Battery Jasper (1898-1942) - Battery Jasper was a reinforced concrete, Endicott Period 10‑inch coastal gun battery on Fort Moultrie, South Carolina. Originally named Battery Sergeant Jasper but renamed Battery Jasper in G.O. 17 and 23, 1898, after Sergeant William Jasper, 2nd South Carolina Regiment, Continental Army, who, during the attack of the British fleet on Fort Sullivan (1) on 28 Jun 1776, heroically restored to the fort the flag which had been shot away by a ball from a British Ship. Battery construction started in 1897 was completed in 1898 and transferred to the Coast Artillery for use 4 May 1898 at a cost of $ 238,100.00. Deactivated in 1942.
Part of the Harbor Defense of Charleston.
Originally built as an Endicott Period concrete coastal gun battery with one 10" M1888 gun and three M1888MII guns all mounted on M1896 disappearing carriages. This is a large two-story gun battery with four 10" gun emplacements on the upper level and magazines and utility rooms on the lower level.
Manual winch driven shell hoists were originally provided to lift the projectiles from the magazine level to the gun loading level. These were replaced with four electric Taylor-Raymond back delivery shell hoists in July 1904. The disappearing carriages were fitted with electric retracting motors.
The original electric plant was built into a small room in the battery. The increased load from the retraction and hoist motors required a larger plant and a new brick power plant building was built just behind gun emplacement #1. The new plant was accepted for service in March 1910.
The U.S. entry into World War I resulted in a widespread removal of large caliber coastal defense gun tubes for service in Europe. Many of the gun and mortar tubes removed were sent to arsenals for modification and mounting on mobile carriages, both wheeled and railroad. Most of the removed gun tubes never made it to Europe and were either remounted or remained at the arsenals until needed elsewhere.
The guns in emplacement 1 & 2 of Battery Jasper were designated for service overseas during World War I and were transferred to Watervliet for modification on 29 Jun 1918. Neither gun actually made it overseas and they were declared obsolete and salvaged in 1931. Both of these guns were replaced in Battery Jasper with guns transferred from Fort Washington (1), Battery Decatur, on 26 Mar 1919. The shell hoists were modified for the new long point shells in August 1919.
By the beginning of World War II, it was clear that many of the larger guns at Fort Moultrie were obsolete and they were quickly scrapped when the first large, quota driven, scrap drive happened in late 1942. The four 10" guns and carriages of Battery Jasper were among the first to go and they were ordered scrapped 6 Dec 1942.
On 12 Feb 1943 construction began on each of the four gun emplacements to modify them for use as an AMTB (Anti-Motor Torpedo Boat) battery. This battery had two 90mm rapid-fire guns on fixed mounts and two identical 90mm rapid-fire guns on mobile mounts. Emplacements 2 and 3 were fixed and emplacements 1 and 4 were mobile, see Battery AMTB 2A - Sullivans Island.
No period guns or mounts in place.
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Visited: 23 Jan 2010