Salisbury Beach Military Reservation
| Salisbury Beach Military Reservation | |
|---|---|
| Part of Harbor Defenses of Boston | |
| Salisbury, Massachusetts | |
 A 155mm gun, similar to those at Salisbury Beach, on a Panama mount. | |
| Coordinates | 42°49′35.4″N 70°49′2.8″W / 42.826500°N 70.817444°WCoordinates: 42°49′35.4″N 70°49′2.8″W / 42.826500°N 70.817444°W |
| Type | Coastal Defense |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Massachusetts |
| Controlled by | Salisbury Beach State Reservation |
| Site history | |
| Built | 1941 |
| Built by | United States Army |
| In use | 1941-1945 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Salisbury Beach Military Reservation was a coastal defense site located in Salisbury, Massachusetts.
History
The Salisbury Beach Military Reservation was built on state land in 1941. Its mission was to protect the Merrimack River and Newburyport Harbor from possible air and naval attack. The site had four "Panama mounts" (circular concrete platforms) for four towed 155mm guns. It never fired its guns in anger, though but it did play an important part in the defense of the harbor. It may have been organizationally part of the Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth or the Harbor Defenses of Boston, references vary.[1] Battery F of the 9th Coast Artillery Regiment initially garrisoned the battery at Salisbury Beach on 2 October 1941, and was redesignated Battery C on 10 October 1941. Since the 9th garrisoned HD Boston, the latter is more likely.[2] The gun area was returned to the Commonwealth in 1945, but a small fire control site was retained for several more years.[3]
The site today
Today the site is home to Salisbury Beach State Reservation, a recreational beach. The site also contains the remains of the batteries and buildings.[4]
See also
References
- Berhow, Mark A., Ed. (2015). American Seacoast Defenses, A Reference Guide, Third Edition. McLean, Virginia: CDSG Press. ISBN 978-0-9748167-3-9.
- Gaines, William C., Coast Artillery Organizational History, 1917-1950, Coast Defense Journal, vol. 23, issue 2
- Lewis, Emanuel Raymond (1979). Seacoast Fortifications of the United States. Annapolis: Leeward Publications. ISBN 978-0-929521-11-4.
External links
- List of all US coastal forts and batteries at the Coast Defense Study Group, Inc. website
- FortWiki, lists most CONUS and Canadian forts
- Salisbury Beach Mil Res at www.NorthAmericanForts.com
- Archived site on New Hampshire and Massachusetts fire control towers
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