Artillery Battery 223
Posted by: 
tiber
N 38° 55.891 W 074° 57.312
18S E 503883 N 4309177
Find and photograph Artillery Battery 223. Built during World War 2, this battery was once underground. Beach erosion has not only exposed the entire battery, but threatens to destroy it.
Waymark Code: WMQRQ
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 09/18/2006
Views: 104
I managed to find someone who lives in Cape May who knew about the battery. After the war, the guns were moved to bases or simply taken for scrap. The Navy built a radar station on top of the bunker and used that to scan the waters. The traditional method of firing artillery was to optically sight it from two observation towers. When the Navy finally left, they took their radar and left the slab. Someone paved the top (which is the thin, three inch concrete on top) and placed picnic tables on the bunker. Eventually erosion and storms took their toll and started to hollow out the underside of the bunker. It now stands at the tide-line and almost falls into the ocean.
You can park in the Wildlife Reserve, which gives you a short walk on the beach to the bunker. Consider taking the trails, follow red to yellow to the beach and you will find yourself close by.
From the plaque:
This world war 2 bunker served as a gun emplacement and the round turrets on either side held six inch guns. The horse-shoe shaped structures, which can be seen on the front at low tide, are panama mounts. They were built in 1941, prior to the construction of the more permanent bunker and held 155mm coastal artillery guns. A sister bunker stands across the bay in Lewis, Delaware.
At the time of the construction in 1942 the bunker was covered over in sod and stood on high ground 900 feet from the ocean. Built of reinforced concrete, the roof and walls are six feet thick. Erosion and storms have washed away the land in front of the bunker. How long can the pilings - meant only to stabilize - support the bunker weighing thousands of tons?
Era: WW II
Related web site: [Web Link]
General Comments: Not listed
|