Keeping watch when needed

Battery Cogan

  Fort Baldwin in Phippsburg, Maine was built near the mouth of the Kennebec River.  Named for an Army Engineer who served during the Revolutionary War, it was built between 1905 and 1912.  Originally it was built with three batteries, a gun track on the top of, or near, each battery to fire at ships at sea to prevent an invasion.
    During World War One, Fort Baldwin was manned with 200 members of the 13th and 29th Coast Artillery.
    During World War Two, Fort Baldwin as manned by members of D Battery of the 8th Coast Artillery, a Fire Control Tower was built so the exact position of enemy ships could be given.  I have always though that those towers were for spotting aircraft - oh, how wrong I can be without a proper education.

An example of a Fire Control Tower.
This one is in Massachusetts, no photo
available for Fort Baldwin but
they are all pretty much alike,
some are square, some are round.

The remains of some of the gun positions at Fort Baldwin.