A child, climbing through the tunnels of Battery Wallace

[Taverner]

If you aren't familiar, during WWI and WWII the Army build a number of Batteries across the West Coast.

Big cannons that were held in place by the hill they were stationed on.

Kinda like this:



Anyway, long after WWII, in the early 80's or late 70's my dad took us to Battery Wallace, and being that the doors were then open, we went exploring.

Now these batteries had tunnels all over. Legend has it you could walk from one battery to another underground.

My brother, dad and I went through these tunnels, armed only with a flashlight, exploring. We saw some really cool things (a barracks that looks like it was evacuated yesterday) and some really bad things (a corpse of someone who died in the tunnels, after a few days from their final 'hit')

Anyway - wondering if anyone else toured the batteries of the Northern California coast.

And I was wondering - were any of these in Oregon? Washington?

[LiberalAndProud]

1. There was a corpse still there? Are you kidding me?

Did the man ever get a proper burial?

[Taverner]

3. Oh it wasn't anyone military - most likely someone homeless who died there

Or a junkie who OD'd

Dad called the local police to let them know on our way home

[LiberalAndProud]

5. Oh, *that* kin of hit.

duh

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. I don't know - I spent WWII with Hitler in the bunkers in Germany.

Um, I mean with the American army in... someplace else. Um, go Dodgers! That Series of the World pitching sure was golly, wasn't it?! I like Glenn Miller, dancing with the fraus women folk! Sure and you betcha.

:hide:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. My dear Rabrrrrrr!

You are too funny!

:rofl:

[Taverner]

8. So is it true?

Did Hitler really only have one testicle?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

10. You are asking the wrong person, my dear Taverner...

;)

[Taverner]

12. Hmmmm I think Eddie Izzard was right

That Hitler's insanity was the product of his inability to paint within the lines

[TK421]

9. Tell me...did Hitler like potato pancakes and did he argue about where they

originated? I simply MUST know this!

I can't wait for your new memoir "All about Adolf" and there had better be a section on his favorite recipes in there

[JohnnyLib2]

6. Seems like there is something similar below the Golden Gate bridge.

Presidio area. Maybe more in Marin Co.

Alas, wish I was there right now.

[Taverner]

7. Fort Funston and Battery Davis

Another WWII era Battery.

Tho they closed that one off early.

[Taverner]

11. BTW the second pic os if Battery Townsley

http://www.nps.gov/goga/historyculture/battery-townsley.htm is where you can find info about Batteries you can tour.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

13. Fort Casey, Whidbey Island, Washington.

Still has at least one gun, and tunnels you can play in. Part of the "triangle of death" for any Japanese ship daring to enter Puget Sound. Don't know if any of the other two corners of the triangle are still existing.



Pic related, gun being fired.

[Taverner]

14. Wow cool!

Interesting how in SF they're covered and in WA they are not.

Wonder why?

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

15. That cannon can be raised or lowered.

Lowering it would hide it from view from Japanese warships. The idea was to hide it from view so the Japanese wouldn't be able to find it, raise it up, get off a shot, and lower it again.

In reality, they would have only been able to get off a few shots. It would be a sitting duck for any Japanese battleship. That said, and Japanese ship would have been sitting ducks to any air attacks.

The fort was pretty much obsolete as soon as it was built.

[Brother Buzz]

16. Here's one of the sixteen-inch guns being delivered to the Battery Townsley

The gun is being off-loaded from the rail car in Sausalito. Battery Townsley was just across Rodeo Lagoon from Battery Wallace. Battery Wallace was fitted with mere twelve-inch guns.



That whole area was my playground when I was a kid, I could hike there from home. In my teens, we camped all over the area. Kirby Cove was our secret valley, all but abandoned by the Army before it was turned over to GGNRA. I love the brick construction from the 1870's.

I was once station at the Nike billets next to Battery Wallace, but assigned to a reserve MP Company. Big mystery why I was assigned to them as they didn't want or need me, but they were happy to assign me tour guide. I knew the area well.

I was always sad to discover so much so much history was simply torn out

Old Rodman guns adoring Fort Point going to the furnaces for a WWII Scrap drive




Turn of the century photograph. Note the spelling

I understand the guns were mounted on concrete while the bridge was being built; Fort Point was used for construction offices during that period.