Battery Osceola

Battery Osceola was added to the fort in 1898. It mounted two 12-inch long-range rifles on barbette carriages. The guns each weighed over 117,000 pounds and fired shells which could reach targets over 30,000 yards (or almost 17 miles). They fired shells which weighed almost 1,000 pounds and used over 100 pounds of powder., Lower Level Layout , The Battery contained two powder magazines on the first level to store powder and projectiles. There were two motor generators to provide electric power for lighting, communication and movement of ordnance, as well as a plotting room for the Battery. Dedicated shell hoists raised shot and powder from within the magazine to the upper level., Between the Wars , Between 1906 and 1916, as well as between 1921 and 1941, the U.S. Army kept Battery Osceola in caretaker status. By World War II, the 12-inch guns were obsolete and no longer in use. In 1943 the U.S. Army removed the guns and carriages and shipped them to the Watervliet Arsenal., (captions) , A grown man nestled inside the breach of the gun demonstrates the size of the projectile , Drawing by Howard S. England , 12-inch long-range rifle , Diagram of Taylor-Raymond ammunition hoist