5. Fort Hamilton

Fort HamiltonFort Hamilton in Bay Ridge was ready, but never fired a shot in anger. Image via: U.S. Library of Congress

The only U.S. military post in Brooklyn has been here since 1831, when Fort Hamilton established its first garrison. The post was aligned with Fort Lafayette (which is where the Verrazano–Narrows Bridge is today) and Fort Columbus on Governors Island.

During World War I it was a central processing unit for soldiers. The Coast Artillery Corps manned Fort Hamilton’s batteries for an attack that never came. Among active-duty Army units, companies from the Twenty-Second Infantry Regiment were stationed here. They were used for guard duty, training, and supply. On August 3, 1917, the Twenty-Second Infantry was called upon to furnish three officers and 400 enlisted men for immediate duty overseas. Following the war, Fort Hamilton was used as a separation center.

Get the book World War I New York: A Guide to the City’s Enduring Ties to the Great War