Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!att!cbnews!military From: philj%tekig5.pen.tek.com@RELAY.CS.NET (Phil Jansen) Newsgroups: sci.military Subject: Re: Seacoast Mortars and Nukes Message-ID: <8892@cbnews.ATT.COM> Date: 9 Aug 89 03:58:10 GMT References: <8630@cbnews.ATT.COM* <8675@cbnews.ATT.COM> <8800@cbnews.ATT.COM> Sender: military@cbnews.ATT.COM Organization: Tektronix, Inc., Beaverton, OR. Lines: 33 Approved: military@att.att.com From: Phil Jansen Fort Stevens lost the crew in the pit for its first rifle firing. The rifles were on counterweights to raise and lower the gun; the recoil pushed the gun back down for reloading. The problem was that the pit originally had a concrete cover (to protect the crew from shells[!]). the cover confined the concussion in the pit, which killed the crew. After that, the Army removed the covers. ---- History -------- Fort Stevens was built during the Civil War to guard the mouth of the Columbia River from the Confederate navy (and other navies). The original mortars were replaced by rifles (BIG ones) in WWII in a general US coastal defense upgrade. Fort Stevens was the only US target (not territory) to be shelled by enemies in WWII. A Japanese submarine surfaced one night and took some potshots at the Fort. The Fort did not return fire, as that would only give their position away (and the sub was only hitting a sand spit). The only thing left standing at the Fort now is the hardened concrete buildings. Still, it's an interesting picnic spot, and a nice beach. Phil Jansen -- If you repeat things often enough, they become true. Phil Jansen If you repeat things often enough, they become true. philj@tekig5.pen.tek.com If you repeat things often enough, they become true.