CDSG REPRESENTATIVE SITE VISIT REPORT

Fort Name: Lake/Laguna Merced Military Reservation (1898 – 1917), Fort Funston (1917 – 1972)

Date of most recent Visit: 24 September 2006

Current Site Name: Fort Funston Golden Gate National Recreation Area

Site Use: The southern and central portion of the former HDSF military reservation is now a National Park Service Golden Gate National Recreation Area park. A large, northern section of the former reservation had been parceled off to the City of San Francisco & turned into a roadway (Great Highway extension in the mid-1960s) & the modern $185 million dollar Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant which was completed in 1993. An eastern portion that is believed to have never been developed by the Army was sold after WW-II and now is an apartment complex.

Is the Site open to the Public?: Yes, free
Dates and Hours of Operation: Year-round, dawn to dusk

What type of programs are offered at the Site?:

A few interpretive kiosks focus on the military history and map out the trails, with more panel displays focusing on the military history of Ft Funston to be added by 2007.  Some restoration programs over the past several years utilize volunteers to remove some non-native vegetation (planted to help conceal the HDSF sites in the 1930s & 1940s), but only in some specific areas.

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

Organized tours focusing on the Ft Funston military history are very rare.

What is the overall condition of the Site?:

A very nice installation to visit, due to the combination of large and small HDSF remains, Nike missile launch site SF-59L & Administrative site SF-59A remains, as well as the sand dunes, 180 foot high cliffs, and the beach.  Some graffiti.  Many temporary and permanent HDSF southern Ft Funston structures were removed and the naturally hilly land was graded over during the early 1950s in the initial stages of an aborted plan to build a large Veterans Administration hospital complex.  Likewise, temporary and permanent structures on the northern section including gun batteries were removed after 1950 when the land was given to the City of San Francisco, which subsequently built an extension of the Great Highway, a major wastewater treatment plant, and a National Guard Armory that was constructed in the early 1950s and now is the sole operating military presence left at the former Fort Funston military reservation.  In addition to the documented, extant structures such as Battery Davis, some small, permanent structures are probably completely obscured by sand & vegetation and thus, there is always a good chance that an intrepid CDSG member exploring the current Ft Funston grounds may make a new discovery as sand & sand dunes shift over time. Non-native vegetation species such as ice plant, Monterey Cypress, and Blue Gum Eucalyptus trees planted by the military in the 1930s to offer some camouflage and sand erosion control to the site continue to flourish and help protect the remains. The dozens of acres of intact sand dunes are in this central portion of Fort Funston are the final vestige of a land form that once covered most of the western half of San Francisco.

What is the condition of the Individual Elements?:
Batteries:

BATTERY (General Walter) HOWE (four 12  mortars): Located in the northern section of the fort, the location of the battery lies directly under The Great Highway, and it is unknown if the mortar pits (which were the only permanent structures in the battery) were broken up and removed, or if they still remain intact under the highway. If surviving, this Battery would be significant as it was the final mortar battery constructed in the USA, and the four mortars were aligned in a straight line paralleling the coast, not the typical pit configuration. Although built as a temporary battery in 1917, Battery Howe remained armed until 1945.Approximate coordinates: 37-43.37N / 122-30.22W

BATTERY (Colonel Lawrence L.) BRUFF (two rapid-fire guns on barbettes):  The battery was considered obsolete half a year after it became operational in 1919 and was dismantled. It was apparently located under what is now part of the Great Highway.

BATTERY (Major General Richmond P) DAVIS (two casemated 16): Intact, gun pits filled in, and access to interior portions of battery were sealed in approximately the early 1990s to mitigate squatters, gang use, and general liability concerns.  Most of the battery is still extremely well-hidden by the sand, ice plant, and Monterey Cypress trees, as intended in the 1930s and 40s.  Chronic, albeit minor opportunistic graffiti located in gun pit area walls. The top of the casemate can be explored, with the burster course  layer of concrete above the Battery Davis casemate proper being displayed, thanks to some sand erosion. Interior survey of casemate was conducted in 2006 & condition is poor/gutted, due to it having been open to natural & human elements for several decades.

