Fort Stevens was an American military installation that guarded the mouth of the Columbia River in the state of Oregon. Built near the end of the American Civil War, in 1863-1864, it was named for a slain Civil War general and former Washington Territory governor, Isaac Stevens.

The fort was an active military reservation from 1863–1947.

Today, most who come here do so primarily for the camping which is in close proximity to the west coast beaches.

The 3,700 acres park includes camping, beach access, swimming at Coffenbury Lake, trails, a military history museum and the remains of the sailing ship Peter Iredale.

I am awake early this morning because I want to tour both the state park and the national park that are nearby. After I boil a pot of water and make a cup of hot, I then prepare my meal, a cup of daystart.

Soon after, I am driving through Fort Stevens and visit a few of the defense installation used to stop the Japanese submarines during World War II.

On the night of 21–22 June 1942, the Japanese submarine I-25 surfaced off Fort Stevens and fired 17 shells from her deck gun, making Fort Stevens the second military installation in the continental United States to come under enemy fire in World War II. (The first, eighteen days earlier, was Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.) The Japanese attack caused no damage to the fort itself, only the backstop of the baseball field in the fort was destroyed.

Fort Stevens was decommissioned in 1947, all armaments were removed and building were auctioned. The property was transferred to the Corps of Engineers and lastly turned over to the Oregon Parks department.