Weren’t fortifications impressive in their time? Battery McKinnon-Stotsenburg stands here as a testament to a bygone era. This Endicott-era battery was initially named Battery Stotsenburg. It was built to defend against enemy warships. Completed in 1898, it had four pits. Each pit contained four 12-inch mortars.
These guns had an eight-mile range. Their 360-degree field of fire targeted beaches, land, and water.
In 1906, the battery was divided. It became two batteries of eight mortars each. The eastern pits kept the name Battery Stotsenburg. The western pits were renamed Battery William McKinnon. Battery McKinnon was named for Chaplain William D. McKinnon. He served with distinction during the Spanish-American War. He also fought in the Philippine Insurrection. He died in 1902. Battery Stotsenburg honored Captain Stotsenburg. He was killed in action in the Philippines in 1898.
Originally, Battery McKinnon consisted of mortar pits C and D. Each pit held four 12-inch mortars. These mortars were M1890MI rifled steel mortars. They sat on M1896MI mortar carriages. The magazines were between the mortar pits. They were covered with 20 feet of earth. Electrical power came from a central plant. There was also a backup power plant.
In 1917, four mortars were moved to Battery Howe at Fort Funston. By World War II, the mortars here were outdated. In 1943, the War Department ordered the battery salvaged. It was no longer needed.
Today, no guns or carriages remain in place. Battery McKinnon-Stotsenburg is near Rob Hill at the Presidio. It is next to Washington and Compton Roads. Though you cannot enter the batteries, you can see them through a chain-link fence.
Think about the soldiers who once manned these mortars. They stood ready to defend San Francisco. Now, the remnants stand quietly. They remind us of a different time. The silence here speaks volumes about the passage of time.