Fort Miley resides on the hills above Point Lobos also known as Land's End which at one time was a seasonal camp to the Ohlone Tribe. The tribe probably had shelters on this hill side and would utilize the abundance of shell fish on the shoreline below where remnants of the Sutro Baths are found today.  Not to far away from the walls of Fort Miley and Veterans Medical Center their were quite a few shell middens/mounds discovered here. Point Lobos today and always has been a strategic location before entering the San Francisco Bay thus it would only make sense here to build a stronghold like Fort Miley here. Not to far away their was also Fort Mason and then the strategic stronghold found in the bay known as Fort McDowell, Camp Reynolds and North Garrison found on Angel Island. 

Before the US Government built Fort Miley most of Point Lobos was owned by Francisco Guerrero who was granted the point by the Mexican Governor Pio Pico. Before California became a state it was owned by Mexico but more then often many of the land grant owners grazed cattle and sheep. When California had became a state in 1850 President Millard Fillmore a very well known political figure in Buffalo NY where I grew at felt that Point Lobos should be set aside for the military to use as it was a strategic location on the western approach through the golden gate into the San Francisco Bay. Eventually Fillmore ended up giving the point back to Guerrero where it remained fairly desolate except for a signaling station built in the early 1850's. When a ship would enter the Golden Gate the signaling station would telegraph the semaphore station nearby on the top of Telegraph Hill then a horn would sound as that ship would enter into the bay. More then likely most of the city heard it at that time because San Francisco was still in its early growth.

When the 1860's rolled around the city was growing also sickness spread and people died. Most folks buried their love ones out behind their home back in those days. So the city of San Francisco began to plot cemeteries so bury the residents  therefore by 1868 200 acres was purchased and set aside in Point Lobos for a municipal cemetery. This would later also become the site of the cities VA Hospital. At the time the locals had referred to it as the Golden Gate Cemetery which had numerous sections based on ethnicity or various cultural differences. The cemetery even had a Potters Field of many unmarked graves and some prominent pioneers of early San Francisco. The cemetery in fact was rather isolated as the city had not grown as far as Point Lobos yet as a matter in fact in the 1850's their was really only one wagon road in and out. When the fort and hospital were constructed many of the graves were exhumed and re interred in Colma a few miles away others may have been interred within the San Francisco's Neptune Society Columbarium. Nobody knows for sure if every grave was exhumed I have heard that many of the potters fields back on these bluffs was simply built over so more then likely their still might be skeletons under these structures which why might explain the supernatural associated with the site. 

The fortification and the hospital nearly were almost not built as it did go to court. The military or rather US government felt that their was a much greater need for a fort over a cemetery. Sadly it appears that through my years of researching history I find that the US Government takes what they want even if you owned the land. It happened with the Native Americans and even towards the relatives who had families buried at Lobos Point. When the military set up operations back in here they cleared almost all the trees and I can assure you this hillside looked allot different decades ago then it does today as I am sure it looked allot different to the early pioneers of San Fran who came through the golden gate during the gold rush which brought in emigrants from all over the world. 

In 1885 the US Secretary Of War William C. Endicott whom in charge of the Board of Fortifications issued a report which proposed the construction of a coastal defensive military base in the San Francisco Bay area. By 1890 Colonel George Mendel an army engineer office was in charge of the construction of such fortification. Therefore, he chose to build Fort Miley on a tract of land which belonged to the City Of San Francisco at time. The fort was to be built on 73 acres and 54 of those acres had to be condemned as this was the site of the Golden Gate Cemetery. By 1891 the federal government won their case in court and ownership of the land was transferred from the city to the feds which would be used to build a fortification. The Army and even some of the locals just referred to this small parcel of land with some military buildings as The Reservation.

For many years the property sat vacated then again it may have taken awhile to exhume all the graves. When the Spanish-American war of 1898 broke out the first two buildings were built on these bluffs. More then likely they gathered intelligence on any incoming ships that may have been enemies trying to approach the bay during the war but nobody knows for sure. After the war in 1899 a battery that contained two 12-inch rifled guns was mounted on Buffington-Crozier disappearing carriages and completed by 1902. Then a third 12-inch gun was added to what is now the Battery James Chester in 1903 and although the gun is long gone you will see photos on our page of the battery which is definitely worth a gander. While this was the western battery in 1899 their was ongoing work being done to construct other batteries in the bay area which contained a total of sixteen 12-inch Springer mortars. This was considered the southern battery while their was a main and northern one were being built around the same time. The shells for each of guns weighed in at about 1070lbs and could reach distances of 10 miles. If you were shot with one of these and you were on board an enemy ship you could have been sunk simple as that!

They called the battery Fort Miley in 1900 after Lieutenant Colonel John D. Miley who was the father of Major General William M. Miley who died in Manila Philippines just a year prior. Miley actually laid out the plans for multiple coastal defense batteries in the region. Previously people just referred to this place Fort or Battery Chester. Once the batteries were finished the US Army constructed a parade ground between them and a series of frame buildings for barracks and quarters. Most of the complex was built between 1902 and 1906. You could stand on the horseshoe shaped parade ground and see the Golden Gate below. As a matter in fact the Army cleared all the trees and foliage out so you had great views of the ocean below. During WWI the fort generally housed caretaker garrisons and they had soldiers to man the fort. You can actually see some of those old garrisons in our gallery below. Allot of times when the men were off duty they would walk down to The Cliff House below to dine at the restaurant and maybe drink a brew. In 1918 that was not possible during WWI as the president ordered that no liquor be sold within a half mile of any military installation. 

