Signal Hill

Signal Hill (1695-1945) - Signal Hill was a fortified complex, first established in 1695 at St. John's, Newfoundland for the defense of St. John's harbour. The complex was active from the Colonial era through World War II. Deactivated as a fortification in 1945. History Part of the Harbor Defense of St. John's. A fortified complex first established in 1695 at St. John's, Newfoundland for the defense of St. John's harbour and the city itself. This complex came to include forts, batteries and signalling stations on both sides of the narrow entrance to St. John's harbor as well as those fortifications atop Signal Hill itself. Signal Hill Fortifications Fortification Dates GPS Notes Queen's Battery (1796-1870) 47.56855, -52.68585 Fort Chain Rock (1673-Unk) 47.5675, -52.68769 Battery Waldegrave Fort Waldegrave (1798-1868) 47.56897, -52.69097 Frederick's Battery 47.56451, -52.685 Quidi Vidi Battery (1762-1870) 47.58019, -52.67366 Wallace's Battery () 47.57106, -52.68905 Duke of York's Battery () Carronade Battery () (1697-1870) Battle of Signal Hill (15 Sep 1762) The hill was the site of the Battle of Signal Hill on 15 Sep 1762 when British Lieutenant Colonel William Amherst led an expeditionary force to recapture St. John’s from the French. World War I (1914-1918) Signal Hill Fortifications WWI Fortification Dates GPS Notes Battery Waldegrave Fort Waldegrave (1916-1920) 47.56897, -52.69097 World War II (1939-1945) The passage of the U.S. Lend Lease Act in March 1941, officially began U.S. material support for Great Britain and commonwealth members. Lend Lease equipment and supplies were ferried across the North Atlantic by merchant ship convoys that gathered and formed at the Newfoundland ports of St. John's and Argentia. As a part of the Lend Lease agreement, Great Britain provided the U.S. with 99 year leases for military bases at these two Labrador ports and some outlying areas. Two U.S. Army bases were built, Fort McAndrew at Argentia and Fort Pepperrell at St. John's, Harmond Army Airfield was built near Stephenville. The U.S. Navy built Naval Air Station Argentia (NAS Argentia) at Argentia. Fort Pepperrell became the site of the Newfoundland Base Command that oversaw U.S. operations in Labrador. Signal Hill Fortifications - WWII Fortification Dates GPS Notes Fort Amherst (1941-1945) 47.5636, -52.67987 Two casemated 4.7-inch guns from Signal Hill Two 75mm guns to Chain Rock AMTB Battery Fort Chain Rock (1941-1945) 47.5675, -52.68769 Chain Rock AMTB Battery (1941-1945) Two 75mm guns from Fort Amherst Signal Hill 8" Battery (1941-1942) 47.57087, -52.68113 Two 8" guns to Red Cliff 8" Battery Sigal Hill 155mm Battery (1941-1942) See Note 1 360 degree Field of fire Middle Cove 155mm Battery (1942-1945) See Note 1 180 degree Field of fire Manuels 155mm Battery (1942-1945) See Note 1 180 degree Field of fire Note 1: Two 155mm Guns kept in storage ready for deployment to one of three locations Current Status Part of Signal Hill National Historic Site. Period guns and mounts in place. {"selectable":false,"width":"500"} Location: St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Maps & Images Lat: 47.57006 Long: -52.68202 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 350' See Also: Chain Rock Battery Waldegrave Battery Wallace's Battery Signal Hill 8" Battery Quide Vidi Battery Newfoundland Fortifications Harbor Defense of St. John's Sources: Prowse, D. W. Q.C., LL.D., A History of Newfoundland from the Engish, Colonial, and Foreign Records, 2nd Ed., 1896, London, Eyre and Spottiswoode, Pdf Candow, James E., A Structural And Narrative History Of Queen's Battery, Manuscript Report No. 343, Parks Canada, Signal Hill National Historic Park, 1980, Pdf Links: North American Forts - Signal Hill Canada's Historic Places - Signal Hill Newfoundland and Labrador Studies - Defence Works in the St. John's Narrows Visited: No