The site of the works is at the extremity of Clark's Point, three miles and a half from the centre of New Bedford, at a point commanding not only the channel entering the harbor, but also all water areas for bombardment to the southward of the city. Prior to the war with Spain, a solitary ordnance sergeant formed the garrison at the post, but on May 6th a detachment of thirty men from the Second Artillery, under command of Lieutenant Lyon (later relieved, on May 27th, by Lieutenant Connor), had been ordered over from Fort Adams for guard duty. The casemates on the landward face of the fort, originally intended for use as quarters, never had been placed in condition for occupancy, and the detachment of regulars therefore was quartered in an old building standing on the reservation, while the battalion of volunteers pitched camp in an open field to the northwest of the fort. It would have been difficult to find a more desirable site for the encampment. Lying on dry and level ground, between two arms of the sea, it not only afforded a pleasant outlook, but also was constantly swept by cool breezes from off the water. Under such circumstances, camp sanitation afforded an easy problem, and during its tour at this post the health of the command remained excellent. [Illustration: LIEUT.-COL. CHARLES B. WOODMAN, U.S.V. Second-in-Command. ] At this station the post administrative staff was made up of Lieutenant J. B. Paine, adjutant; Lieutenant Gowing, quartermaster and commissary; and Lieutenant Bryant, surgeon. In addition to his duties as battery commander, Captain Whiting also performed those of ordnance officer, an assignment for which he was eminently well fitted by previous study and training. There was much work to be done in the early days at the post, for its armament, after long years of neglect, was in horrible condition. Both batteries turned to with a will, however, and in a creditably short time the fort itself was cleaned and swept until it would have satisfied the most exacting inspector, while guns and carriages were freed from rust, scraped, painted, and put into condition for immediate action. It is due to the command to say that when it marched out, on September 19th, it left behind it a post which, in point of absolute neatness and readiness for action, might well have served as a model for any artillery garrison, regular or volunteer.