in 1898, at the outbreak of the spanish–american war, army engineers began rebuilding again with a massive concrete battery in the center of the fort. it mounted two 12-inch gun m1895 costal guns. the construction was not completed until after the war. during world war i the two-gun battery (called "battery huger") was manned by the u.s. army. by world war ii the guns were obsolete. they were finally removed in 1943. later in the war it became an anti-aircraft battery. in 1948 the national park service took possession of the fort.