side profile of the fort. The iron looking casemate embrasures seemed to all be reproductions but really looked real and add a lot to the look of the fort.

If you go during the week you will probably spend most of the day on the island so go prepared. There is a snack bar and they have many beach necessities for sale. They also rent beach chairs and umbrellas. The menu includes hamburgers and chili cheese dogs. Don't forget the sunblock, the snow white sand really reflects the sun.

Fort Marcy in Santa Fe, New Mexico

Visited 21 Mar 2013 - We drove from Albuquerque up to Santa Fe to check out the site of Fort Marcy (1846-1894). The drive took about an hour without much to look at except for a lonely monument on the west side of I-25 at exit 257. The monument commemorates the Mormon Battalion who marched from Santa Fe to San Diego at the beginning of the Mexican American War.

Mormon Battalion Monument

Fort Marcy at Santa Fe was established in 1846 by Brigadier General Stephen Watts Kearny during the Mexican War. General Kearny brought a force of 2,500 men into New Mexico from Fort Leavenworth and claimed the territory for the United States. The Mormon Battalion was a part of General Kearny's force and they went on to San Diego and Los Angeles. Part of Kearney's force remained at Santa Fe to hold the territory for the United States and this force built Fort Marcy.

The Site of Fort Marcy Earthworks

Fort Marcy ended up being a split post with the actual fortification on top of a hill overlooking the town and a cantonment located below, just off the town plaza. The upper post was an earthworks fort with a separate blockhouse. That site is now in the Old Fort Marcy City Park but all that remains visible are dirt mounds where the earthworks and the block house were located. There were no interpretive signs or visible evidence of the fortification's remains. Also on this hill is the Cross of the Martyr's.

Governors Palace

Santa Fe Plaza

The lower post was bounded by present day Federal, Washington, Palace and Grant Avenues. It has been overtaken by urban development and only a few buildings remain with a connection to the Fort Marcy era. The Governors' Palace (a long low adobe building facing Santa Fe Plaza) is part of the state's history museum and has been designated a Registered National Historic Landmark and an American Treasure. Admission to the museum is $6 for residents and $9 for non-residents (a disturbing trend in the southwest to soak visitors). The plaza side of the Governor's Palace was lined with trinket vendors and the plaza had a large number of homeless on the day we visited.

Repurposed Officer's Quarters

The Plaza also contains a war veterans memorial in the center and a marker for the end of the Santa Fe Trail.

One of the six original Fort Marcy officer's quarters buildings still exists at 116  Lincoln Avenue. The outside of this building was modified in 1916 into the prevailing Pueblo style and bears no resemblance to the original officer's quarters. The inside is purported to be a "virtually intact" 1870s period officer's quarters.

Nearby are several historic sites including the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi and the San Miguel Mission Church.

Long Point Military Reservation, California

Visited 4, 5 and 7 January 2013 - Long Point Military Reservation (1930-1974) - I didn't do my homework properly before visiting the former Long Point Military Reservation and it took me a couple of trips to suss out all that was to be seen.

View from Battery 240, Gun Emplacement #1

On the first day we drove up from Seal Beach directly to the site of Battery 240. Battery 240 was a World War II reinforced concrete 6" gun battery built on a bluff overlooking Point Vicente just west of Long Beach, California. The setting for this battery is spectacular, overlooking the Pacific and the Point Vicente Lighthouse. 

Point Vicente Lighthouse

The battery is accessed through the Rancho Palos Verdes City Hall complex and you have to walk a short distance from the parking lot. There are no signs or directions so you have to know where you are going. Only one side of the battery and the central entrance are accessible and the doors are locked. The south entrance, emplacement #2, is viewable but U.S. Government markers restrict access. You can get near enough to photograph most of the exterior of the battery.

Long Point

Battery 240 is on the upper level of the reservation but it was not the first gun battery on the reservation. The first gun battery was a temporary 155mm mobile gun battery emplaced on the lower level of the reservation on 8 Dec 1941, the day after Pearl Harbor. Nothing left of Battery 155 - Long Point but there is a new trail that goes right by where it was located and the view is again spectacular. From Long Point you can look back across the bay to the Point Vicente Lighthouse. 

1930 Fire Control Station

If you look back up the hill toward Battery 240 you can make out six concrete fire control stations dotting the hillside. These stations have been in place since the 1930s and are in remarkable shape. Access to the fire control stations is difficult, lots of stickers and cacti. Again, you must go through the city hall complex to get to the fire control stations, down past the model helicopter pad to the edge of the hill. They can be photographed from the edge of the hill.

NIKE LA-55L Launch Site

The next interesting component of this site is that it became a NIKE missile launch site in 1956 through 1974. The actual launcher site and missile magazine is now a city maintenance yard and can be viewed and photographed from outside the fence. The former Nike site barracks and administrative area is now the Rancho Palos Verdes City Hall complex and some of those original buildings now serve as city buildings.

