Pulpit Rock Camp

Reservation Map

Pulpit Rock Camp was a military reservation for the Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth. The site included an eight story Fire control Tower. A steel Fire Control Tower and AMTB Battery 951. This reservation was designated Location 142.

Eight Story FCT

In 1942 construction started on an eight story Fire Control Tower for Fort Dearborn nearby. The seventh story level DPF was designated for Battery 103/Seamen and the eight level DPF was for Battery 204. The roof was used as an Anti-Aircraft Spotting station AAIS OP 7. The tower was completed in 1943 on a government owned .44-acre tract. The navy had control over the tower from 1954-1971. The fish and game department has owned the tower since 1974. It was suggested for the national register of historic Places in the 1970s but was not accepted and finally made the list in 2010 after being on the seven to save list in New Hampshire. In 2008 the Friends of Pulpit Rock Tower was formed to preserve the tower. The tower officially opened in 2009 on some holidays and continues to do so. The tower has been under restoration for many years and is still as of 2022. I visited on Memorial Day 2023 and the tower is nice on the inside with many displays, but I noticed that the DPF mount on the seventh floor is missing! I think it was probably drilled out in the 1970s.

• Eight Story FCT Pulpit Rock
  Eight Story FCT Pulpit Rock
• Base of the Tower
  Base of the Tower
• Electric Box
  Electric Box
• Electric Box Details
  Electric Box Details
• 1942 Utility Pole
  1942 Utility Pole
• 2010 National Register of Historic Places Plaque
  2010 National Register of Historic Places Plaque
• Security Gate and Steel Door to the tower
  Security Gate and Steel Door to the tower
• Cannon Stove from Coolidge Point MR
  Cannon Stove from Coolidge Point MR
• Communications junction box below the tower
  Communications junction box below the tower
• Electric Breakers and Fuse Boxes
  Electric Breakers and Fuse Boxes
• First Floor Steps
  First Floor Steps
• This tower has the only spiral stairs in Portsmouth Harbor
  This tower has the only spiral stairs in Portsmouth Harbor
• Chart table
  Chart table
• Electrical equipment on the sixth floor
  Electrical equipment on the sixth floor
• Seventh floor ladder
  Seventh floor ladder
• View out the seventh floor windows
  View out the seventh floor windows
• Eighth floor observation windows facing Portsmouth Harbor
  Eighth floor observation windows facing Portsmouth Harbor
• File:PRMRINT (42) 15.jpg
• AAIS OP 7 Crows Nest
  AAIS OP 7 Crows Nest
• Images from the National Register of Historic Places Listing
  Images from the National Register of Historic Places Listing
• Entrance
  Entrance
• Sixth Floor
  Sixth Floor
• Sixth Floor ladder
  Sixth Floor ladder
• Seventh Floor
  Seventh Floor
• Eighth Floor
  Eighth Floor
• AAIS Post
  AAIS Post

Steel FCT

Steel FCT Locale

Steel FCT Locale

Steel FCT Map

Steel FCT Map

In 1942 on a separate tract of land a steel FCT was built near the main tower and used for Battery 205 and the Harbor Defenses of Portsmouth. This tower was dismantled around 1953 and the cab was built of corrugated aluminum.

Emplacement #1 2022

Emplacement #2 remains

Battery AMTB 951

Built in 1942, AMTB Battery 951 was operated as part of Fort Dearborn nearby. The battery was deactivated in 1946 and abandon. Around 1962 the Coastal roadway was expanded which would cover the second AMTB emplacement, so it was destroyed and disposed of near the other remaining emplacement. Its remains can still be found on the beach. The area where emplacement one is located became a parking lot and the mounting screws for the guns were grinded down. Over the years emplacement one has been damaged by cars driving over it. Emplacement two is in rubble in the general area the mounting ring is in.