Battery 234 -- Fort Pickens, Pensacola Beach, FL
N 30° 19.305 W 087° 17.084
16R E 472627 N 3354473
The historic marker at the access point to Battery 234 at Fort Pickens
Waymark Code: WMX894
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 12/11/2017
Views: 2
This marker is located along Fort Pickens Road at the public path to access Battery Worth.
The sign reads as follows:
"BATTERY 234
Spot, Plot, and Fire
Beneath this vegetated mound of Battery 234 were soldiers who figured out solutions to a pressing problem: where should artillery crews aim the guns to strike an attacking ship? It took some fast teamwork. Soldiers and nearby in towers would take simultaneous compass readings of an approaching enemy ship and telephone the information to the plotting room. There, soldiers used the data to plot a triangle on the table, calculated the distance to the target, and relayed their calculation to the gun crews for precision firing.
By 1943 coastal threats at the diminished enough that Battery 234 and Battery 233 across the bay entrance were never armed or formally named.
Finding the range
spotter center compass readings of the target to the plotting room. Using that data and other factors like wind speed and direction, plotters adjusted the arms of the large triangle on the plotting table and determine the distance between the guns and the target."
Marker Number: 0000
Date: 1980
County: Escambia
Marker Type: Roadside
Sponsored or placed by: US National Park Service
Website: [Web Link]
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