|
31 August, 1945
SUBJECT:
Report on Operations and Material - Fort Drum -
During the Bataan - Corregidor Campaign,
8 December 1941 - 6 May 1942.
TO: |
Commanding
General |
|
Army Ground
Forces |
|
Washington, DC |
1. |
Orientation. |
|
|
|
|
a. |
Geographical. The
entrance to Manila Bay is guarded by 4 islands. |
|
|
(1) Corregidor
- (Fort Mills) |
|
|
(2) Caballo
- (Fort Hughes) |
|
|
(3) El
Fraile - (Fort Drum) |
|
|
(4) Carabao
- (Fort Frank) |
|
|
|
|
b. |
Tactical
Command. The tactical command at the beginning
of World War II was known as the Harbor Defenses of
Manila and Subic Bays. This report deals with
Manila Bay only. The defenses were divided into two
parts, the AA Command and the Seaward Defenses
Command. Under the Seaward Defense Command were
groups I, II, III and IV. (There were no groupments).
The mission of the Seaward Defense Command was "to
deny the enemy the use of Manila Bay and to protect
the detachment of our Navy there from". |
|
|
|
2. |
Fort Drum -
Description and Organization. |
|
|
|
|
a. |
Fort
Drum was constructed on the small island of El
Fraile in the channel of Manila Bay in 1913, and was
termed the "Concrete Battleship". The entire top of
the original island was cut away to below the
surface of the water. On this foundation, the
reinforced concrete fort was constructed. When
completed, it was 350 feet long by 144 feet wide and
the main top deck extended 40 feet above mean low
water. The general outline of the hull, as seen
from above, resembled a ship with the pointed bow
toward the China Sea. The exterior walls of the
fort were approximately 20 feet thick, of reinforced
concrete. The deck had an overhead thickness of 18
feet of reinforced concrete and steel. Thin places
on the top deck over the casemates and where the
observation wells existed, were compensated for by
an additional 3 or 4 inches of steel plate. The
overall result was a top deck of uniform strength
generally equivalent to 18 feet of reinforced
concrete. The interior of the fort was cut into
several compartments, constructed on various
internal levels. The lower level was the engine
room, the floor of which was 6 feet below mean low
water. Above this was the main internal deck called
the "Typhoon Deck". It was here that most of the
troops were quartered. Other compartments housed
the fuel tanks, the powder and projectile rooms,
plotting room, storage facilities, kitchen and mess
hall compartments. Access to the fort was had by
means of the sallyport toward the stern which ran
entirely across the ship, generally from north to
south. The cover for the sallyport and entrance to
the typhoon deck was another approximately 20 feet
of concrete which had been an afterthought and had
been added to Fort Drum as protection to the
interior of the ship at a later date. |
|