Railway Guns: The Defense of the Panama Canal

From its inauguration in 1914, the United States immediately understood the enormous strategic value of the Panama Canal. With the outbreak of World War I, the decision was made to reinforce its protection through a modern defense system. Both entrances to the canal were heavily fortified with the construction of military bases. On the Pacific side, Fort Kobbe and Fort Grant stood out. Fort Grant consisted of several defense batteries located at strategic points along the Pacific coast, especially on the eastern bank of the canal.

Some of these batteries were on Culebra Island. In the early 1930s, this area was reinforced with the installation of two imposing 14-inch railway guns, model M1920. Their most notable feature was their mobility: they could be moved on rails. These guns arrived in Panama in 1932 by sea and were transferred to the railroad system in the Paraíso area. Once at their destination, the guns were mounted on rotating platforms that allowed adjustment of their firing angle.

The train responsible for transporting them was a true piece of military engineering: two 2-6-0 type locomotives manufactured by ALCO-Brooks in 1908 (numbers 661 and 653), flatbed separator cars, the guns, ammunition and powder cars, tool cars, a plotting room car, a kitchen car, and coaches for operating personnel. To reach Culebra Island, this train used a special branch line that circled Sosa Hill in Ancón and continued along the causeway. Fortunately, these guns never had to be used in actual combat.

Today, the area where they were once emplaced is part of the Punta Culebra Nature Center, managed by the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.