Battery Potter
Encyclopedia
Battery Potter or "Gun Lift Battery No.1" built in 1892 at Fort Hancock, New Jersey
was the world's only disappearing gun
battery that used hydraulic elevators to move the guns above a protective parapet wall. Battery Potter was also the first Endicott system battery to be partially armed.
During its service as a gun battery there were a few minor changes involving water proofing and the addition of stop valves for each side of the battery. In 1903 the then "gun lift battery number one" has been named Battery Potter after Joseph H. Potter
. Not long afterwards, the battery was considered obsolete. The plan was to replace it with guns and additional batteries using the newer and faster Buffington-Crozier
type gun carriage. The new batteries would be on the bay side of Sandy Hook. The new batteries would provide the all round protection that until then only Potter could provide as the new guns only had a 180 degree field of fire.
In 1906 construction started on Battery Arrowsmith, a single battery of three 8 inch guns on Buffington-Crozier mountings facing the bay side of the Hook. The battery had fewer than the recommended number of three 8 and 10 inch batteries on the bay side but its activation was enough to warrant the deactivation of Battery Potter. The guns and the gun lifts were removed in 1906 and primary fire control stations of other gun batteries were built on Battery Potter's terreplein
. The rest of Potter's machinery was removed in 1909 and the interior was used mostly for storage. The primary fire control stations were abandoned in the 1920's after the other batteries became obsolete and were deactivated. During World War II
, two radar towers were built on Potter's roof for use by the Harbor entrance command post. At the end of World War II, the command post and radar were abandoned.
inherited the land that was Fort Hancock
and opened it to the public year round. The Park Service, with the help of volunteers, gives tours of Battery Potter during the summer months Saturday and Sunday from 1-4pm.
Fort Hancock, New Jersey
Fort Hancock is a former United States Army fort at Sandy Hook, located in Middletown Township in Monmouth County, along the Atlantic coast of eastern New Jersey in the United States. This coastal artillery base played an important part in the defense of New York Harbor and played a role in the...
was the world's only disappearing gun
Disappearing gun
A disappearing gun is a type of heavy artillery for which the gun carriage enabled the gun to rotate backwards and down into a pit protected by a wall or a bunker after it was fired...
battery that used hydraulic elevators to move the guns above a protective parapet wall. Battery Potter was also the first Endicott system battery to be partially armed.
History
Construction on Battery Potter began in 1890 when a large concrete plant was set up where the power plant now exists today. A team averaging 60 laborers including blacksmiths, stonemasons, engineers, painters and carpenters worked mostly during the warmer months of the year on the battery between 1890 and 1894. Battery Potter was first armed with a 12 inch model 1888 breech loading rifle serial number 11 in 1892 and the gun lift and the weapon performed well after adjustments had been made. Construction continued on the south gun after the north gun had been proven and the work was completed in 1894.During its service as a gun battery there were a few minor changes involving water proofing and the addition of stop valves for each side of the battery. In 1903 the then "gun lift battery number one" has been named Battery Potter after Joseph H. Potter
Joseph H. Potter
Joseph Haydn Potter was a career soldier from the state of New Hampshire who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was twice a prisoner of war and was cited for gallantry on multiple occasions.-Early life and career:Potter born in Concord, New Hampshire, on...
. Not long afterwards, the battery was considered obsolete. The plan was to replace it with guns and additional batteries using the newer and faster Buffington-Crozier
Disappearing gun
A disappearing gun is a type of heavy artillery for which the gun carriage enabled the gun to rotate backwards and down into a pit protected by a wall or a bunker after it was fired...
type gun carriage. The new batteries would be on the bay side of Sandy Hook. The new batteries would provide the all round protection that until then only Potter could provide as the new guns only had a 180 degree field of fire.
In 1906 construction started on Battery Arrowsmith, a single battery of three 8 inch guns on Buffington-Crozier mountings facing the bay side of the Hook. The battery had fewer than the recommended number of three 8 and 10 inch batteries on the bay side but its activation was enough to warrant the deactivation of Battery Potter. The guns and the gun lifts were removed in 1906 and primary fire control stations of other gun batteries were built on Battery Potter's terreplein
Terreplein
Terreplein, or terre-plein — in fortifications is the top, platform, or horizontal surface, of a rampart, on which cannon are placed. In Martello towers, the roof or terreplein was sometimes surmounted with one or two cannon on a gun platform with a central pivot that enabled the guns to rotate up...
. The rest of Potter's machinery was removed in 1909 and the interior was used mostly for storage. The primary fire control stations were abandoned in the 1920's after the other batteries became obsolete and were deactivated. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, two radar towers were built on Potter's roof for use by the Harbor entrance command post. At the end of World War II, the command post and radar were abandoned.
Battery Potter today
In 1975 the National Park ServiceNational Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
inherited the land that was Fort Hancock
Fort Hancock, New Jersey
Fort Hancock is a former United States Army fort at Sandy Hook, located in Middletown Township in Monmouth County, along the Atlantic coast of eastern New Jersey in the United States. This coastal artillery base played an important part in the defense of New York Harbor and played a role in the...
and opened it to the public year round. The Park Service, with the help of volunteers, gives tours of Battery Potter during the summer months Saturday and Sunday from 1-4pm.