Fort d ' Uxegney The Fort d ' Uxegney , or Fort Roussel , is part of the fortifications of Épinal . It was built near the village of Uxegney between 1882 and 1884 , and was modernized in 1910 . It is an example of a Séré de Rivières system fortification . It retains its armament and is maintained as a museum . Located northwest of Épinal , the Fort d ' Uxegney is part of a line of sixteen major fortifications designed to bar the advance of a German army into France . It retains a functioning example of an eclipsing Galopin turret . Armed with a 155mm gun , the assembly weighs 250 tons and was installed in 1907 . A considerable amount of the fort ' s equipment remains in place , including kitchens , living facilities and details of armament , in an unusually good state of preservation . Description . The fort was situated at an altitude of 379 meters above the valley of the Avière with the mission of controlling the Épinal - Mirecourt axis , the Épinal - Nancy railway and the Canal de l ' Est . The fort was laid out in a pentagon , surrounded by a ditch . Construction took only two years ( 1882 – 1884 ) . The fort includes fortified barracks , storage faicilities and magazines , and shelters for troops . The stone buildings of variegated cut stone were built in the open , then covered with earth from the excavation of the ditch and the leveling of the natural terrain . The initial garrison comprised 287 men , and the construction cost of the original fort amounted to about 1 . 7 million francs . . The principal armament consisted of five 155mm and five 120mm de Bange or Lahotolle guns on the three forward - facing walls of the fort , in the open air on platforms . The first reinforcement came in 1892 , when the fort ' s entry , powder magazine , a cistern , an infantry shelter and a number of other spaces were covered with concrete . From 1900 a series of spiral " queue de cochon " ( pig tail - shaped ) infantry shelters were placed on and around the fort . The second major phase of work , executed from 1910 , completely transformed the fort . A retractable or " eclipsing " turret was installed , mounting a 155mm gun . Another turret mounted two 75mm guns with shortened barrels , and two more turret mounted machine guns . Two " casemates de Bourges " mounted two 75mm guns in each casemate to cover the intervals between the forts to either side of Uxegney , while armored observation points were created with steel cupolas or cloches . Further concrete reinforcement was placed , while subterranean passages linked all sections of the fort . The defenses were improved with the addition of counterscarp positions in the outer walls of the ditch . A small central electrical plant was installed as well . The cost of these renovations came to 1 . 2 million francs . The renovated fort ' s garrison comprised 15 officers , 36 non - commissioned officers and 416 enlisted men . In 1914 a further project to add two 155mm gun turrets in a separate armored battery was proposed , but was canceled by the outbreak of war . History . The Fort d ' Uxegney saw no action during World War I , as the Germans did not advance into the area around Épinal . Between World War I and World War II the fort remained military property and was kept under maintenance . Along with the neighboring Fort de Bois l ' Abbé , Fort d ' Uxegney was used as an ammunition depot . . During World War II the Germans left Uxegney intact even as they stripped other forts around Épinal . The French army used both forts as ammunition depots until 1960 . They were afterwards abandoned . Present status . Since 1989 the " Association pour la Restauration du Fort d ' Uxegney et de la Place d ' Épinal " ( ARFUPE ) has restored and maintained the Uxegney site . The fort may be visited between May and September . The Fort de Bois l ' Abbé was used after 1960 by private tenants , but was restored by ARFUPE beginning in 1995 . It may be visited on special occasions .