Fort Burnside (Rhode Island): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 07:29, 21 August 2026

(Did you mean a different Fort Burnside)

See also Camp Burnside Fort Burnside (1942-1948) - A World War II Coastal Fort first established in 1942 on Beavertail Point, Newport County, Rhode Island. Named in G.O. 65, 4 Dec 1942, after Major General Ambrose E. Burnside, U.S. Civil War General, and Rhode Island Governor (1866-1868). Abandoned in 1948.

Beavertail lighthouse & Museum
HECP at Fort Burnside
Beavertail Point from the Lighthouse, HECP in Background by the Tower

World War II

Part of the Harbor Defense of Narragansett Bay.

The purchase of 118.64 acres on Beavertail Point for Fort Burnside was authorized on 25 Feb 1942 by the War Department and the transaction was completed on 4 Aug 1942. Construction was already underway on both Battery 213 (19 Feb 1942) and Battery Whiting (5 May 1942). Battery Whiting was transferred for service first on 29 Aug 1942, followed by Battery 213 on 23 Dec 1943. A third 16" gun battery Battery 110 was proposed but never built.

An elaborate HECP was turned over for service in July 1943. The HECP was constructed of reinforced concrete to look like a large wooden beach cottage. An SCR 582 RADAR antenna was enclosed in a blister on top of the deckhouse.

The post was abandoned by the U.S. Army in 1948 and eventually became Beavertail State Park.

**Fort Burnside World War II Batteries** (edit list)
Battery	No.	Caliber	Type Mount	Service Years	Battery Cost	Notes
Battery 110	2	16"	Casemated Barbette (CBC)	NB	$ 0	Not Built
Battery 213	2	6"	Shielded Barbette (SBC)	1942-1943-1943-1948	$ 239,623
Battery Whiting	2	3"	Pedestal	1942-1942-1942-1946	$ 30,980	Guns & Carriages from Battery Whiting, Fort Getty 1942
Source: CDSG

Current Status

Part of Beavertail State Park, Newport County, Rhode Island. No period guns or carriages in place.

Context

Location: Beavertail State Park, Beavertail Point, Newport County, Rhode Island.
Lat: 41.453° Long: -71.398° Elevation: 3' Bing, Google, OldMapsOnline, USGS, OHM

Loading map...

Sources:

U.S.Army, Supplement to the Harbor Defense Project of Narragansett Bay, (HDNARB-AP-45), 1 Feb 1945, CDSG

Links:

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{PageHeader}}
+{{PageHeader|Burnside}}
 See also [[Camp Burnside]]
 '''Fort Burnside''' (1942-1948) - A [[World War II]] Coastal Fort first established in 1942 on Beavertail Point, Newport County, Rhode Island. Named in G.O. 65, 4 Dec 1942, after Major General [[Ambrose E. Burnside]], [[U.S. Civil War]] General, and Rhode Island Governor (1866-1868). Abandoned in 1948.
-{|width="795px" cellpadding="5px"
+<gallery>
-|- valign="top"
+File:Fort Burnside Lighthouse - 1.jpg|Beavertail lighthouse & Museum
-|width="50%"|[[File:Fort Burnside Lighthouse - 1.jpg|350px|thumb|left|Beavertail lighthouse & Museum]]
+File:Fort Burnside HECP - 3.jpg|HECP at Fort Burnside
-|width="50%"|[[File:Fort Burnside HECP - 3.jpg|350px|thumb|right|HECP at Fort Burnside]]
+File:Fort Burnside - 04.jpg|Beavertail Point from the Lighthouse, HECP in Background by the Tower
-|-
+</gallery>
-|colspan="2"|[[File:Fort Burnside - 04.jpg|795px|thumb|center|Beavertail Point from the Lighthouse, HECP in Background by the Tower]]
 == [[World War II]] ==
@@ Line 26: / Line 25: @@
 == Current Status ==
 Part of Beavertail State Park, Newport County, Rhode Island. No period guns or carriages in place.
+==Context==
 {{Location|Beavertail State Park, Beavertail Point, Newport County, Rhode Island.|41.453036|-71.397893|3}}
 '''Sources:'''
 {{HBSuppNarragansettBayWWII}}
@@ Line 36: / Line 37: @@
 * {{CDSGMainLink}}
-{{Visited|29 May 2012}}
-__NOTOC__
-{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnside}}
-[[Category:All]]
-[[Category:Rhode Island All]]
 [[Category:Rhode Island Forts]]
-[[Category:Rhode Island Newport County]]
+[[Category:Coastal Sites]]
-[[Category:Coastal Forts]]
 [[Category:Harbor Defense of Narragansett Bay]]
 [[Category:Preserved]]
 [[Category:State Park]]
-[[Category:World War II Forts]]
 [[Category:2011 CDSG Meeting]]
-[[Category:2012 Research Trip]]
+[[Category:World War II]]
+{{PageFooter}}