Harbor View

Harbor View. . The Northwest Bastion provides an excellent view of the Key West Harbor. To the left (south) is the main ship channel and to the right (north) is the main harbor., Blockade Headquarters , Key West was the headquarters of the East Coast Blockading Fleet which was charged with preventing the flow of goods and war materials into and out of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. As blockade runners were captured by the U.S. Navy, they were brought to Key West., World War I and World War II , During World Wars I and II, the Fort protected the submarine and destroyer forces from the nearby U.S. Naval Station. In World War II, two 90mm M1 Anti-Motor Torpedo Boat guns were placed adjacent to and on Battery Adair. They provided anti-shipping and anti-aircraft defense for the U.S. Naval Station., Battleship Maine , In the late 1890s, Key West was the winter home for the North Atlantic Fleet including the Battleship Maine (ACR-1). It was anchored in the Key West Harbor, a short distance from the Fort, days before it left for Havana Harbor in late January 1898., Three weeks later, on the evening of February 15, 1898, a mysterious explosion sank the battleship in Havana Harbor. This event led to the declaration of war against Spain in April 1898., (caption) , 90mm M1 AntiMotor Torpedo Boat Gun