The 27th Coast Artillery Battalion was a Coast Artillery battalion in the United States Army. It was the garrison of the Harbor Defenses of Bermuda, part of the US Army's Bermuda Base Command, from February 1942 through June 1944.[2] A predecessor unit in World War I was the 27th Artillery (Coast Artillery Corps), which existed briefly from October through December 1918.[1][3]
| 27th Coast Artillery Battalion | |
|---|---|
| Active | |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Coastal artillery |
| Role | Harbor defense |
| Size | Battalion |
| Part of | Harbor Defenses of Bermuda[2] |
| Garrison/HQ | Fort Bell |
| Mascot(s) | Oozlefinch |
World War I
editThe 27th Artillery (Coast Artillery Corps), which was a regiment, was organized in October 1918 at Fort Stevens, Oregon. Moved to Camp Eustis, Virginia later that month; demobilized there in December 1918.[1][3]
World War II
editThe 27th Coast Artillery Battalion (Composite) was organized on 20 February 1942 at Castle Harbour, Bermuda by redesignating US Army coast artillery units already in Bermuda. These included Battery F, 52nd Coast Artillery (CA) Regiment and Batteries B, G, and H (searchlight) of the 53rd Coast Artillery Regiment; the latter three had been redesignated from components of the 57th CA in July 1941. On 1 August 1943 the identifier "6-inch gun" was added to the battalion's designation, as the primary batteries (construction nos. 283 and 284) garrisoned by it at that time were of that caliber.[4] The 27th CA Battalion was inactivated at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club on 1 June 1944.[2][5] Typically, as US coast artillery units were demobilized late in the war, their assets would be transferred to their parent harbor defense command, in this case the Harbor Defenses of Bermuda.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Rinaldi 2004, p. 159.
- ^ a b c d Stanton 1991, pp. 478, 484.
- ^ a b Gaines Regular Army, p. 16
- ^ McGovern & Harris 2018, p. 48.
- ^ Gaines, pp. 26-28, 33
Bibliography
edit- Berhow, Mark A., ed. (2015). American Seacoast Defenses, A Reference Guide (Third ed.). McLean, Virginia: CDSG Press. ISBN 978-0-9748167-3-9.
- Gaines, William C., Coast Artillery Organizational History, 1917-1950, Part I, Coast Defense Journal, vol. 23, issue 2
- McGovern, Terrance; Harris, Edward (2018). Defenses of Bermuda 1612–1995 (Fortress 112). New York: Osprey Publishing c/o Bloomsbury Publishing.
- Rinaldi, Richard A. (2004). The U. S. Army in World War I: Orders of Battle. General Data LLC. ISBN 0-9720296-4-8.
- Stanton, Shelby L. (1991). World War II Order of Battle. Galahad Books. ISBN 0-88365-775-9.
Further reading
edit- Lewis, Emanuel Raymond (1979). Seacoast Fortifications of the United States. Annapolis: Leeward Publications. ISBN 978-0-929521-11-4.
External links
edit- US harbor defenses in Bermuda at the Coast Defense Study Group website
- FortWiki, lists most CONUS and Canadian forts
- American bases in Bermuda at American Forts Network
- American military bases in Bermuda from 1941 to 1995 Archived 2018-11-09 at the Wayback Machine
- Bermuda's British Army forts from 1609