Georges Island - Fort Warren (2) - WW Harbor Defense HQ

Fort Warren is a historic fort on the 28-acre (110,000 m2) Georges Island at the entrance to Boston Harbor. The fort is named for Revolutionary War hero Dr. Joseph Warren, who sent Paul Revere on his famous ride, and was later killed at the Battle of Bunker Hill. The name was transferred in 1833 from the first Fort Warren on Governors Island which was renamed Fort Winthrop.

The first fortification on Georges Island built in 1778 by sailors under Count D’Estaing, commander of the French Navy. After the war of 1812 the country looked to solidify protection from future naval attack. Fort Warren is a pentagonal bastion fort, made with stone and granite, and was constructed from 1833 to 1861, completed shortly after the beginning of the American Civil War. Fort Warren defended the harbor in Boston, Massachusetts, from 1861 through the end of World War II.

This was the headquarters of the Boston Coastal Defenses from 1917 - 1922. The southern-channel (Nantasket Roads) minefields were controlled from here in WWII. The complex geography of the harbor area required seven forts to defend it, including Georges Island, two forts in Winthrop, Long Island, Peddocks Island, Lovells Island, and Hull.

The American entry into World War I brought many changes to the Coast Artillery and the Coast Defenses of Boston (CD Boston). Numerous temporary buildings were constructed at the forts to accommodate the wartime mobilization. As the only component of the Army with heavy artillery experience and significant manpower, the Coast Artillery was chosen to operate almost all US-manned heavy and railway artillery in that war.

As guns were upgraded to modern US-made artillery, the older or modified weapons were transferred to other locations from Virginia to as far as France and the Philippines. 8-inch, 10-inch, and 12-inch guns and 12-inch mortars were converted to railway artillery. Few railway artillery pieces were mounted and few or none saw action before the Armistice. The 6-in guns became field guns on wheeled carriages and returned to service in World War II as fortifications expanded rapidly then.

References indicate the authorized strength of CD Boston in World War I was 32 companies, including 12 from the Massachusetts National Guard and five from the Rhode Island National Guard. Eight of these companies (four Massachusetts National Guard, one Rhode Island National Guard, and the rest regular army) were transferred to the 55th Artillery (Coast Artillery Corps), which served in France in World War I.

During and after World War I two- and three-gun antiaircraft batteries armed with M1917 3-inch (76 mm) guns on fixed mounts were built at some forts. Some of these weapons remained in service through early World War II, others were replaced by towed 3-inch guns in the 1930s.

A major change in Boston Harbor between the world wars required a new fort and multiple upgrades: the opening of a new ship channel in the northern part of the harbor. To cover this approach Fort Ruckman was built in Nahant operating from 1918 to 1924. (For details on the artillery and battery changes see Harbor Defenses of Boston link below)

Early in World War II numerous temporary buildings were again constructed to accommodate the rapid mobilization of men and equipment. As new defenses were built, and with little threat to the east coast from enemy air or surface raiders, the heavy weapons at Boston's Endicott-era forts were scrapped in 1942-43. The removal of most weapons and an Army-wide shift from a regimental to a battalion-based system meant organizational changes in the Boston area. CD Boston and Coastal Artillery became Eastern Defense Command until being disestablished in 1946.

Some of the Boston-area forts served as POW camps during World War II, notably Fort Andrews. The US Navy also participated in defending the Massachusetts Bay area with net defenses and submarine-detecting indicator loops, including stations in Nahant (Station 1D), Gloucester (Station 1E), Scituate (Station 1C), and Provincetown.

Following the war, it was soon determined that gun defenses were obsolete, and they were scrapped by the end of 1948, with remaining harbor defense functions turned over to the Navy. In 1950 the Coast Artillery Corps and all Army harbor defense commands were dissolved. As of 2016, the Boston-area forts run the gamut from good preservation to total demolition. Fort Warren on George's Island is very well-preserved with guided tours that allow access to most of the fort. It's a rare example of an older fort with Endicott batteries added to it. The island became a state park in 1958, opened to the public in 1961.

See the video link for more history from war of 1812 through civil into World War 1 & 2 incl military capability and growth.

This is one of the many connections of how America and Britain forgave the past and became allies during the World Wars, solidifying them into the prophesied Anglo-American World Power as described in Daniel.

-Source Links-

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/101970886?q=america+britain&p=doc#:~:text=Mean%20to%20You%3F-,The%20Rise%20of%20the%20Anglo%2DAmerican%20World%20Power,-SINCE%20the%20end

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Warren_(Massachusetts)

https://archives.lib.state.ma.us/bitstream/handle/2452/113998/ocm14362810.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

http://www.fortwiki.com/Fort_Warren_(2)

https://www.northamericanforts.com/East/maboston2.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbor_Defenses_of_Boston

http://www.fortwiki.com/Category:Harbor_Defense_of_Boston