Fort Hamilton (New York)

(Did you mean a different Fort Hamilton)

Fort Hamilton (1825-Current) - Originally designed as a Third System Coastal Defense fort constructed 1825-1831 to protect the New York Narrows from the Brooklyn side of the river in Kings County, New York. Named after Alexander Hamilton, first Secretary of the U.S. Treasury. Active military post.

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  Loading 10" Gun, 1908
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  Rear of 10" Battery, 1908
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  Fort Hamilton 1924 Aerial View

History

Part of the Harbor Defense of Southern New York. Originally established to protect the Narrows entrance to New York Harbor.

Fort Hamilton was built as a small dual-purpose fort providing seaward and landward defenses at the New York Narrows, the site of present-day Verrazano Narrows Bridge. Construction was started on 11 Jun 1825 with the laying of the cornerstone by the French engineer, Simon Bernard. The Fort was completed in 1831 and first garrisoned on 1 Nov 1831 by Battery F, 4th U.S. Artillery.

Some distinguished military men served at the Fort including Captain Robert E. Lee, post engineer from 1841 to 1846, and Captain Abner Doubleday, post commander in 1861.

U.S. Civil War (1861-1865)

Fort Hamilton's garrison expanded during the U.S. Civil War and in 1863 it was called upon to help put down the New York City draft riots.

Endicott Period (1890-1910)

Between 1893 and 1905 eleven reinforced concrete Endicott Period gun batteries were built on the Fort Hamilton reservation. In June of 1908 the batteries of Fort Hamilton, Fort Wadsworth, Fort Schuyler and Fort Hancock participated in a mock battle against an invading force that saw most of the gun batteries firing at towed targets with reduced charges. The first day of the exercise saw the batteries firing full charges for calibration of the weapons. The Regular Army Coast Artillery units were paired up with National Guard units to maximize the training experience. In addition to the damage done to on-post and off-post buildings and property caused by concussion, two members of the 9th Coast Artillery were killed by "blowback" from one of the guns of Battery Dix at Fort Wadsworth. The pictures above and those in the gallery below show Fort Hamilton's participation in that event.

Fort Hamilton Endicott Period Batteries (edit list)

Battery	No.	Caliber	Type Mount	Service Years	Notes
Battery Piper	8	12"	Mortar	1901-1942
Battery Harvey Brown	2	12"	Disappearing	1902-19??
Battery Doubleday	2	12"	Disappearing	1900-1943
Battery Neary	2	12"	Barbette	1900-1937
Battery Gillmore	4	10"	Disappearing	1899-1942	Orig 7 Guns, 3 designated as Spear
Battery Spear	3	10"	Disappearing	1898-1917
Battery Burke	4	6"	Pedestal	1903-1917	2 guns to Fort Tilden, Battery Fergusson
Battery Livingston (2)	2	6"	Disappearing	1905-1920?	Guns to West Point
Battery Livingston (2)	2	6"	Pedestal	1905-1948
Battery Johnston	2	6"	Pedestal	1902-1943
Battery Mendenhall	4	6"	Disappearing	1905-1917
Battery Griffin	2	4.7"	Pedestal	1899-1913	British Armstrong Guns
Battery Griffin	2	3"	Masking Parapet	1902-1920
Battery Griffin	2	3"	Pedestal	1903-1946
Source: CDSG Fort Hamilton Plan 1935 World War I (1917-1918) During World War I Fort Hamilton was a processing center for hundreds of thousands of American troops shipping out to France. World War II (1941-1945) Fort Familton (1) World War II Batteries (edit list) Battery No. Caliber Type Mount Service Years Notes Battery AMTB 18 - Norton Point 4 3" Fixed Pedestal 1943-1943-1943-1946 Norton Point Guns & carriages from Fort Wadsworth, Battery Catlin Battery AMTB 19 - Norton Point 2 2 90mm 90mm Fixed Pedestal Mobile 1943-1943-1943-1946 Norton Point Source: CDSG During World War II Fort Hamilton served as a processed center for 3 million troops headed for Europe. At the end of the war, it processed and discharged the returning veterans. After the war, the building of the Verrazano Bridge in 1959 resulted in the destruction of the parade ground and most of the brick barracks. Current Status Fort Hamilton is an active duty Army post with 5000 full-time active duty personnel serving 126 Army Reserve units, 100,000 military retirees, and numerous Department of Defense agencies throughout the greater New York City metropolitan area. A part of the U.S. Army Military District of Washington. Context Location: East side of the Verrazano Narrows at the base of the Verrazano Bridge, Kings County, New York. Lat: 40.609° Long: -74.033° Elevation: 30' Bing, Google, OldMapsOnline, USGS, OHM Loading map... Sources: Roberts, Robert B., Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States, Macmillan, New York, 1988, 10th printing, ISBN 0-02-926880-X, page 557 Weaver, John R. II, A Legacy in Brick and Stone: America Coastal Defense Forts of the Third System, Redoubt Press, McLean, 2001, First Printing, ISBN 1-57510-069-X, page 111-113 Links: North American Forts - Fort Hamilton Fort Hamilton Museum New York State Military Museum CDSG Picture Gallery Lt. Col. Henry H. Ludlow, Fort Commander, 17 Jun 1908 Observation Tower Firing 10" Gun Loading 12" Gun Cleaning 12" Gun Lined up for Mess Observations Tower(s) Related: 1870s System, 1st New York Volunteer Infantry, 4th U.S. Artillery, A Legacy in Brick and Stone, Alexander Hamilton, Battery AMTB 18 - Norton Point, Battery AMTB 19 - Norton Point, Battery Catlin, Battery Dix, Battery Fergusson, Battery Graham, Battery Kessler, Battery Schofield - West Point, Battery Stricker, Endicott Period, Fort Hamilton, Fort Hancock, Fort Schuyler, Fort Slocum, Fort Tilden, Fort Wadsworth, Third System, U.S. Army Military District of Washington, World War II Coastal Fortifications, Simon Bernard, Abner Doubleday, Samuel P. Heintzelman, Robert E. Lee,