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| Eaze-E |
After our crazy tour of the 8th Maine, we had made our way over to Battery Steele. It was still cloudy out and the rain had yet to come. It was actually a pretty cool walk, it was right along the water. The houses were amazing as well, and very expensive. We finally got to the trail leading to Battery Steele. It was a pretty muddy trail with some rough bridges, if you want to call them that, over the deep puddles. Thankfully, we made it by all those dams that those beavers had built up to try and stop us. The battery was just like Battery Keyes, it had a lot of graffiti. But what’s a World War 2 battery without Eazy-E? We started at the north entrance of the battery and made our way south, through a long dark hallway. Shooting off the hallway there were a bunch of rooms. I’m not sure what each room was used for but it was really cool. One of the dark doorways off the main hallway led to some stairs. I went down them and they lead me to bigger room, which was flooded, and to an exit outside. This was about three quarters of the way down the main hallway. When we reached the southern post and went outside to make our way back up to the northern entrance, I saw the exit that I had seen from the stairs and above the door it read, “1980 Star Center”. I’m not exactly what it was used for and it was confusing because it was labeled with the year 1980. Obviously it must have been used for something extremely different than the original intent of the battery.
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| North entrance that faces east Also the location of one 16’’ MarkII-M1 gun |
After, most of us walked on top of the battery and back up north, towards where we originally entered. The top was highly over-grown with bushes and grass but there was still a distinct pathway. We made it to the top of the concrete entrance, where there was a great view of the ocean, then back down where we left. It was perfect timing as well because it started to rain. It was definitely my favorite historical visit in Maine so far.
Historical Background:
Battery Steele is a concrete battery located on Peak’s Island, Maine. The construction of the battery started in 1942 but would not be put into use until 1945 when it was transferred to the Coastal Artillery. The battery was named after Harry L. Steele who was a Major General and Chief of Coastal Artillery between 1935 and 1936. Due to the location of Peak’s Island, an outer island which had a clear view of the Atlantic, it was a perfect location for batteries such as Battery Steele. The battery was armed with two 16’’ MarkII-M1 guns that were capable of firing shells roughly 2000 pounds 26 miles out to sea.
The guns were the largest land based guns in the history of American Coastal Defenses. Between the two guns, a large roadway with many rooms sprouting off, were apparently used for military personnel, supplies, ammunition, and intelligent centers. The battery was built late into the war and would be deactivated in 1948, three years after the World War 2 was over.
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| Picture of what the gun would look like (taken from internet) |
The guns were the largest land based guns in the history of American Coastal Defenses. Between the two guns, a large roadway with many rooms sprouting off, were apparently used for military personnel, supplies, ammunition, and intelligent centers. The battery was built late into the war and would be deactivated in 1948, three years after the World War 2 was over.
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| South entrance. "1942 Battery Steele |
Battery Steele, much like Battery Keyes, served the same purpose. They were used to guard the coastal areas of Maine, since it is of course a coastal state. Information from a source reads, “It is an important relic of the end stage of American efforts to mount land based coastal defenses”. This rings true but more importantly, this battery was not only crucial to American defense efforts as a whole, but for Maine specifically. Maine, particularly Portland, had always had a high volume of fishing and shipping vessels entering and leaving the harbor. As a result, coastal waters around Maine had to have great naval defenses due to the high traffic of ships. Battery Steele was one of those defenses during World War 2; helping defend Maine and the United States from the enemy. It is important to preserve the battery because it is an object that reflects what Maine was, and still is, and how important it was for Maine to protect its citizens and its economy.
Sources: http://www.maine.gov/tools/whatsnew/index.php?topic=mhpc_recent_listings&id=26398&v=article
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