View from NIKE Control Site LA-55C

There were actually two NIKE sites at this location, LA-55L (launch site) and LA-55C (control site). The control site was located further up in the hills and contained all the Radar and communications equipment necessary to guide the missiles to intercept enemy aircraft. The former control site is now Del Cerro City Park and surprisingly it makes no mention of it's military past. The park doesn't look like much from the parking lot, just a lot of open space, but as you go up to the top of the rise at the end of the park a superb view of the coast and Catalina Island opens up, don't miss this!

WWII Fire Control Station Plan

There were other elements of the military reservation that are now long gone and even finding the sites is difficult. These lost elements included two SRC-296 Radar sites and two World War II fire control stations.

For more info on the Long Point Military Reservation, Battery 240 and Battery 155 - Long Point check out the FortWiki.com links.

Battery Townsley Revisited

Visited 24 Nov 2012 - Battery Townsley (1940-1948) - We first visited Battery Townsley on Fort Cronkhite back in August 2009. We briefly mentioned the Battery in a blog post back then but things have changed and we revisited it on this trip.

Battery Townsley Casemate #2 From Below

Battery Townsley was one of two World War II 16" gun batteries protecting the Golden Gate and San Francisco Harbor.  The Battery is located on old Fort Cronkhite on the Marin Headlands just north of San Francisco.  Much of this area is a part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) administered by the National Park Service.  Private donations and volunteer labor have brought the battery back from an abandoned graffiti covered relic to a great attraction for the GGNRA.  The recovery has been a slow process and it has a long way to go.  The volunteers scored a big find this fall when they were able to acquire, transport and install a huge  16" gun tube for the Battery.  This gun tube is similar to to the ones that were originally installed in the Battery and has the added benefit of having been on the USS Missouri during WWII.

16" Gun Tube on Display behind Casemate #2 of Battery Townsley

Matt Kent blogged about the arrival process in September with some great pictures of the gun tube arriving at Fort Cronkhite.  The gun tube has been moved up the hill to the Battery and placed on temporary concrete mounts behind casemate #2.  The plan is to create some type of display mount inside the casemate that simulates the original gun carriage.  The success of this group in getting the gun tube on site bodes well for creating the full display.

John Martini and Me

The other reason for my visit was to view the work that has been done to the inside of the Battery.  The battery is typically open only one weekend each month to visitors and my visit did not coincide with that weekend.  Volunteer John Martini was kind enough to show me around during a work weekend for the group.  John has a great website with many historic pictures of Battery Townsley.

Lighting System in the Main Corridor

I've been in several 16" batteries around the country and this one is in great shape.  You could probably characterize the inside as looking like it would have been just prior to the installation of the original guns and support equipment.

Generator Room Ready for Equipment

There is no AC power to the Battery and the wiring system had been stripped out long ago so just recreating the lighting system was a major effort.  The volunteers installed solar panels on top of the battery and recreated the internal lighting system using that solar power.  Anyone who has been in one of these batteries with no lighting knows that they are pitch black and dangerous to navigate. Lighting the battery is an important first step.

Shell Room with Replica 16" Shells

Internally the Battery is cleaned up and ready for public view.  One of the shell rooms contains a quantity of replica shells and there are interpretive displays in several locations.  You can still see original chalk notes on some of the walls noting inventory and movement details. 

Overhead Shell Tracks

Parts of the overhead track system for the movement of shells from the magazines to the gun casemates are still in place.  One of the original shell hoists has been returned to the battery by someone who removed it years ago and it awaits refurbishing and mounting. 

Overhead Track Shell Hoist

The Battery Townsley volunteers, in partnership with the National Park Service (NPS), work on restoring the battery and they conduct the open house interpretive tours.  The NPS provides funding and support for major projects like the gun move and graffiti removal as well as for some ongoing operations.  Individual donors have stepped forward and provided sizable donations and bequests.  The volunteers themselves chip in for supplies and needed equipment on a regular basis.  So this all comes together as a great collaborative effort to restore this important WWII battery.

This was a great visit with special insights, hats off to all the volunteers who have worked so hard on Battery Townsley.

For more info on Fort Cronkhite and Battery Townsley follow the links to FortWiki.com

Mission La Purisima, Lompoc, California

Mission La Purisima looking toward the
Main Church down the track of El Camino Real

Visited 27 Nov 2012 - Mission La Purisima (1787-1834) - We visited the La Purisima Mission State Historic Park just north of Lompoc not really knowing what to expect. The reason we include missions in our fort research is that they nearly always included a small garrison of regular troops and many times they came under attack from hostile Indians, regular troops from other nations and/or rebellious mission Indians. The physical design of many missions included a quadrangle surrounded by strong adobe walls with a defensive purpose.

