Battery Randol

Battery Randol (1902-1918) - Battery Randol was a reinforced concrete Endicott Period 10‑inch coastal gun battery on Fort Worden, Jefferson County, Washington. Named in G.O. 194, 27 Dec 1904, for Bvt. Brigadier General Alanson Merwin Randol, U.S. Volunteers (Major 1st U.S. Artillery), who served with distinction during the U.S. Civil War, and who died 7 May 1887. Battery construction started in 1898, was completed in 1900, and transferred to the Coast Artillery for use on 16 Jun 1902. Deactivated in 1918. Battery Randol Gun Emplacement #1 180 Degree Panorama Battery Randol Gun Emplacement #2 180 Degree Panorama Endicott Period (1890-1910) Part of the Harbor Defense of Puget Sound. As originally built, Battery Quarles, Battery Randol and Battery Ash were a part of a larger seven gun unnamed battery that contained five 10" and two 12" guns, all in Barbette carriages. This was the original "main gun line" located on the top of Artillery Hill. These batteries were all accepted for service on 16 Jun 1902 shortly after the Fort was first garrisoned. The total cost for the three batteries came to $ 232,554.97 (not including guns and carriages). The batteries were all named in 1904. In 1909 a significant structural upgrade was undertaken on the main gun line. The original 4-2-1 configuration of four 10" guns, two 12" guns and one 10" gun had been changed by swapping the last 10" gun with the first 12" gun to produce a 5-2 configuration. The final configuration had the emplacements as Battery Randol with two 10" guns, Battery Quarles next with three 10" guns and Battery Ash last with two 12" guns. The cost of modifications to the three batteries had reached $50,215.00 by the end of 1909. Battery Benson was added to the "main gun line" located on the top of Artillery Hill in 1908 with two more 10" guns. These guns were more modern and had disappearing carriages not the Barbette mounts of the initial emplacements. The addition of Battery Benson (and several other batteries) improved coverage of the Straight of Juan de Fuca to the North and West. Original Main Gun Line Emplacements a/o 10 Oct 1903 Emp1 Emp2 Emp3 Emp4 Emp5 Emp6 Emp7 10" M1888MII #39 10" M1888MII #6 10" M1888MII #36 10" M1888MII #37 12" M1888MII #10 12" M1888MII #9 10" M1888 #11 Source: Puget Sound RCB dtd 10 Oct 1903, CDSG Digital Library Modified Main Gun Line Emplacements a/o 31 Dec 1909 Battery Randol Battery Quarles Battery Ash Emp1 Emp2 Emp1 Emp2 Emp3 Emp1 Emp2 10" M1888MII #39 10" M1888MII #6 10" M1888MII #36 10" M1888MII #37 10" M1888 #11 12" M1888MII #10 12" M1888MII #9 Source: Puget Sound RCB dtd 31 Dec 1909, CDSG Digital Library Battery Randol Armament (edit list) Empl No Caliber Type Barrel Length Model Serial No Manufacturer Carriage Service Dates Notes 1 10" Rifle 367.25" M1888MII 39 Bethlehem Barbette, M1893, #7, Morgan 1902-1918 Rounds fired: 68 See Note 1 2 10" Rifle 367.25" M1888MII 6 Bethlehem Barbette, M1893, #8, Morgan 1902-1918 Rounds fired: 75 See Note 1 Source: RCW Form 1, Apr 1932, RCB 31 Dec 1909, Coast Defense Study Group, Berhow, Mark A. ed, American Seacoast Defenses: A Reference Guide, 2nd Edition, CDSG Press, McLean, VA, 2004, ISBN 0-9748167-0-1, pages 120-121, 217 Note 1: Guns sent from Fort Worden to Watervliet 13 Jun 1918, CDSG Gun Card Collection from NARA Carriage #7 sent to Aberdeen 15 Aug 1919, #8 held for spare parts, CDSG Gun Card Collection from NARA Battery Randol Plan On 31 Mar 1915 a B.C. Station was added to the building behind Battery Randol which contained the plotting room, latrine, and two storage rooms. World War I (1917-1918) On 25 May 1918, the A.G.O. directed the removal of Battery Randol's guns for shipment overseas. On 13 Jun 1918, the guns were reported shipped to Watervliet for modification. World War I ended before the guns made it overseas and they ended up being shipped from Watervliet to Watertown to Aberdeen before being salvaged on 29 Jul 1931. Carriage #8 was retained at Fort Worden for spare parts and carriage #7 was shipped to Aberdeen on 15 Aug 1919. Current Status No guns or mounts in place. Location: Fort Worden, Jefferson County, Washington. Maps & Images Lat: 48.1397236 Long: -122.765168 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 247.4' GPS Locations: 48.1397236, -122.765168 Battery Randol Sources: Links: Battery Randol Virtual Tour CDSG Fortification ID: WA0000 - Battery Randol Visited: 17 Jun 2009, 19 Jul 2008