Visiting New England forts

[Paladin]

If anyone is interested in visiting and exploring old forts and military installations around New England, there is a group you may be interested in joining. The Council on America’s Military Past (CAMP) has a New England chapter. We meet usually in February in Nahant at the old Nike site which is now owned by Northeastern University. We show slides and discuss what sites we want to visit. It is very informal. About 15–25 members show up for meetings and tours.

We try to have a spring and fall trip each year to a local site. In April we visited Fort Strong on Long Island in Boston Harbor. This fall we hope to visit the private military museum of World War II in Natick. Our dues are voluntary just to cover mailings. Last year we visited Fort Adams in Newport, R.I.

You can visit CAMP’s web site at www.campjamp.org. If you wish to be on the New England Department’s mailing list, send an e-mail to Tom Vaughn, secretary, at [email protected] with your snail mail address. Tom will put you on the list. Many of the members are experts on various forts and military installations and some have written books.

 

[BillK]

not too much looking forward to old NIKE sites.. not much but concrete pads and some have bunkers... I do have the states permission (signed on paper)to go on any state land on the old Devens site, as long as it is not marked FEDERAL, I have been down to the old ASP's and opened the old bunkers to take a few photos, some of the land is now part of the new golf course..95% of Devens I know like the back of my hand.. the other 5% would be the impact zone's I, II, III. For the most part new devolopment areas where they have done so much to the land I can only "See" what I have in memory from years back. If I can find the disk I will upload some images of the sports complex that is now gone, and many other buildings that no longer are there.
The sad part is I still slow down heading onto base where the check points once stood.. and have also turned off my lights at night. I also stop at old 4 way points that the damn road ain't on the left or right anymore

New England has alot of great sites, too much to list but let history live on and share the knowledge of such areas to others to keep the spirit that is long gone alive!

Here is a point of such, on Barnum Rd. going into Devens.. I was told years back by a old vet, that the area was a bomb run in the 40's or so........

 

[MrsWildweasel]

And how much do you know on the intel part of Devens? Glenn taught in the intel school and also took his training there. Devens is one of our old haunts. Every time we are in that neck of the woods we have to go through there for nostalgia.

 

[MrsWildweasel]

We also miss the tank on Devens at the south post entrance.[sad2] Nothing like going down memory lane.

 

[BillK]

the old intel area is the POW area from WW2 if we are talking about the same zone, the Sherman at Jackson gate was going to be returned, I have not heard what the deal is in the last 6 months, I was up in the area the other day, the Oxbow is taking up alot of the area and they have the road all torn up, Cutler is now off limits due to the federal medical center.

I must say the guard has a nice line up of eqp... the russian APC is a dream... small ass thing! lol

 

[MrsWildweasel]

Intel school was across from the parade ground, MP station, EM club. Don't know if we are talking the same area. I know the last time we went through the buildings right in front of the intel school is apartments or condos.

 

[BillK]

ahhh ok, the old MP area the state police use, and I hear the ballistic bunkers are still on the upper floor, another area the devens group uses

 

[MrsWildweasel]

I know Glenn had said the intel school buildings were in really rough shape when he was there. I'm just glad they are finally putting Devens to use instead of letting it rot. I know when we left, they had just built the new day care center, and refurb alot of the housing. Then of course the intel school moved to Huachucha, and Devens was done. There was a whole group of us that shipped from Berlin to Devens, and then everyone got out,because they were going to send us all back to Berlin. We hadn't even been in country 6 months.

 

[BillK]

it is very sad that the base closed, it is sad any time a unit gets moved and the local area loses a historical place, the area that surrounds the old base lost alot of people.. but sometimes things just don't work out

 

[SKS Ray]

This one is just south of me here in New Bedford. http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/southeast/ftph.htm

This link tells the history. http://www.southcoasttoday.com/topics/ss2004/story4.htm

 

[cdkayak]

Thanks for the info. I've been through a few here in Maine & it would interesting to be able to check some others out.

CD

 

[philly]

Does anyone know if they still allow scouts to camp on bases? I did it when I was younger, and i want to take my son, and the rest of the pack camping at a base.