Mission La Purisima Shops and Quarters Building. The Garrison Barracks Rooms are on the End of the Building by the Flag.

Ruins of the Original Mission La Purisima

The La Purisima Mission was built in two different locations. The second location is the one that has become the state park. The first location was destroyed by an earthquake in 1812 and exists only as a set of ruins in south Lompoc. The second location now houses the most completely restored Spanish mission of the 21 missions in California. That restoration was done over a seven year period during the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and completed on 7 Dec 1941.

Mission La Purisima Visitor Center

We stopped by the visitor center first and picked up some great handouts and went through the displays in the museum. The handouts were exceptional and included one for the first Mission La Purisima. The displays really set the tone for going through the mission and explained much of the mission history including the CCC restoration.

Mission La Purisima Main Church Interior

Touring the mission buildings is different from most missions because there are three large buildings all in a line, most mission are arranged around a central quadrangle. The first building in the line contains the main Church, bell tower and cemetery compound. The interior of the church could hold a thousand worshipers.

Mission La Purisima Garrison Barracks Room

The first set of rooms in the second building contains the garrison barracks rooms that housed five privates and a married corporal. The rest of the rooms housed trade shops and residences. These rooms are all fitted out with period furnishings and equipment. The mayordomo was the equivalent of a ranch foreman and manager who was second only to the padres and his quarters reflect his high status.

Mission La Purisima Padres Residence Building

The third building contains the padres residence, office and private chapel. The private chapel was converted to be the primary chapel in 1834. The padres office was at the far end of the building and a large central room, La Sala, was used by the padres to entertained visitors and travelers.

Mission La Purisima Gardens & Fountain

Adjacent to the third building is the mission garden complete with fountains. The mission road, El Camino Real, ran along the front of all three buildings and between the padres residence and the mission garden. The proximity of the El Camino Real insured that the mission met all the travelers.

Mission La Purisima Indian Dwelling

The Indian dwellings were located across the road from the mission buildings.

The mission was under Spanish control until 1822 when the Mexican Revolution gave control of all California missions to the new Mexican Government. In 1834 the Mexican Government secularized the missions and eventually distributed all the property to private owners. 

Mission La Purisima Visitor Center CCC Display

At the end of the Mexican War in 1848, ownership of all California was ceded to the America Government who eventually returned ownership of most of the missions to the Catholic Church. The lands returned were only the mission proper, not the surrounding lands. Mission La Purisima was returned in 1874. The Mission property was donated to the State of California in the 1930s and restored by the CCC as a state park.



The experience of Mission La Purisima is unlike most of the other California missions because you can sense what mission life must have been like. The visitor center offers periodic costumed docent tours and other events that give even more insight into daily life.

We left the mission and eventually made our way to the site of the first mission on the south side of Lompoc. This site contains the ruins of the original mission and an interpretive trail. Make sure you pick up the brochure for "Mission Vieja" at the State Park before you go. The brochure details exactly where the remaining ruins are located and how to get there.

See the Mission La Purisima page on FortWiki.com for more information and pictures.

Fort Humboldt State Historic Park in Northern California

Fort Humboldt State Historic Park Entrance Sign

Visited 11 Nov 2012 - Fort Humboldt (1853-1866) was one of the U.S. Army forts built during the California Gold Rush to protect both the native peoples and the settlers and miners. Fort Humboldt was built on the coast of northern California at Humboldt Bay in present day Eureka. The old fort is now the site of the Fort Humboldt State Historic Park.

Fort Humboldt Rebuilt Hospital Building

Replica Surgeon's Quarters

The park houses the rebuilt post hospital, the only original building remaining, and a replica reconstruction of the surgeons quarters. The hospital building is now a museum and the surgeon's quarters is filled out with period furnishings. A path with interpretive signage winds around the post parade ground pointing out the significant features and recounting some of the significant stories associated with the post.

Ulysses S. Grant

The most significant person posted to the fort was Ulysses S. Grant, 4th U.S. Infantry, destined to become the leader of the Union Armies during the U.S. Civil War and the 18th President of the United States. Grant was a mere captain when posted to Fort Humboldt in 1854 and he was so bored that he resigned his commission and returned east after only six months. He did not rejoin the Army until the beginning of the Civil War.

Williamette Steam Donkey Engine

The park also contains a logging museum complete with huge log sections, locomotives and steam donkeys covering the 1850s to today. This is also a self guided tour opportunity and it has signage to explain the displays.

Fort Humboldt Visitor Center

The only problem with the park is that all the buildings are closed, not even the visitor center is open to the public. California budget problems have reduced the staffing at the park so that none of the public buildings were open. You can still walk around and view things from the outside but that really limits the experience. I guess the only reason that you can still even walk around the post is because the Park Service district headquarters is still located there.

Fort Humboldt SHP Plan from the Park Brochure