General Information: This Endicott-era battery was completed and armed in 1900 with three 8-inch guns mounted on disappearing carriages. The battery was built to protect the inner harbor. These guns had a range of about 7 miles. After the early abandonment of this battery, when submarine mines were moved to outside the Golden Gate, the Fort Scott boundary was redrawn to place the battery within the Presidio of San Francisco. The three guns were dismounted and sent to the Watervlient Arsenal in New York State in November 1917 for use elsewhere during World War I, and the magazines were used for storage. Origin of Name: Battery Slaughter was named in honor of Lt. William A. Slaughter, Fourth Infantry, a West Point graduate who was killed by White River Indians at Brannons Prairie, Washington Territory, in 1855. Access and Current Condition: Battery Slaughter is located at the Presidio near the San Francisco National Cemetery and the cavalry stables. The battery was buried during construction of the Gold Gate Bridge approach road. Only small parts of the parapet and the observing station are now visible. It can be reached via a foot trail extending several hundred yards east from an unimproved parking area under the Golden Gate Bridge approach near the intersection of Crissy Field Avenue and Incinerator Road. Parking along the road is available but limited. Access to the interior magazines is not allowed. The area containing batteries Slaughter, Blaney, and Sherwood provides good views of the bay and its shipping.
Blue Print
Wanted! Old photo showing gun. Contact: Will Elder e-mail: will_elder@nps.gov
Present day view of battery.