Battery Jasper

Battery Jasper, the primary Endicott System battery on Sullivans Island, was rushed to completion in 1898 when the Spanish-American War began. This massive reinforced-concrete structure was named for Sgt. William Jasper, a Revolutionary War defender of the palmetto log fort. Four powerful 10-inch disappearing rifles were mounted on its deck. These new breech-loading weapons each weighed 55 tons, had a range of 8.5 miles, and fired shells weighing 571 pounds. Lt. Johnson Haywood of Company C, 1st Artillery, recalled the hectic assembly of the guns from parts dumped haphazardly in the sand, from nuts and bolts in gunny sacks to twenty- and thirty-ton pieces of steel, which he had to gather, clean, and fit together without instructions. Labor gangs worked for weeks assembling and installing the 55-ton guns. Battery Jasper never fired a shot defending Charleston, but it served to train Coast Artillery and National Guard units until 1943. During firing exercises, Sullivans Island shook with concussion from the large guns, and residents were cautioned to leave windows open to prevent shattering glass.

Sullivan's Island, South Carolina · United States