Fort Flagler
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Fort Flagler battery fortifications
Fort Flagler coastal fortifications
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
Fort Flagler was originally constructed with three coastal gun batteries, Battery Revere, Battery Wilhelm and Battery Rawlins. The contract for the construction of these original gun batteries was awarded on June 22, 1897 to the Pacific Bridge Company of Portland, Oregon. The batteries were completed in 1899 but not accepted for service until August 17th, 1902. Two additional batteries, Battery Bankhead and Battery Lee, were completed in 1900 and 1902 respectively and they were also accepted for service on August 17th of 1902. Four additional batteries, Battery Grattan, Battery Calwell, Battery Downes, and Battery Wansboro were completed in 1905-1906 and all were accepted for service on April 23, 1907.
During World War I, eight of the fort's guns were sent to Europe and converted to field or railway guns and two were sent to Canada. The Army reduced the number of troops stationed at the fort to after the war to only a caretaker detachment. In the coming years, the fort gradually fell into disrepair, resulting in the demolition of a number of troop barracks. The Army reactivated the fort once again during World War II, constructing new barracks and buildings. As the war drew to a close, the Army removed the large guns and eventually deactivated the fort in 1953. The state established the park in 1955 a year after the fort was declared surplus.
Sources
"Fort Flagler Historical State Park." Washington State Parks. Accessed March 4, 2020. https://parks.state.wa.us/508/Fort-Flagler.
Hart, Herbert M. Tour Guide to Old Western Forts. Boulder, CO: Pruett Publishing Co., 1980.
Roberts, Robert B. Encyclopedia of Historic Forts: The Military, Pioneer, and Trading Posts of the United States. New York, NY: Macmillan, 1988.