Battery 246 - World War II Modernization
Posted by: 
Volcanoguy
N 46° 15.141 W 123° 55.272
10T E 428994 N 5122498
Sign about Battery 246 at Fort Columbia State Park.
Waymark Code: WM11G0
Location: Washington, United States
Date Posted: 12/14/2006
Views: 52
This sign is located near the north gun of Battery 246.
Marker Name: Battery 246 - World War II Modernization
Marker Text: As World War II approached, the War Department began to improve many North American coast artillery forts. Plans called for 6” guns to be the new primary armament for the three forts at the mouth of the Columbia River.
At Fort Stevens and Fort Canby batteries for the 6” guns were completed in 1944. Here at Fort Columbia, Battery 246 was nearly complete by 1945. The protective shields for the 6” guns were in place, but the gun tubes were never installed.
After the end of World War II, the War Department declared the three forts surplus and removed all the large weapons. Fort Columbia was transferred to Washington State Parks in 1950 as a historic park.