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Located at the southern tip of Rugged Island, Battery Const. #294 is perched atop a precipitous slope nearly 700 feet above the waters of Resurrection Bay. The battery was to have two 6-inch guns emplaced in turret-like steel shields, one on either side of the central magazine and plotting structure.
Battery #294 is one of two "split-level" 200 series batteries built by the US during the 1940s (The other being Battery Const. #296 in Kodiak). In these batteries the front corridor and rooms adjoining it are one story higher than the plotting and power areas to the rear. A stairway in the center corridor provides access between the two levels. In addition, the plotting complex and power plant are on opposite sides of the center corridor when compared to most other 200 series batteries.
Construction on Battery #294 was still under way in the Spring of 1944 when the Defenses of Seward were abandoned. According to Army documents, all of the concrete work had been finished and "Work had begun on the backfill and installation of Signal, power room and gun equipment."
Today, the excellent state of preservation and incomplete construction make Battery #294 a fascinating study in WWII Coast Artillery construction.
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