| Fort Crockett, Texas | | | | Location: | Galveston, Texas, USA | | Nearest city: | Galveston, Texas | | Coordinates: | 29°16′29″N, 94°49′01″W | | Area: | 40 acres | | Established: | 1903 | | Governing body: | US NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service | Fort Crockett is a government reservation originally built as a defense installation on Galveston Island overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. The fort was originally built to protect the city and harbor of Galveston and to secure the entrance to Galveston Bay, thus protecting the commercial and industrial ports of Galveston and Houston and the extensive oil refineries in the bay area. The facility is now managed by the US NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, and hosts the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries Laboratory, the Texas Institute of Oceanography, as well as some university facilities. The area still contains several historical buildings and military fortifications. Image File history File links Locator_Dot. ...
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Nickname: The Oleander City Location in the state of Texas County Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas Area - City 539. ...
Nickname: The Oleander City Location in the state of Texas County Galveston Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas Area - City 539. ...
1903 (MCMIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Friday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ...
A map of Galveston Island, a barrier island on the Texas Gulf coast in the United States Galveston Island is a barrier island on the Texas Gulf coast in the United States, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Houston. ...
Gulf of Mexico in 3D perspective. ...
Galveston redirects here. ...
Galveston Bay is a large estuary located along Texass coastline. ...
Houston redirects here. ...
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is a scientific agency of the United States Department of Commerce focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere. ...
Fortifications (Latin fortis, strong, and facere, to make) are military constructions designed for defensive warfare. ...
Defensive Facilities of Galveston Bay
During the Texas Revolution, Galveston harbor and the entrance to Galveston Bay was secured by a small fortication located at the north east side of Galveston Island, which corresponds to the west side of Bolivar Roads, the entrance to the bay. This was originally named Fort Travis in honor of William Barret Travis, the commanding officer of the Alamo. William Barret Travis (August 1809–March 6, 1836) was an early figure in Texas history. ...
In the late 1800s, the entrance to Galveston Bay was secured by two new fortifications, one on each side of the mouth of the bay. The "Fort Travis" name was transferred across Bolivar Roads to a new fortification on Point Bolivar, the tip of the Bolivar Peninsula, which forms the east side of the entrance to the bay. An additional new fortification was built on the north east tip of Galveston Island, and was named Fort San Jacinto in honor of the final battle of the Texas Revolution, which established Texas' independence from Mexico. Bolivar Peninsula is a narrow strip of land in Galveston County, Texas that separates the eastern part of Galveston Bay from the Gulf of Mexico. ...
At the end of the 19th Century, Fort Crockett was established as headquarters for all three facilities. Located west of the city of Galveston, its long-range guns could command the entire area. By the first half of the 20th Century, Fort Crockett had the basic equipment believed needed to defend the Galveston area from attack from air or sea.
Coastal Artillery Batteries at Fort Crockett In the mid 20th Century, two Regiments of the US Army Coast Artilery were headquartered at Fort Crockett, and manned four major artillery batteries, each supporting a different type of artillery. Though installed over several decades, the different guns were selected to provide both long-range and rapid-fire support. Battery Izard contained eight 12-inch mortars. Battery Wade Hampton contained two 10-inch "disappearing" guns. Battery Laval contained two 3-inch guns, and Battery Hoskins contained two 12-inch guns. These batteries were supported by various fire-control structures, with radar and anti-aircraft guns added in the 1940s. There were three men in American history -- grandfather, father, and son -- called Wade Hampton: Wade Hampton (1754—1835), captain in the War of Independence and brigadier-general in the War of 1812; Wade Hampton (1791—1858), one of the wealthiest planters in the South; and Wade Hampton (1818...
Coastal Artillery Batteries at Fort San Jacinto Additional companies of Coast Artillery were stationed at Fort San Jacinto, located on the north-east tip of Galveston Island, commanding the southern portion of the entrance to Galveston Bay. Battery Mercer contained 12-inch mortars. Battery Heileman contained two 10-inch "disappearing" guns. Battery Hogan contained two 4.7-inch guns, and Battery Croghan contained two 3-inch guns. Battery #235 contained 6-inch guns and another battery contained 90-mm guns.
Coastal Artillery Batteries at Fort Travis One additional company of Coast Artillery was stationed at Fort Travis, located at Bolivar Point, commanding the northern side of the entrance to Galveston Bay. Battery Kimball contained two 12-inch guns. Battery Davis contained two 8-inch guns. Battery Ernst contained two 3-inch guns. These batteries were supported by various fire-control structures, and radar in the 1940s.
History A military facility by the US Army Coastal Artillery on Galveston Island was established in the late 1890s. Construction got underway just in time to be disrupted by the Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900. The United States Army Corps of Engineers spent several years rebuilding and expanding the reservation before it was re-garrisoned. In 1903, the facility was named Fort Crockett in honor of David Crockett, US Congressman from Tennessee and famous Texas hero of the Battle of the Alamo. Following extensive repairs and upgrades, the fort was garrisoned by the US Army Coast Artillery Corps in 1911. 19th century coastal artillery guns preserved in Suomenlinna fortress in Helsinki Coastal artillery is the branch of armed forces concerned with operating mobile anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications. ...
Lowest pressure ≤936 mbar (hPa) Damages $25-50 million (1900 USD) $928 million (2000 USD) [1] Fatalities 6,000–12,000 direct Areas affected Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Cuba, south Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas (particularly around Galveston), much of the Central United States, Great Lakes region, Atlantic Canada Part...
United States Army Corps of Engineers logo The United States Army Corps of Engineers, or USACE, is made up of some 34,600 civilian and 650 military men and women. ...
Davy Crockett David Crockett (August 17, 1786–March 6, 1836) was an American folk-hero usually referred to now as Davy Crockett. ...
Combatants Republic of Mexico Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas Commanders Antonio López de Santa Anna Pérez de Lebrón William Travis†Jim Bowie†Davy Crockett†Strength 6,000 in attack {1,800 in assault-see below} 183 to 250 Casualties 370 to 600 total 70 killed & 300...
During the First World War, Fort Crockett served as a US Army artillery training center. Troops bound for France were trained in the use of several types of artillery.
During the Second World War, Fort Crockett was expanded with an additional large gun battery, and focus was placed on defense against German U-boats. Additionally, the Fort served as a prisoner of war camp.
Following the war, Fort Crockett served for several years as an army recreational center.
In the 1950s, Fort Crockett became home for fisheries research for the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
Due to the massive amount of concrete used in constructing the protective casemate for the guns and magazines, Battery Hoskins proved uneconomical to remove. The abandoned casemates remained an unofficial tourist attraction for decades. In the 1990s, a luxury resort was built on and behind the battery. The massive concrete gun emplacements remain dramatically visible from the seawall highway that runs along Galveston Beach, even though one gun emplacement now sports a swimming pool atop it, and the other gun emplacement is adorned with a wedding gazebo!
 Casemate of Battery Hoskins today.
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