View across reinforced concrete gun emplacements Battery Yates towards fog enshrouding Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, USA
By the 1890s the US War Department was concerned about the condition of the country's coastal defences and made recommendations to modernise and re-arm all existing sea-ports. The 'Endicott Board', named after Secretary of War, William C. Endicott, ranked San Francisco as the most important harbour on the Pacific Coast and second only to New York in the country. Fort Baker was built between 1902 and 1910 to house the soldiers at eight newly constructed gun batteries in Marin County on the north side of the Golden Gate. The Endicott-era, reinforced concrete Battery Yates, overlooking San Francisco Bay, to the east of Fort Baker, and named after Captain George W. Yates, killed at the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876, was built in 1903, at a cost of $41,407. It was transferred to the Coast Artillery in June 1905 and de-activated in 1943. Battery Yates had six gun emplacements , each with a 3-inch M1902l rapid fire gun, and each having its own magazine. There were six utility rooms: one for oil; three for tools; two for general storage. A pentagon-shaped Communication's Officer room was located between gun emplacements 2 and 3. A guard room was located between emplacements 4 and 5. The battery required only of electricity for lighting. The guns use complete cartridges and ammunition was stored that way to support the rapid fire of the guns. For short periods, the guns could fire 2--30 rounds per minute. A view from emplacement five towards summer advection fog enshrouding the Golden Gate Bridge.
Size: 5422px × 3584px
Location: Battery Yates gun emplacements to advection fog over Golden Gate Bridge, Fort Baker, San Francisco
Photo credit: © robert harrison / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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