While in Maine burying a friend last week I chanced upon Fort Knox, an extremely large, massive and impressive stone fortress on the Penobscot River. It was open for anyone to wander through but totally lacking any interpretive assistance. The only sign warned that a flashlight "might" be necessary, which it is, because parts of the interior galleries, magazines and so forth are black as the Earl of Hell's riding boots. But there was *nothing* about when the fort was built or when it was abandoned. From the fact that there were a couple of bottle-shaped Dahlgren guns mounted on the parapets, I assumed the era was Civil War. But the place is *so* big, and *so* beautifully built that it must have taken years to construct. Did anybody up there Down East really believe us Suthruns could mount any sort of serious attack up Bath way? Local residents were vague about the fort, and I haven't been able to find out anything from the state parks department--calls are not returned. Anybody out there familiar with the place? Hank Burchard * [log in to unmask] * Washington DC