After WWI years later in the early 1930's Fort Miley's parade ground which contained garrisons were all demolished with the exception of the storehouse were demolished in 1934 to make room for the Fort Miley Veterans Administration Hospital. They did not demolish the batteries they still stand strong and today they can still be seen which also includes a small holding cell and tunnel system built into the side of the hill. The batteries had huge steel blast proof doors and were constructed of very thick concrete. If I were to theorize id say that the batteries could withstand a nuclear blast or could even sustain being bombed during war time. The old hospital occupies 29 acres and was designed in a Mayan Deco style. While you are walking around the fort today you can see the hospital through the trees and over the years quite a few veterans died at this hospital. So if you do not experience the ghost of the cemetery the fort was built over you might from the old hospital. 

After years of little use in 1937 the Army wanted to do without the 12-inch gun batteries such as the Chester since the San Francisco harbor had others modernized means of defense systems. No less the Army was considering new upgrades for Fort Miley however the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor therefore the guns were not removed serving the fort and coastline until 1943. The US was gaining on the war to a degree that Japan did not serve as a threat to San Francisco anymore therefore they wanted to salvage the Battery Chester Guns. Battery 243 was completed in Fort Miley in 1944 which had two 6-inch rapid fire guns protected by giant steel shields rather then the old tradition concrete and earth parapets. This battery would allow making minesweeping by the enemy very difficult when submarines approached the coast. Sadly the guns were not mounted until 1948 and at the time most coastal guns in the region had been salvaged. The battery however itself was historically significant because it had represented one of the last phases of a traditional concept of coastal defense and warfare. 

Today allot of skaters use the fort to shred when I was exploring it I seen a few teens skating on the concrete slabs. If your an urban explorer this is a great place to climb ladders and climb around at. The fort is locked down quite tightly but through some of the bars in the windows you can see some of the concrete rooms. The old storehouse today is now the maintenance building for the National Park Service and is no longer at its original place. If you roam around there are a total of three gun emplacements which include Battery Chester. In recent times I believe it was 1993 the Palace Legion Of Honor begin digging near the fort to start a new construction project when they came across hundreds of bodies inside coffins. Therefore, either the US Army did not move the bodies upon building the fort purposely to save money and time. More then likely many of the gravestones of the old Golden Gate Cemetery were moved to Colma thus leaving the bodies behind which may make this site a good candidate for being haunted by the restless. 

Its really hard to imagine that most of what was here is now gone afterall the fort had storage buildings, an officers club, guard house, tennis courts, bowling alley, reservoir, fuel house, storehouse, administrative buildings, almost a dozen wood-framed barracks, mess hall, stables and even a jail. Throughout WWII its anti craft guns protected the people of San Francisco from bombers. This goes along with other batteries found in the Marin Headlands, Alcatraz and Fort Mason which surrounded the Golden Gate. Can you imagine living in the bay area during the war and when you went out for your daily job you seen massive guns pointing down at the bay and ocean? You had no idea if today was the day the Japanese would bomb the harbor of if a German Sub would rise out of the water attacking your ocean side home. Fort Miley was strategically designed to defend the bay and the people who lived on the edge of it! In the 1930's a new tree project sparked the growth of these bluffs being reforested around the hospital to make it more pleasant for the veterans who came here. Today once again the area around Fort Miley at Lobos Point is once again overgrown as a matter in fact nature has once again reclaimed the land surrounding the battery. Despite that factor if you hike around you can find some places around the fort to take in some breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean below. 

On another side note if you hike around the fort you will also come across what is known as the Octagon House which was built in 1927 and it is hidden in the woods here. Not allot of people know about it because more then often most hike to the fort and skip the off chute to get to this building. The Octagon House was the third lookout station to be built at Land's End replacing the old 1889 building. Back in the day people called this the Point Lobos Marine Exchange Lookout Station. The station tenders would watch the Golden Gate for ships then signal for their arrival and signal the type of ships by using visual flag signals. In 1853 such relay stations begin using the telegraph rather then the semaphore system. Octagon Houses became popular in 1848 around the time of the gold rush near San Francisco as its eight sided designed offered more internal space, conservation of construction materials and often 360 degree views especially of the bay area where this one was located. During the Victorian era allot of strange structures were built including these houses.

When the look out station was built it stood alone without an obstructed views that is because the foliage and trees at one time were cleared around this house. Not so much anymore its rather overgrown therefore allot of folks tend to pass by it while others over the years vandalize it sad to say. This Octagon is a family of the last remaining lookout stations in the bay area and is currently abandoned. Their is actually another Octagon House in San Francisco at the corner of Gough and Union Streets which today is a museum and celebrating its 150th birthday. With that being said if your willing to take the time to explore Lands End your going to find gems like Fort Miley, Octagon House, Foundations, Remnants of the past, batteries, nature and of course below it all the ruins of the Sutro Baths.

If your going to urban explore San Francisco I give the Land's End area a ten as far as exploration of abandoned buildings and ruins of the past. Such remain of the past are an early part of American history and should be preserved. I heard they want to demolish the rest of Fort Miley sadly I do not see the point many of the veterans from the hospital nearby enjoy to come down to the fort to take a stroll. I am sure they are just as much in awe as I was when I came here trying to envision its anti aircraft guns and soldiers marching with their rifles in formation in the parade grounds. Their is allot to day dream when it comes to a place like this but amazingly the battery is in excellent shape almost like a true temple of its time and who knows may one day see use once again!

Copyright By
Lord Rick aka AngelOfThyNight
PGS Founder
Author, Talk Show Host, Producer & Paranormal Investigator