Fort Miles, commissioned in 1941, represented the last generation of W.W.II Forts. Eighteen harbor defense commands protected America’s coastlines, among them, the Harbor Defense of the Delaware. Fort Miles provided the first line of defense of the Delaware River and Bay from 1941 through 1945. Its charge was the protection of the Delaware Estuary-the gateway to important industrial, military and commercial centers. The building of Fort Miles symbolized the pinnacle in a century and a half-long coastal defense policy.