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COAST ARTILLERY CORPS

U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps 1901-1950

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  • By the end of 1898, the US Army artillery was organized into seven regiments, two of which were created that year.
  • In 1901, the regimental organization of the US Army artillery was abolished, and 126 companies of heavy (coast) artillery and 30 companies of light (field) artillery were established.
  • In 1907, the artillery was split into a field artillery, with a regimental organization, and the coast artillery corps, with additional coast artillery companies, making a total of 170 companies.
  • During 1917-1919 several coast artillery regiments were formed for artillery service in Europe. Most were demobilized in 1919.
  • By 1922 there were 289 coast artillery companies.
  • In 1924, a regimental organization of the Coast Artillery was instituted. There were 16 regular army harbor defense regiments, and several tractor drawn, railway, and antiaircraft regiments, along with a number of national guard and organized reserve harbor defense and antiaircraft artillery regiments (the number and type of active regiments changed frequently).
  • During 1943-45 all Coast Artillery regiments were broken up into separate battalions. New battalions were generally created as Antiaircraft Artillery (AA).
  • During 1944-1946, nearly all Coast Artillery units were deactivated
  • In 1950, the Coast Artillery Corps was officially abolished.

Here is a link to a recording of the 1934 Coast Artillery march “Crash On Artillery”

The CDSG frequently receives requests for unit rosters for coast artillery units in search for information on relatives and ancestors. Finding information on specific army units is one of the most difficult and time consuming research efforts. Some unit records and other service record information may be obtained from the National Personnel Records Center (Military Personnel Records), St. Louis, MO. However, many records were destroyed by a fire in the 1970s, so many requests are unfulfilled. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) website has pages specifically designed for finding information on individuals. While finding information on officers is relatively easy, finding information on enlisted men in units is difficult. The best sources are menus produced for special events like Thanksgiving or Christmas dinners as well as special memory books (“year books”) that were produced sporadically. These show up from time to time at trade, memorabilia, and gun shows, and online.

The references listed and the PDF articles that can be downloaded from this page cover Coast Artillery Corps organization, uniforms, insignia, lore, and housing.

For information on specific units, especially during WW I and WW II, consult these references:

  • U.S.Army War College, Historical Section, Order of Battle of the United States Land Forces in the World War, Zone of the Interior: Organization and Activities of the War Department, 3 Vols., GPO,Wash. DC, 1949.
  • Barnes, Lieutenant Colonel H. C., C.A.C. “A Regimental Organization for the Coast Artillery Corps,” Originally published in the April 1924 of The Coast Artillery Journal (Vol. 60, No. 4). Click here for a digitized version of the Barnes article.
  • Clay, Steven E. U.S. Army Order of Battle 1919-1942, Combat Studies Institute Press, US Combined Arms Center, Ft. Leavenworth, KS 2010. https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Books/Browse-Books/Units-and-Organizations/#books-units-and-organizations
  • Harris, Lt. Col. Edward M., “Coast Artillery Corps Regiments and Battalions 1924-1943” Two studies prepared in August 1949 summarize the organization and deployment of seacoast artillery units from World War I through World War I. The original version of this history was a typescript copy filed in the Office of the Center for Military History. Click here for a digitized version of the Harris publication.
  • Sawicki, James P., Antiaircraft Battalions of the U.S. Army, Volumes 1 & 2, Wyvern Publications, Dumphries, VA, 1991.
  • Stanton, Shelby L., Order of Battle, US Army in World War II, Presidio Press, Novato, CA, 1984.
  • Bean, P.W., Parisi, F.J., Puylara, J. and Littman, A.A., “Antiaircraft – Coast Artillery Corps, Distinctive Insignia Series 20,” American Society of Military Insignia Collectors, 526 Lafayette Avenue, Palmerton, PA 18071-1621.
  • McKenney, Janice E., Air Defense Artillery, Army Lineage Series, Center of Military History, United States Army, Govt. Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1985.
  • War Department, Official Army Register, January 1, 1934, GPO, Wash. DC.
  • War Department, Army List and Directory, GPO, Wash. DC, various dates (1908-1936).

The following revised sections from American Seacoast Defenses: a Reference Guide and the Coast Defense Journal cover the organization of the coast artillery corps, a list of companies and regiments, uniforms, insignia, garrison buildings, and lore.

Jim Controvich has compiled a index to all the unit histories and some of the memoirs that mention units from the Coast Defense Study Group publications and a few other sources. Download the index from this link.

for more information contact Mark Berhow (berhowma@cdsg.org)

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