“Commodore Stephen Decatur, reporting for duty.” Imagine those words echoing from the past. We are standing before what remains of Decatur Battery. This was once a vital part of Washington D.C.’s defense.
Let me introduce you to Decatur Battery. It was the first modern gun position built to protect the nation’s capital. It is named after Commodore Stephen Decatur. He was a naval hero known for his bravery in the War of Tripoli and the War of 1812.
Construction of Decatur Battery began in 1892. It was completed in 1897 at a cost of $128492. The battery was armed with two 10-inch guns. These were breech-loading rifles.
These guns were mounted on disappearing carriages. Each gun was over 30 feet long. It weighed 67200 pounds. They could fire a 575-pound shell up to 6.5 miles. The disappearing carriages were quite ingenious. When the gun fired, the recoil pushed it back. It disappeared from view behind a concrete wall. This protected the crew while they reloaded.
Decatur’s guns could initially fire about 15 rounds per hour. That is one round every four minutes. Improvements later allowed them to fire a round every 15 seconds. That is 240 rounds an hour.
In 1902, Decatur Battery was taken out of service. It underwent major alterations. These included changes to the carriages and structure. A platform was built to connect the two gun positions. Electric storage batteries were added.
A Coast Artillery Company manned each gun. It consisted of three officers and about 90 enlisted men. They were divided into a fire control section and two gun sections. The fire control section operated the plotting board. The gun sections were responsible for serving the guns. Battery A, 4th U.S. Artillery was the first company assigned to Decatur Battery. They served here for seven years.
Decatur Battery was constantly improved until 1911. New equipment was added as it became available. The ground in front of the battery was designed to look natural. Shrubs and small trees were planted to hide the guns’ exact location.
Two unique features of Decatur Battery were the rifle ports and a sunken road. The rifle ports were for land defense. The sunken road was never finished. It was intended to connect Decatur Battery to another battery.
When the Spanish American War began in 1898, Decatur Battery and three smooth bore guns were Washington’s only defense. Decatur Battery also fired the first gun in 1897. In 1917, the guns were removed. They were sent to Europe for use as railroad guns.
Today, only broken concrete remains of Decatur Battery. This is due to the use of river sand in the concrete. Despite its ruined state, Decatur Battery stands as a reminder. It protected our nation’s capital for 20 years.