Board of Fortifications Several boards have been appointed by US presidents or Congress to evaluate the US defensive fortifications , primarily coastal defenses near strategically important harbors on the US shores , its territories , and its protectorates . Endicott Board . In 1885 US President Grover Cleveland appointed a joint Army , Navy and civilian board , headed by Secretary of War William Crowninshield Endicott , known as the Board of Fortifications ( now usually referred to simply as the Endicott Board ) . The findings of the Board in its 1886 report illustrated a grim picture of neglect of America ' s coast defenses and recommended a massive $ 127 million construction program for a series of new forts with breech - loading cannons , mortars , floating batteries , and submarine mines for some 29 locations on the US coast . Coast Artillery fortifications built between 1885 and 1905 are often referred to as Endicott Period fortifications . Prior efforts at harbor defense construction had ceased in the 1870s . Since that time the design and construction of heavy ordnance had advanced rapidly , including the development of superior breech - loading and longer - range cannon , making U . S . harbor defenses obsolete . In 1883 , the Navy had begun a new construction program with an emphasis on offensive rather than defensive warships , and many foreign powers were building more heavily armored warships with larger guns . These factors combined to create a need for improved coastal defense systems . The Endicott Board ' s recommendations led to a large - scale modernization program of harbor and coast defenses in the United States , including the construction of modern reinforced concrete fortifications and the installation of new batteries of large - caliber ( 14 - inch , 12 - inch , 10 - inch , 8 - inch , and 6 - inch ) breech - loading rifled artillery , coast defense mortars , and pneumatic dynamite gun s . Fields of electrically controlled submarine mines were also a critical component of the new defenses , as were smaller guns ( less than 5 - inch caliber ) used to protect the mine fields from minesweeping vessels and the larger guns from land attack . The fortifications constructed as part of this program were a departure from the traditional masonry forts concealing massed batteries of smooth - bore cannon that had dominated U . S . harbor defense for most the 19th century . Instead , smaller batteries of up to four large caliber rifled guns each were installed in well - constructed emplacements hidden behind earth - covered concrete parapet s . Most long - range , large - caliber rifles were mounted on disappearing carriages that would allow a gun to be raised to fire , but otherwise remain protected from the enemy ' s view or fire behind a protective parapet . Some large guns and most smaller guns were mounted on less expensive barbettes or pedestals ( see table below ) . Taft Board . In 1905 , after the experiences of the Spanish - American War , President Theodore Roosevelt appointed a new board , under secretary of war William Howard Taft . They updated some standards and reviewed the progress on the Endicott Board ' s program . Most of the changes recommended by the Taft Board were technical , such as adding more searchlights , electrification ( lighting , communications , and projectile handling ) , and more sophisticated optical aiming techniques . The Board also recommended fortifications in territories acquired from Spain ( Cuba and the Philippines ) , as well as Hawaii , and a few other sites . Defenses in Panama were authorized by the Spooner Act of 1902 . The Taft program fortifications differed slightly in battery construction and had fewer guns at a given location than those of the Endicott program . World War I and later . By the time of the First World War , many of the Endicott and Taft era forts had become obsolete due to the increased range and accuracy of naval weaponry and the advent of aircraft . In the 1920s and 1930s , most U . S . coast defense facilities were put on " maintenance " status , a type of " mothballing . " In the late 1930s and early 1940s , a new program of construction added huge 16 - inch gun batteries , as well as rapid - firing 6 - inch and 90 mm guns ( for use against motor torpedo boat s ) to many harbors ' defenses , and large fields of submarine mines were still being deployed as well . But as it became clearer that the U . S . was unlikely to face seaborne attack , these defenses were largely discontinued ( by 1945 ) , and were decommissioned altogether after 1946 . Endicott - Taft forts at war . The only Endicott era fort to come under direct fire enemy was Fort Stevens at the mouth of Columbia River in Oregon . On the night of June 20 , 1942 , the Japanese submarine surfaced off the coast and proceeded to shell Fort Stevens in the vicinity of Battery Russell . There were no U . S . casualties and damage to the fort was negligible . The battery commander made the decision not to return fire . Several Taft era fortifications in the Philippines were attacked and captured by Imperial Japanese forces within a few months of the U . S . entry into World War II . Fort Mills , Fort Hughes , Fort Drum ( El Fraile Island ) , and Fort Frank guarding the entrance to Manila Bay were subjected to a three - month siege that ended when U . S . forces surrendered on May 6 , 1942 . All four forts were recaptured by U . S . forces in early 1945 . At no point was any of the Taft era weaponry used against the targets for which they were designed , namely armored ships . Preserved forts and surviving weaponry . Several Endicott - Taft era forts have been preserved in the United States , though most of the period weaponry was dismantled and scrapped in the 1940s and 1950s . Fort Casey and Fort Worden on the Puget Sound in Washington State are now state parks , their extensive concrete gun emplacements , as well as many supporting structures , have been preserved and are now open to the public . Fort Winfield Scott at the Presidio in San Francisco contains several Endicott - Taft era emplacements in various states of preservation . Fort Winfield Scott is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area . Only a few examples of Endicott - Taft era weaponry survive to this day in the United States . Table of guns by caliber and carriage types . The following is summarized from American Seacoast Defenses , edited by Mark Berhow , with pages referenced from the rows . The units column reflects the lower of the original emplacements or the carriages built , since some emplacements were not armed and some carriages not used . Carriage models after 1905 are not included in the Endicott Era table .