Harbor Defense Museum

Harbor Defense Museum To collect, preserve, exhibit, and interpret the history of Fort Hamilton and the seacoast defense i

Go Army beat Navy!
12/09/2023

Go Army beat Navy!

It's Week at the West Point Museum! Leading up to the Army-Navy football game this year. We enjoy sharing pictures and histories of artifacts in our collection relating to the greatest rivalry in military sports.

We begin with this painting, “Sink the Navy” by Albert W. Hampson. Starting in 1934, Hampson designed 13 covers for the Saturday Evening Post. This painting was used on the cover of the November 30, 1935 issue of the magazine, which came out on the day of the annual Army-Navy football game. Paying homage to the proud tradition of rival teams pranking their opponents’ mascots, this painting features three annoyed United States Naval Academy midshipmen on their way to clean graffiti from the coat of the USNA mascot, Bill the Goat. The Navy has gone through a number of Bills since adopting the goat as a mascot in 1904, and several have run afoul of West Point pranksters.

Army won the 1935 game 28-6.

Check out how USAG Fort Hamilton's casemates were being used in 1880.    Can you locate the library and reading rooms?  ...
12/06/2023

Check out how USAG Fort Hamilton's casemates were being used in 1880.

Can you locate the library and reading rooms?

U.S. Army Center of Military History West Point Museum

Happy Friday!  This 1892 Fort Hamilton armament report shows the layout of the guns prior to the modernization program t...
12/01/2023

Happy Friday!

This 1892 Fort Hamilton armament report shows the layout of the guns prior to the modernization program that occurred during the Endicott/Taft Periods.

USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Museum U.S. Army Center of Military History

West Point Museum - you know this Rev War hero -
11/26/2023

West Point Museum - you know this Rev War hero -

If you would like to learn more about the history of USAG Fort Hamilton, please join us this evening with the Friends of...
11/16/2023

If you would like to learn more about the history of USAG Fort Hamilton, please join us this evening with the Friends of Historic New Utrecht

Did you know the 20-inch Rodman Gun was originally destined for Prospect Park?   That is correct, but its weight of 116,...
11/15/2023

Did you know the 20-inch Rodman Gun was originally destined for Prospect Park?

That is correct, but its weight of 116,497 pounds kept the gun in the neighborhood.

The Parks Department didn’t have a wagon to bear its weight, and there were concerns that the weight of the gun would ruin the roads it would have traveled on.

U.S. Army Center of Military History USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Museum Bay Ridge Historical Society New York City Department of Parks & Recreation

LT GEN Steven W. Gilland, the 61st Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy - West Point, recently visited the Harbor...
11/09/2023

LT GEN Steven W. Gilland, the 61st Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy - West Point, recently visited the Harbor Defense Museum at USAG Fort Hamilton.

It was an honor and pleasure to share our local history with LTG Gilland.

Do you know the museum is an annex of the West Point Museum?

U.S. Army Center of Military History USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Superintendent West Point Museum


Lt. Gen. Steven W. Gilland, superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., visited U.S. Army Garrison Fort Hamilton on Tuesday, Oct. 3...

On this date:"Rodman 20-inch Gun, tested at USAG Fort Hamilton, October 26th, 1864 (159 years ago).    Rodman, famous fo...
10/26/2023

On this date:

"Rodman 20-inch Gun, tested at USAG Fort Hamilton, October 26th, 1864 (159 years ago).

Rodman, famous for having invented a process for casting guns of enormous size hollow, and cooling them from the inside by passing a stream of water through the bore was at this time Superintendent of the Watertown Arsenal.

The gun was cast at the Fort Pitt Foundry, Pittsburgh and weighed 116,000 pounds. The carriage, made at Watertown Arsenal, near Boston, weighed 35,000 pounds.

This is the largest piece of ordnance in existence and carries a shot weighing a half a ton. It is thought that the range of this gun will be five or six miles.

This gun is not mounted in the fort, but in the tier of 15-inch guns which extends along the embankment for a quarter of a mile below the fort, commanding the lower bay and forming part of the defenses of the New York harbor.”
-Harpers Weekly - Nov 19 1864.

Note: It took 7-10 minutes to load and fire with a 9-man crew.

Hamilton’s 20-inch Rodman gun is now located in John Paul Jones Park just outside the main gate.

U.S. Army Center of Military History USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Museum Bay Ridge Historical Society Heinz History Center

One of the most precious artifacts in the collection is the structure the museum is located in, the caponier.  Today, th...
10/24/2023

One of the most precious artifacts in the collection is the structure the museum is located in, the caponier. Today, the caponier stands as the only unmodified portion of the fort.

