Harbor Defenses of New York

Atlantic Highlands – New Jersey
May 2013, October 2012, April 2006

Cory Newman Update May 2013

On May 16, 2013 I was invited to go on a special tour of the Navesink Military Reservation with Air Force veteran John Corbett of the 646th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (April 1958 to December 1959) and two other Air Force veterans. We were given a driven tour in a Parks van by Monmouth County Park Ranger Ken Olsen who manages the Hartshorne Woods Park. There were many trees which fell across the paved roadways of the site during Hurricane Sandy which had been cleared over the last couple of months by park personnel. Battery Lewis, Battery 219 and the Plotting and Switchboard Bunker are still closed to the public but what was noticed was that there are relatively new signs near Battery Lewis and Battery 219 that had been put in place about two years ago. There are plans to restore the concrete gun shield of gun emplacement # 2 (North Gun), the park system has allocated over $200,000 for this restoration. The park system is also in the process of researching the history of Battery Lewis for nomination as a National Historic Landmark. In the future it is planned to open up Battery Lewis as a park museum after it is nominated at a historic landmark. The operations area where the SCR-296 Radar was is now home to a nesting family of Ospreys on top of an old telephone pole with the male being named “Rocky”.

The site of the Navesink Mortar Battery (Four 12” Mortars emplaced during World War I) had a large tree fall over and exposed some concrete slabs of the site which had been buried under about 6 inches of soil. There is still only one 12 inch Mortar emplacement still exposed. The other three emplacements are still buried. The site is on the property of the Henry Hudson Regional High School adjacent to the Hartshorne Woods Park property. (Contact should be made by the Coast Defense Study Group staff concerning this site to the High School)

A new 100 foot tall cellular tower has been emplaced near the former site of the SCR-582 radar and Base End stations. “The tower is a “public safety tower” erected by the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office for improved emergency services communications among police and first responders.  It replaces the smaller cell tower on wheels that stood on the Adair property for several years.  I was not aware that it had any military use. If you want more information, you will have to contact the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office as it was not a Park System project.” It was told that the tower also has a Homeland Security purpose in that it relays info from the New York Air Traffic Control to McGuire Air Force Base regarding air traffic. This has not yet been independently followed up upon by me with contact to the county sheriff’s department.

October 2012. Cory James Newman

1) A unit emblem sign has been erected between Battery Lewis (Construction #116) by the Monmouth County Park System next to the entrance parking lot of the Rocky Point section of Hartshorne woods.

2) There are several interperative signs that have also been put up on the main paved trails next to Battery Lewis and Battery 219.

3) Work to repair age damage to the overhead concrete shield of Gun emplacement #2 of Battery Lewis is planned.

Fort Name: (Military Name/Harbor Defense)

Highlands Military Reservation, HDNY; re-designated Highlands Air Defense Base during Nike Missile/Cold War era (1950-74); Air Defenses of the North East and the New York Metropolitan Area.

Date of Visit: 4/2/06

Current Site Name:

Hartshorne Woods Park

Site Use: (Park, School, Private Ownership, Landfill, Etc.)

Monmouth County Park System maintains the site. Henry Hudson, a local high school located nearby, uses the park for their Cross Country running course. It contains various nature and hiking trails.

Is the Site open to the Public? :

Yes

Dates and Hours of Operation:

Year round, from 8am-8pm. A small parking lot that can service about 30+ vehicles is located at the entrance.

What type of programs are offered at the Site? :

Living History: None known at this time.
Tours: None known at this time.
Museum Shop: Negative – site does not have one.
Restoration Projects: Unknown at this time.

Are there events that the Site would like to have advertised in the CDSG Newsletter?

Event: None, at this time.
Description: N/A
Dates/Times: N/A

What is the overall condition of the Site?

Varies seasonally. There is usually extremely un-checked vegetation, but it appeared to be well maintained when I visited on 4/2/06. This was probably the Park’s annual clearing.  There is no access to the interior of the two batteries. Their entrances have been covered over with chain link fencing.

All traces of Cold-War era buildings and equipment were obliterated several years ago. There are massive quantities of debris from the demolition littered all over the site. The site is 719 acres, and there are traces of its military heritage located all over it. There is no indication of any kind that it is being preserved at this time..

What is the condition of the Individual Elements?

Batteries:

1)    Battery Lewis: (BCN #116; 2X16”CBC) Both emplacements are open for the public to walk through. Very little remains of the battery’s equipment, as it has been salvaged down to nearly the last bolt. All other entrances are covered by chain link fence. If entry is granted by park personnel, Battery Lewis is dry and well preserved.

