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In the days
before satellite technology, it was possible to sneak a ship right up to
the coast of the US... in order to maintain the security of the Puget
Sound, the Army established a network of coastal artillery forts in
strategic locations. Being situated at the mouth of the primary
entrance to the Sound, Ft Flagler, along with Fort Casey and Fort
Warden, provided the first line of defense of the Puget Sound |
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Ft Flagler is situated across the inlet from Point Wilson
Light, which also is the location of Ft Warden. |
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Primly situated with incredible scenery, the fort was turned
into a state park quite some time ago, when the Military
moved out of the post. This has been a boon for the post,
as the maintenance of the batteries has been quite
meticulous. |
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The Bankhead mortar battery is the fort's main showcase.
These huge works supported 8 HUGE mortars. |
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Almost 100 years old, the Mortar Battery is still in great
shape... |
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The fort is filled with several examples of "how things were",
and placards placed around the facility explain the usage of
the various rooms... its very interesting! The grass
circles outline the filled well for turret structures for
600mm mortars. They were so powerful, that the cracks
you see in the fortifications around the position were
caused by firing them... they must have been impressive to
fire! |
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These massive eyelets were the anchors for chains that held
the mortars in place when firing. The battery was
originally designed to hold 4 firing positions, but after
the first day of live fire training, the front wells were
filled in, rendered unusable due to crew injuries from the
shock blast. |
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Its amazing to think of the flurry of activity that must have
gone on in this battery for years, until the fort was
closed. Fort Flagler is now a state park... one I'm sure
to return to in the near future! |
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