Fort Stevens Review is published by the Friends of Old Fort Stevens, an Oregon 501(c)3 Organization, helping to preserve the history Of Oregon’s Fort Stevens State Park.
Excerpt from this newsletter:
The Long Road From Cast Iron Coast Defense Guns To Ones Of Forged Steel And The Impact On The Harbor Defenses of The Columbia
By D. Lindstrom
As the United States fought the Civil War, both the Union and the Confederacy, as did many other nations, defended their harbors and coastlines with cannons made of cast iron. Furthermore, early on the Civil War demonstrated that fortifications made of masonry were history, as enemy cannon balls quickly demolished them. The new technology was to construct earthen parapets behind which cannons were installed. The hope was that most of the enemy’s incoming cannon ball shots would simply bury themselves in the dirt. Regardless of more reliance on earthen parapets to protect cannons and cannoneers from the enemy, there was mortal danger lurking inside the surrounding parapet. Once in a while a cast Iron cannon had a defect causing it to burst on detonation, wounding and killing the cannoneers..
The mission of the Friends of Old Fort Stevens is to preserve, improve, restore, interpret, and promote historic Fort Stevens and its environment in cooperation with the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department.