2)    Battery 219: Located at the edge of the bluffs, 219 is also in excellent shape. There is a picnic table located on top of the battery, with a small path and a split rail fence to access it. It has a superb view of the ocean and surrounding countryside. Both barbette wells are filled in, but are visible. The interior is in excellent condition- clean and dry. Like Lewis, there is little to no rust. Many features remain, such as fuse and electrical panels, which retain legible information regarding both the manufacturer, and the purpose of the equipment. Interior doors still retain legible inscriptions such as “Powder Magazine,” etc. No damage from vandalism noticeable

3)    Magazine/Bunker: Located to the south of Lewis, down a trail and off to one side is a complex of several rooms built into the hillside. Noticeable features include a large vertical ladder, which has been sealed off at the top. This too, is fairly dry, but vandalism in the form of spray paint is much more evident here.

4)    McCook/Reynolds: To ease crowding of the mortar pits of Batteries McCook and Reynolds at nearby Ft. Hancock, the mortars nearest the magazine door in each pit were removed and transferred here during WWI. Only one of the four carriage wells remains uncovered by unchecked growth and neglect. There are various foundations of buildings nearby.

Buildings:

1)    Base End Stations: There are two remaining, mint condition Base-End Stations located within the Reservation. These are prime candidates for restoration and preservation.

Other Elements:

All supporting buildings, from both WWII and Cold War eras have been obliterated; only debris remains. There is debris scattered all over, from chunks of concrete and asphalt to severed telephone poles.

What is the protective status of the Site??

Unknown at this time, as there appears to be no indication of restoration or preservation work on either of the Batteries.

National Register? Unknown at this time –

State or Local Historic Site? Unknown at this time.

Current Site Owner(s): Monmouth County Parks System

Current Site Supervisor: Unknown

Mailing Address: Monmouth County Parks System, 805 Newman Springs Road, Lincroft, New Jersey – 07738

IMPORTANT NOTICE – THE MCPS HEADQUARTERS BURNED TO THE GROUND, THEY ARE CURRENTLY IN DISSARAY AND ARE ATTEMPTING TO REBUILD THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE. MORE DETAILS TO FOLLOW.

Phone: (732) 872-0336 or 2670 < Phone number for Hartshorne Woods Park; Phone # for MCPS main office is (732) 842-4000

Fax: Unknown at this time.

Email: info@monmouthcountyparks.com

Support Group: “Friends of the Parks” This is a non-profit group dedicated to assisting the MCPS in maintaining the various Monmouth County Parks.

Contact Person: Michelle Spears, Executive Director, Friends of the Parks

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 686, Lincroft, NJ 07738
Phone: (732) 975-9735
Fax: (732) 975-9741
Email: mspears@monmouthcountyparks.com

Website: http://www.friendsofmonmouthcountyparks.com/

Other Contacts at the Site: Unknown at this time.

Is the Site or a responsible individual at the site a CDSG member?

No; I will be contacting the Friends of the Parks about this.

Are there any projects at the Site that would benefit from CDSG funding?

Unknown at this time, but I’ll soon find out.

Is there anyone at the Site that would submit material for the CDSG Journal?

I’ll be more than happy to write a piece for the Journal.

Any Special Situations at the Site: (Damage, Imminent Destruction, Etc.)

Unfortunately, the batteries stand-alone against time, vandals and neglect. There is not even any mention of the site’s historic significance on the MCPS web page for Hartshorne Park. We need to get started now.

If individual batteries, base-end stations, buildings, etc. are in some way significant, please indicate:

There are various historically significant properties to the site:

1)    The Mortar emplacements from Ft. Hancock

2)    The remaining Base-End Stations

3)    The Highlands ADB was the 2^nd site to be activated in the US, and was the 1^st District command facility for the Air Defenses of the North East.

4)    Texas Tower #4, part of the U.S. Air Force’s Early Warning Radar System, was emplaced off the Jersey Shore until it collapsed due to structural failure in a violent storm in the early 1960’s with the loss of all 19 men aboard. Prior to its loss, due to the extremely large pitch the TT-4 developed in heavy seas, it was affectionately dubbed “Old Shaky” by it’s crew.  It’s “home-base” was the Highlands ADB; the call-signs were “Jitney” and “Dora.”

5)    The site alone is unique due to it’s geographic location; constructed on the highest land mass on the East Coast from Maine to Florida, and jutting out into a peninsula, formed by two rivers, it was the ultimate fortification, both impenetrable and imposing.

6)    British Army encamped in the area during the Revolutionary War.

7)    When the 16” BLR’s of Battery Lewis were test fired, they smashed nearly every window in the town of Sea Bright, NJ, which is located directly in front of, and across the river from the HMR.