Fort Amador ( es, Fuerte Amador) and Fort Grant were former
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
bases built to protect the Pacific (southern) end of the
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...
at
Panama Bay
The Panama Bay ( es, Bahia de Panamá) is a large body of water off the coast of southern Panama, at . It is a part of the greater Gulf of Panama.
Pollution Problems
The Panama Bay is considered to be in an eutrophic state by the World Resources ...
. Amador was the primary on-land site, lying below the
Bridge of the Americas
The Bridge of the Americas ( es, Puente de las Américas; originally known as the Thatcher Ferry Bridge) is a road bridge in Panama which spans the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. Designed by Sverdrup & Parcel, it was completed in 1962 at ...
. Grant consisted of a series of islands lying just offshore, some connected to Amador via a causeway.
Fort Sherman
Fort Sherman is a former United States Army base in Panama, located on Toro Point at the Caribbean (northern) end of the Panama Canal, on the western bank of the Canal directly opposite Colón, Panama, Colón (which is on the eastern bank). It wa ...
was the corresponding base on the Atlantic (northern) side. All of the forts were turned over to the
Republic of Panama
Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...
in 1999, and the area is now a major tourist attraction.
History
The offshore islands had always been considered excellent defensive grounds and were long visited by English
pirates
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
.
Sir Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 ( ...
,
Captain Cook
James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...
, and
Henry Morgan
Sir Henry Morgan ( cy, Harri Morgan; – 25 August 1688) was a privateer, plantation owner, and, later, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. From his base in Port Royal, Jamaica, he raided settlements and shipping on the Spanish Main, becoming wea ...
all used Taboga and Perico as refuges, after raiding Spanish
galleon
Galleons were large, multi-decked sailing ships first used as armed cargo carriers by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries during the age of sail and were the principal vessels drafted for use as warships until the Anglo-Dutch War ...
s. It was here that then-Captain
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
ended his cross-Panama march in 1852.
During the construction of the Panama Canal, notably the
Culebra Cut
The Culebra Cut, formerly called Gaillard Cut, is an artificial valley that cuts through the Continental Divide in Panama. The cut forms part of the Panama Canal, linking Gatun Lake, and thereby the Atlantic Ocean, to the Gulf of Panama and henc ...
, waste material was dumped in a mangrove bush then known as the "Balboa dump". As the work progressed, the dump was backfilled to create a large breakwater, which was later extended to the nearest of the offshore islands, Naos. This work was completed in 1912, and the military reservations were given their official names that year. Fort Amador is named for
Manuel Amador Guerrero
Manuel Amador Guerrero (30 June 1833 – 2 May 1909), was the first president of Panama from 20 February 1904 to 1 October 1908. He was a member of the Conservative Party.
Early life
Manuel Amador Guerrero was born on 30 June 1833 in Turbac ...
, the first president of Panama, while Fort Grant was named to commemorate Grant's earlier crossing to that point.
The two forts initially claimed only about of land, but this expanded over the years to over 344. Amador was the primary infantry and support area, and grew to include a rather prominent "tank farm" for fuel storage. Grant was used primarily for naval defence, and included a number of large
batteries on the various islands. To supply them, the causeway was extended to connect from Naos to the other nearby islands, Culebra, Perico, and Flamenco, all of which had batteries of various sizes. Grant also included the nearby unconnected islands of San Jose, Panamarca, Changarmi, Tortolita, Torola, Taboga, Cocovieceta, Cocovi, and Venado.
Armament
Fort Amador was initially armed with two batteries, each of two six inch disappearing guns. Batteries Birnie and Snith, begun in 1913, were completed in 1917. They remained in service until 1943, when the guns were removed, and the structures buried. The area was then used for housing. A 90mm Anti-Motor Torpedo Boat (AMTB) Battery replaced them in 1942; it, too, was disarmed and buried in 1948.
See also
*
14-inch M1920 railway gun
*
16-inch gun M1895
The 16-inch coastal defense gun M1895 was a large artillery piece installed to defend major American seaports. Only one was built and it was installed in Fort Grant on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal Zone. It was operated by the United Stat ...
at Fort Grant
*
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...
*
List of former United States military installations in Panama
This is a list of United States military installations in Panama, all of which fall within the former Canal zone. The U.S. military installations in Panama were turned over to local authorities by 1999.
Transition phases
In 1903, the Hay–Bunau- ...
References
* Military Railroads on the Panama Canal Zone by Charles S. Small, Railroad monographs 1982
* Life Magazine March 17, 1941
External links
*
* Includes excellent drawings of the
14-inch M1920 railway gun.
*
Historic American Buildings Survey
Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) responsible for administering the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American Engineering Record (HAER), and Historic American Landscapes ...
(HABS) documentation, filed under Panama City, Former Panama Canal Zone, CZ:
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{{coord, 8, 56, 17, N, 79, 32, 52, W, display=title, region:PA_type:landmark_source:GNS-enwiki
Installations of the United States Army
Military history of Panama
Military installations of the United States in Panama
Panama Canal
Historic American Buildings Survey in the former Panama Canal Zone