View of the entrance to Battery Gregg’s ammunition

View of the entrance to Battery Gregg’s ammunition magazines at Fort Mott State Park, Pennsville, N.J., Dec. 15, 2020. The Battery’s two 5-inch M1900 guns had a full 360 degree field of fire to protect the Fort from both river and land attack. Fort Mott was part of a coastal defense system designed for the Delaware River in the late 1800s. The first Fort was built in 1872. The Fort was rebuilt in 1896 in anticipation of the Spanish-American War. It became obsolete shortly after World War I. New Jersey bought the military reservation in 1947 and it was opened as a park June 24, 1951. The fort was named after Maj. Gen. Gershom Mott of Trenton. Mott served in the Mexican–American War. He served as a lieutenant colonel with the 5th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry, and as a colonel with the 6th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War. He was promoted to major general after the Battle of the Crater in 1864. (New Jersey Department of Military and Veterans Affairs photo by Mark C. Olsen)