Gun 1: 37-43.1N / 122-30.25W  Gun 2: 37-43.06N / 122-30.20W

BATTERY BLUFF (four 155mm GPF guns on Panama Mount carriages):  The original site was built along the cliff bluff (hence the name of the battery) N of Battery Davis in 1937. Two 270 degree and two 180 degree mounts. The guns were moved to a new spot to the south and well inland from the bluff– in 1941 due to erosion concerns. One of the four original Panama mounts had slid down the eroded bluff prior to 1972, with a second one joining it prior to June of 1987, the third one prior to 1997, and finally the fourth one in December of 1997, just as a NPS Historic American Engineering Record on the original Battery Bluff Panama Mounts was being completed. The Panama Mounts and associated concrete structures are resting on the beach, but depending on tide action, the semi-circle ring mounts, center gun mounts, and several unidentified concrete remains can be quite visible, or all but a small section can be completely covered by sand. The second location of Battery Bluff was just to the west of the Nike Administrative area buildings, in whats now an open field, with no remaining evidence thanks to the circa 1950 grading done by Veterans Affairs bulldozers.

Remains of original Panama Mounts, now on the beach:

37-43.34N / 122-30.36W  and  37-43.33N / 122-30.36W

ANTI-AIRCRAFT BATTERY #5/#3 (three 3 M1917M1A2 guns):  Originally designated as SF AA Site #5, it was later re-designated as being Battery #3.  The remains of one suspected gun mount has been located at 37-43.40N / 122-30.25W and is an approximately 3 diameter concrete-lined hole, now approximately 18’ deep with some sand & small vegetation inside.

The AA Battery Power House is extant, and secured since 1993.  An officially-sanctioned interior survey was made in May, 2006 and the interior was found to be completed gutted, with walls covered by soot from fire.  Graffiti, sand and minor amounts of litter had accumulated inside during the several decades prior to the interior being secured.  The hardened facility was built into a sand dune, and only its South-facing entrance and roof are visible. Red stucco insulation/waterproofing tile on the roof is now completely exposed and will now be subject to vandalism.

37-43.37N / 122-30.22W

The AA Battery storage magazine is approximately 40 north of the AA Power House, and was also covered over with sand and vegetation except for the North-facing entrance which was also secured in 1993.  Interior access was also made in May, 2006 and the interior was also found to be in poor condition due to open access for several decades.

37-43.38N / 122-30.23W

NIKE SF-59 LAUNCH BATTERY (3 underground storage magazines, each with 4 above-ground launchers for the Nike-Ajax surface to air interceptor missiles): Only the Launch areas Assembly Building is intact, and now used by the hang-gliding club.  The main Fort Funston visitors parking lot sits directly atop the old launch batteries.  Missile elevator doors were capped with concrete in 2004, and personnel access to the underground portion is secured, Corps of Engineers contractors in spring, 2006 accessed the magazines as part of a DERP-FUDS survey.

Buildings:

FUNSTON GROUPMENT COMMAND POST:  On the edge of the bluff, west of the parking lot.  It is now part of a scenic overlook, but without any interpretive signage indicating to the dozens of people who visit each day exactly what it was. Intact, with rear entrance secured & obscured by heavy foliage. Chronic, albeit minor graffiti carved & written with magic marker onto it. The observation port is partially open, resulting in much litter being put inside.

37-42.86N / 122-30.20W

BASE END STATION B3S3 (Batt CHESTER), later B5S5 for BC 244: Approximately 100 south of the Funston Group CP, this BES is incorporated into the same wooden overlook platform, and also without any historical interpretation nearby. Walk-in entrance in rear is secured & obscured by heavy foliage, the structure is intact, albeit with typical minor graffiti, and litter dumped inside the partially-open observation port. Top hatch is secured shut. Of interest is a small concrete retaining wall (?) just below the front of the wooden observation platform that has LACKEY 7  24  42 imprinted on the top.

37-42.85N / 122-30.19W

BASE END STATION B2S2 (Battery 243): This BES, having slid off the approximately 170 bluff sometime after June of 1987, had been resting face forward at the bottom of the bluff in a 50 degree angle, but thanks to erosion during Northern Californias Winter 2005/2006 rains, it is now sitting level on the beach, half filled with sand.  It unfortunately is an attractive canvas for graffiti artists using spray paint. Entry can be made by crawling in the rear entrance, or the open top hatch.

