Battery Eubank

Battery Eubank (1942-1945) - Battery Eubanks was a temporary, World War II 8 inch coastal railroad gun battery emplaced on Manhattan Beach Military Reservation, a sub-post of Fort MacArthur, in Los Angeles County, California. Battery support construction started in February 1942, was completed in August 1942 and oficially transferred to the Coastal Artillery for use 20 May 1943 at a cost of $ 46,907.34. Deactivated in 1944.

File:8 inch MK. VI.jpg MKVI M3 8" Railway Gun in Firing Position	8" MKVI M3A2 Navy Railway Gun on Army Carriage, 1938
8" MKVI M3A2 Railroad Gun at Fort Miles Delaware

World War II (1941-1945)

Part of the Harbor Defense of Los Angeles.

Originally built as a World War II temporary coastal gun battery with two 8" MKVI-M3 Naval guns mounted on M1A1 Army railroad carriages. This was a mobile railroad battery with two fixed emplacements located on a rail spur track. Two powder and two projectile storage structures were built adjacent to the siding. Two fake rollaway farmhouses were used to conceal the railcars when not firing.

A detachment of Battery E, 52nd U.S. Coast Artillery, from Fort Hancock manned Battery Eubanks from December 1941 until the spring of 1944 when the personnel were shipped out to Camp Breckinridge, Kentucky. Battery E was re-designated Battery A, 285th Coast Artillery (Ry) in May 1943.

Battery Eubanks was a part of the Harbor Defenses of Los Angeles plan until 1944. The guns and carriages were transferred to the Sierra Ordnance Depot on 22 Apr 1944 and processed for salvage at the end of the war.

Battery Eubanks Armament (edit list)

Empl No	Caliber Type	Barrel Length	Model		Serial No	Manufacturer	Carriage	Service Dates	Notes
?	8" Rifle	368.9"	Mark VI M3	A2	127	Naval Gun Factory	Railroad, M1A1, # ?, Baldwin	1942-1945	See note 1
?	8" Rifle	368.9"	Mark VI M3	A2	237	Naval Gun Factory	Railroad, M1A1, # ?, Baldwin	1942-1945	See note 1
Source: RCW Form 1,8 Nov 1943, CDSG, Berhow, Mark A. ed, American Seacoast Defenses: A Reference Guide, 2nd Edition, CDSG Press, McLean, VA, 2004, ISBN 0-9748167-0-1, pages 116 Note 1: CDSG Gun Card Collection from NARA

Battery Eubanks Plan

Current Status

No period guns or mounts in place. Site is overbuilt with houses.

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Location: Manhattan Beach, Los Angeles County, California Maps & Images Lat: 33.89083 Long: -118.40750 Multi Maps from ACME Maps from Bing Maps from Google Elevation: 187'

Sources:

• U.S.Army, Supplement to the Harbor Defense Project Harbor Defenses of Los Angeles, (LA-AN-WDC-44), 31 Aug 1944, CDSG

Links:

• Wikipedia - 8 inch Mk. VI railway gun
• CDSG

Visited: 7 Jan 2013

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