Washington, Island County, near Coupeville
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A Glimpse In Time
Like the majority of the coastal forts built in the United States, Fort Casey never fired its guns in warfare.
Fort Casey is one of three coastal forts constructed in the late 1890s to defend the entrance to Puget Sound and the United States Naval Shipyard in Bremerton. Prior to this time, the coastal communities of Puget Sound, as well as much of the western coast, were left unprotected and vulnerable to invasion by foreign warships. At the height of its military significance, from 1901 to 1919, Fort Casey was a busy place. Hundreds of troops were needed to man all the gun batteries and fire control stations of the fort.
As the technology of warships and airplanes advanced, Fort Casey, with its fixed guns, became obsolete as a coastal defense site. It continued to serve as a military training site during World War I and World War II. In 1950, the United States Army disbanded the Coastal Artillery Corps and the site was acquired by Washington State Parks in 1956.
A Letter Home, 1917
The gun commander yells, “Number 1 Fire!” The gun pointer pulls the magneto lever, there is a blinding flash of flame, then a deafening roar and jar. The gun settles back into its first position while the projectile goes hurtling out through the air. Ten – fifteen – twenty-five seconds pass and there way out in the straits, right up close to the target, a cloud of water rises a fit!’
Glenn Rauley, Private-First Class, December 9, 1917
(Forts, Castles • War, World I • War, World II) Includes location, directions, 12 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
A Glimpse In Time
Like the majority of the coastal forts built in the United States, Fort Casey never fired its guns in warfare.
Fort Casey is one of three coastal forts constructed in the late 1890s to defend the entrance to Puget Sound and the United States Naval Shipyard in Bremerton. Prior to this time, the coastal communities of Puget Sound, as well as much of the western coast, were left unprotected and vulnerable to invasion by foreign warships. At the height of its military significance, from 1901 to 1919, Fort Casey was a busy place. Hundreds of troops were needed to man all the gun batteries and fire control stations of the fort.
As the technology of warships and airplanes advanced, Fort Casey, with its fixed guns, became obsolete as a coastal defense site. It continued to serve as a military training site during World War I and World War II. In 1950, the United States Army disbanded the Coastal Artillery Corps and the site was acquired by Washington State Parks in 1956.
A Letter Home, 1917
The gun commander yells, “Number 1 Fire!” The gun pointer pulls the magneto lever, there is a blinding flash of flame, then a deafening roar and jar. The gun settles back into its first position while the projectile goes hurtling out through the air. Ten – fifteen – twenty-five seconds pass and there way out in the straits, right up close to the target, a cloud of water rises a fit!’
Glenn Rauley, Private-First Class, December 9, 1917
(Forts, Castles • War, World I • War, World II) Includes location, directions, 12 photos, GPS coordinates, map.
