A 6-inch Rapid Fire Armstrong Rifle was purchased from England in 1898 because the United States did not yet have the capability to produce a small, rapid fire weapon for the defense of its principal harbors. The Spanish-American War created a need for such weapons in this area because of Cuba's close proximity to Florida, and funding for these guns was included in the appropriation for the National Defense Act of March 9, 1898. The installation was completed as part of the armament of Fort Dade on Egmont Key on December 10, 1898, and the guns were placed under the command of an artillery detachment sent from St. Francis Barracks in St. Augustine. Only a limited number of these weapons were purchased by the government, and these two rifles are believed to be the only remaining models still in existence. Each weapon weighed 17 tons, was breech-loaded, used shell cases refillable with 13 1/4 pounds of powder, fired projectiles weighing 100 pounds, and had a maximum range of 10,000 yards, reaching such a target in 28.12 seconds. The gun had a 6-inch caliber, a bore length of 20 feet, 24 grooves, a muzzle velocity of 2,154 feet per second, penetration of wrought iron plate of 10 inches at 2,000 meters, and could be fired electrically by batteries or mechanically. Fort Dade was deactivated in 1921, and these guns, intended to defend the southwest pass into Tampa Bay, were left to the elements until Pinellas County recovered them from Egmont Key on April 12, 1980; after two years of refurbishing, they were installed here on March 19, 1982.