37-43.39N / 122-30.36W

BATTERY DAVIS PLOTTING & SWITCHBOARD ROOM:  Intact and secured. NPS-sanctioned entry was made by a survey group in May, 2006 and the interior was found to be in poor condition due to not having been secured until 1993.  Much sand is on the floor, graffiti & soot from fires coat the walls, but there are some remains of acoustical soundproofing tiles on the ceiling, and electrical conduit and fuse/switch boxes on some walls.  The top is still mostly covered with sand and vegetation.  Some of the ventilation ducts still have their camouflage green sheet metal covers on them, including some with their Robertson Ventilator Size 14, Patent June 23, 1928, Pittsburg PAmanufacturers plate on them.

37-43.19N / 122-30.11W

Other Elements:

AA .50 site #53 machine gun pit: mostly obscured, octagonal-shaped concrete protective wall with an approximately 8 diameter was recently discovered on the south end of the Battery Davis casemate, perhaps 20 yards S. of Gun #2.  It is filled with sand and with ice plant growing inside.  .50 AA site #52 was on the North side of Battery Davis gun #1 according to a layout map, but has not been located by me yet.

37-43.04N / 122-30.17W

A small rock & concrete wall, perhaps 8 long and 2 tall, sits atop the 2 thick Battery Davis burster wall approximately half-way between Guns 1 & 2.

37-43.09N / 122-30.20W

A semi-circle wall of stacked, concrete-filled sandbag remains denotes a probable former machine-gun emplacement. The upper bag-shaped concrete blocks are somewhat loose, so my assumption is that someone in recent times stacked or re-stacked them, however the bag-shaped concrete comprising the base are somewhat fused together.

37-43.33N / 122-30.19W

Scattered atop and along the SW side of a tall sand dune are the remains of dozens of concrete-filled sandbags, possibly denoting a former machine gun position.

37-43.43N /122-30.27W

An approximately 4 tall 3 diameter pipe rests vertically in a concrete block that has GUN – 2 imprinted in it is possibly an old machine gun emplacement.  A .30 caliber casing stamped EW 42 (Eu Claire Ordnance Plant, Wisconsin, 1942) was found resting on the surface of the sand just a few feet away from the gun emplacement in September, 2006.

37-43.37N / 122-30.27W

Part of the concrete backstop wall for former Ft Funston rifle/pistol range slid off the bluff during the winter of 2005/2006 due to erosion and is now resting a dozen yards or so south of the original Battery Bluff Panama Mounts on the beach.  The rest of the range area is in what has been declared a nature preserve, off-limits to visitors, mostly to protect a seasonal migration of Bank Swallows.  Numerous spent bullets ranging from .22 to .45 calibers are commonly found on the sand surface in this area.

The foundations for the Fort Mason Rod & Gun Clubs clubhouse, built with non-appropriated funds & thus of a different type of construction than other permanent facilities at Ft Funston, remains nearby the firing range.  The Rod & Gun Club had a skeet range, and some of the dunes in this area (inside the nature preserve) are littered with clay pigeon fragments.

Funston-Cliff House Communication Cable Vault is intact, on the cliff about 100 yards N of the Battery 243 B2S2, and appears to be ready to fall onto the beach as the cliffside around it erodes during a future winter rain.

What is the protective status of the Site?: Central area (Nike area north to the original Battery Bluff area) is considered the Fort Funston Historic District.

National Park:? Former southern and central area (the area with existing HDSF remains) is part of the National Park Service Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

National Register?: Affirmative eligibility for National Register of Historic Places determined in 1980, most of the current GGNRA Ft Funston property is a Historic District.