This structure, with loopholes and howitzer embrasures, provided the principal defense of the ditch. It’s role was to defend the back of Fort Hamilton against land-based infantry attacks.

Its doors were large enough to allow flank howitzers and carriages to enter the caponier.

A 24-pounder flank howitzer is on display in the museum (the 24-pounder flank howitzer was found in the caponier, thus probably one of original guns provided).

To see the caponier for yourself, schedule your appointment to visit by calling 718/630-4349 or emailing [email protected]

U.S. Army Center of Military History USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Museum

This past week we hosted over 35 Soldiers from the 188th IN BDE from Fort Stewart.   Here is our hands on display - can ...
10/20/2023

This past week we hosted over 35 Soldiers from the 188th IN BDE from Fort Stewart.

Here is our hands on display - can you name any of the historic aritfacts?

USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Museum U.S. Army Center of Military History

What’s in our collections?Take a look at a P1902, artillery, enlisted men’s dress coat.  This dress coat is dark blue wi...
10/06/2023

What’s in our collections?

Take a look at a P1902, artillery, enlisted men’s dress coat.

This dress coat is dark blue with red trim, made of wool. It has shoulder straps and a standing collar.

On the right sleeve is a 2nd class gunner’s patch.
But look at the background, a heart shaped section of material.

This coat has no provenance, we can only guess what the heart means.

More than likely just a personal decorative touch, non-standard addition.

One colleague joked, maybe he wore his heart on his sleeve?

Thoughts?

USAG Fort Hamilton U.S. Army Center of Military History West Point Museum Frontier Army Museum US Army Artillery Museum

https://www.uft.org/news/feature-stories/revolutionary-learning-experienceTo schedule a visit please call 718/630-4349 o...
09/26/2023

https://www.uft.org/news/feature-stories/revolutionary-learning-experience

To schedule a visit please call 718/630-4349 or email [email protected]

U.S. Army Center of Military History
USAG Fort Hamilton West Point Museum UFT - United Federation of Teachers

The Harbor Defense Museum at Fort Hamilton, with its collections of weaponry, uniforms and memorabilia from the American Revolution to World War II, is an interesting destination for a class trip.

09/15/2023

In honor of the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month, we remember Major General Luis Raul Esteves (USMA 1915).

General Esteves was the first Puerto Rican to graduate from West Point, doing so with the Class of 1915, also known as “The Class the Stars Fell On.” His entry into the Academy was initially denied because, at the time, Puerto Ricans were not yet granted US citizenship . After deliberation, and taking into consideration the commissioning of such officers as the Marquis de Lafayette and Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben during the War of Independence, his application was accepted.

He entered West Point during the summer of 1911 with other notables such as Dwight D. Eisenhower, whom Esteves tutored in Spanish. Esteves commissioned with the Class of 1915 and served with distinction throughout his career. He eventually achieved the rank of Major General in the US Army. Today, he is known as the “Father of the Puerto Rico National Guard” which he founded in 1919.

West Point - The U.S. Military Academy, Dean of the Academic Board-West Point, West Point Department of History, U.S. Army Center of Military History, West Point Parents, West Point Museum, Harbor Defense Museum, The West Point Parents, Relatives, and Grandparents! West Point-USMA!, Ex*****on Hollow, West Point Association of Graduates, U.S. Army

Recently our Curator attended the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) 2023 Annual Conference in Boi...
09/14/2023

Recently our Curator attended the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) 2023 Annual Conference in Boise, Idaho.

He actively participated in the Strategic Planning for the U.S. 250th Anniversary workshop and three sessions (Approaches to the 250th: Early Lessons from Across the Country, Legacies of the Bicentennial at Parks: Reframing Narratives, and The U.S. Semi-quincentennial and the Power of Imagery) that were designed to help organizations prepare for the 250th anniversary of the Revolutionary War.

For those unaware, USAG Fort Hamilton has a direct connection to the Battle of Brooklyn (Long Island) and the larger fight, the Battle for New York. The aerial photograph from 1935, the arrow points at Gravesend Beach (what remained at that time), the beach the British landed on in August of 1776. Fort Hamilton sits on part of the landing site. Keep in mind, the Battle of Brooklyn is the first battle fought after declaring our independence.

The Harbor Defense Museum has exhibit space dedicated to interpreting the battle. Our goal is to upgrade this area by the time of the 250th anniversary. Within our strategic plan is to provide more information on the British amphibious landing, the role of African Americans, women, and Indigenous People, and to bring in new artifacts for exhibition related to the battle.

Stay tuned….

U.S. Army Center of Military History
West Point Museum


Address

230 Sheridan Loop
New York, NY
11252

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

(718) 630-4349

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Harbor Defense Museum

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