was:Re: [AT] Christmas Trees and Ships Plank Project now Liberty Ships

Rob Gray Robgray at epix.net
Tue Dec 6 19:31:44 PST 2005


OFF TOPIC!!!! ----

Both of my grandfathers were in the Navy, with one of them killed in 
WWII. I've always found ships interesting, although my experience on the 
water is limited to a lot of fishing on the Chesapeake Bay growing up. 
Some interesting ships that I have visited near me are:

    USS Olympia - Definitely stop and see this ship if you are in the 
Philadelphia area. It is a significant ship in naval history including 
some of the following notes:

    * Launched in 1892
    * Was the falgship of Commodore Dewey's fleet in the Spanish
      American War
    * Saw action at the Battle of Manila Bay
    * Served as the flagship of the Caribbean starting in 1902
    * Took part in the ill-fated Allied intervention against the Russian
      Bolscheviks in 1918
    * Became flagship of the Atlantic fleet in 1921
    * Took part in the famous Billy Mitchell demonstration of air power
      sinking a decommisioned German warship in 1921
    * In October 1921 she was sent to Le Havre France to collect and
      return the remains of the American Unknown Soldier from WWI for
      burial at Arlington National Cemetery
    * She was decommisioned for the last time in 1922 in Philadelphia
      where she remains to this day
    * She is one of only 4 warships that still exist worldwide from that era


       The ship is docked at Penn's Landing in Philly. Unfortunately the 
museum that maintains her does not have the funding to really do the 
ship justice but touring the ship is very interesting. The ship is from 
a time that shows the transition between sail and steam. Much of the 
quarters remind me of sailing vessels from earlier eras.

    website:      http://www.spanamwar.com/olympia.htm

USS New Jersey - This ship is docked accross the Delaware River from the 
USS Olympia in Camden, NJ. Definitely a contrast to the Olympia. If you 
have not been on one of the big 4 battleships from WWII, it is also well 
worth the trip. This one is a museum ship as well. A few facts on this ship:

    * The people who maintain this ship claim it is the most decorated
      ship in American history.
    * Launched in Philadelphia on December 7th 1942 (a day when a lot of
      ships were launched across the country)
    * Served in WWII
    * Served in Korean War
    * Served in the Vietnam War
    * Served in President Reagan's revitalized 600 ship Navy
    * Becomes a museum in 1999

website:      http://www.battleshipnewjersey.org/

   


DAVID BRUCE wrote:

>Charlie:
>I remember the mothballed ships when my family made a trip to Wilmington
>and to the USS North Carolina.  It must have been in the mid to late 60's.
>Quite a sight for this sheltered country boy.
>
>David
>NW NC
>  
>



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