State or Local Historic Site?: National
None?:

Current Site Owner(s): Dept of the Interior, National Park Service Golden Gate National Recreation Area
Current Site Supervisor: Brian ONeill, Superintendent, NPS GGNRA
Mailing Address: Fort Mason, Bldg 201  San Francisco CA 94123-0022
Phone: 415/561-4700
Fax: 415/561-4310
Email: brian_o’neill@nps.gov

Web: http://www.nps.gov/archive/goga/fofu/index.htm

http://www.nps.gov/archive/prsf/coast_defense/harbor_defense_sf/world_war_2/world_war_2.htm

Support Group: Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy
Contact Person: David Shaw, Director of Communications
Mailing Address: Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, Fort Mason Bldg 201, San Francisco CA 94123-0022
Phone: 415/561-3000
Fax: 415/561-3003
Email: tellmemore@parksconservancy.org

Web: http://www.parksconservancy.org

Other Contacts at the Site: (Individuals interested in the history/preservation of the place)

T. Tyler, NPS GGNRA Fortifications Research volunteer

Mailing Address: PO Box 25268, San Mateo CA 94402
Phone: 817/385-6335
Fax: 817/887-4705
Email: cdsg.hdsf@yahoo.com

Is the Site or a responsible individual at the site a CDSG member?: Yes. Steve Haller, NPS GGNRA Historian, James Osborne and Bob Holloway, NPS GGNRA Rangers, are CDSG members.

What information can the CDSG provide to the management of the site?: Expertise on HDSF-related matters pertaining to Fort Funston.

Are there any projects at the Site that would benefit from CDSG funding?:  None specifically come to mind, however there are some projects involving manual labor that GGNRA might permit CDSG members to carry out at Fort Funston.

Is there anyone at the Site that would submit material for the CDSG Journal?: Fort Funston does not seem to be routinely staffed with interpretive personnel, but certain key NPS GGNRA staff are CDSG members.

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

Due to Fort Funston being infrequently patrolled by US Parks Police and NPS Rangers, the threat of vandalism to the few smaller & relatively fragile remains could be high, as is the risk of graffiti.

CDSG members planning to visit Fort Funston should be aware that it is the most popular dog-walking location in the western USA, with the majority of dogs being off-leash, so special attention for dogs needs to be paid while driving in the parking lot. The dogs are generally well-socialized & hardly interested in humans.

FUNSTON GROUP CP & B3S3/B5S5 BESs, though surrounded by a modern, sturdy reinforced scenic overlook platform, are nonetheless perched near the edge of the bluff which is subject to steady erosion and has already resulted in numerous other permanent structures sliding to the beach approximately 170 feet below.

Some parts of the original roadway leading through the site have collapsed due to sand erosion underneath it.

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

BATTERY BRUFF was the last mortar battery in service, and was the only mortar battery configured with the four mortars in a straight line.

BATTERY DAVIS was the first casemated 16” gun battery on the West Coast, and was the engineering prototype for all other casemated gun emplacements.

BATTERY BLUFF was apparently the only 155mm battery in the HDSF area of responsibility to be mounted on Panama mounts, and is the subject of 1998 NPS Historic American Engineering Record # CA-193-A.

Other web resources:

A great overview of the history or Ft Funston and the gun emplacements and associated structures:  http://www.militarymuseum.org/FtFunston.html

A sub-page of the above site, focusing specifically on Battery Davis:  http://www.militarymuseum.org/BtyDavis.html

Library of Congress electronic copy of NPS Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) for the Fort Funston 155mm gun Panama Mounts: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/S?pp/hh:@field(TITLE+@od1(Fort+Funston,+Panama+Mounts+for+155mm+Guns,+Skyline+Boulevard+++Great+Highway,+San+Francisco,+San+Francisco+County,+CA))

Overview of the area & trails, oriented towards walkers & hikers: http://www.bahiker.com/sfhikes/funston.html

Dog walking is the most popular activity at Fort Funston: http://www.fortfunstondog.org/

Second only to dog-walking, hang-gliding is an extremely popular activity at Fort Funston: http://www.flyfunston.org/

A web-cam & near real-time weather information at Ft Funston: http://funston.appweb.org/webcam.htm

Web site featuring Apple QuickTime panoramic views of Ft Funston from various locations at Funston, including atop the Funston Groupment Command Post, atop the Battery Davis burster course, and near the entrance of Battery Davis Gun #2: http://www.virtualguidebooks.com/CentralCali/SanFrancisco/FunstonMerced/FortFunstonPlatform.html

Thanks to: John Martini, NPS GGNRA Retired, Bob Holloway, NPS GGNRA Ranger, James Osborne, NPS GGNRA Ranger, Al Grobmeier, Dan Sebby & the California State Military Departments California State Military Museum.