#naval shipyard

[makingcontact]

The Shadow of Nuclear Colonialism

The text “The Shadow of Nuclear Colonialism” superimposed on an image of the explosion at 9.0 seconds after the Trinity detonation on July 16, 1945. (Photo illustration byLucy Kang; background image via United States Department of Energy) The film Oppenheimer has reignited public interest in the Manhattan Project, the WWII-era secret program to develop the atomic bomb. But the movie leaves out…

[carbone14]

Grue flottante de 100 tonnes lors d'un test de charge au chantier naval de Puget Sound – Bremerton – Washington – États-Unis – 29 juin 1920

©Puget Sound Navy Museum

[ltwilliammowett]

Shipyard model of a ship of the line with 46 cannons, French, 1670

Photo by me- IMM Hamburg

[lonestarbattleship]

An overhead view of the aft deck, looking toward the bow, of USS NEW JERSEY (BB-62) in dry dock while undergoing refitting and reactivation at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard, California.

Photographed in December 1981.

NARA: 6350625

[spockvarietyhour]

S.S. Fort Rouille and S.S. Rideau Park after a successful launch from United Shipyards, 1943

[petervintonjr]

One of the most-retold battles of the Civil War is the clash during the Battle of Hampton Roads, between the ironclads USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia --the latter of whom had been constructed over the hull of the converted screw frigate USS Merrimack. While neither vessel inflicted significant damage upon the other (nor did either side gain any real tactical advantage), the battle is nevertheless historically significant as it decisively ushered in the end of the era of wooden-hulled ships. However there is an equally compelling behind-the-scenes tale of how the Union was galvanized into rushing the Monitor into production so speedily, and that story centers around Union spy Mary Louvestre (possibly also spelled Touvestre). There are numerous conflicting (and exaggerated) accounts of Louvestre's heroism; one of these is a popular-but-fictionalized account authored by My Haley, titled The Treason of Mary Louvestre.

Born free in 1812 Norfolk, Virginia to parents originally hailing from French San Domingue, Mary (neé Oglivie) grew up identifying as biracial ("mulatto") and while the details of her childhood and formative years are mostly unrecorded, in 1838 she is on record as having registered as a business owner in the city --while the archived document does not specify the nature of the business, it is popularly assumed that it would have either been an entertainment venue (such as a restaurant or a bar), or a boarding house. But perhaps more significantly, a year later, Mary is recorded as having purchased an enslaved 10 year-old boy, Mark Rene De Mortie, who also came from the same part of San Domingue as her parents. She taught De Mortie to read and write, and emancipated him in March of 1850, just shy of what would have been his 21st birthday, and while he headed off onto a fascinating journey of his own, we'll have to leave that tale for now (watch this space for a future lesson!). In 1844 Mary married Michael Louvestre, another free French "mulatto" from Guadeloupe, who is assumed to have arrived in Norfolk sometime in 1837. The marriage produced three children but two died in childhood due to the then-yellow fever epidemic, and only one daughter, Susan, survived into adulthood. Susan and her husband produced one grandchild, Robert, before they both likewise died, and Robert was raised by his grandparents.

Throughout the 1850s Mary continued to obtain business licenses to operate additional boarding houses, while Michael worked just across the river from their boarding house... at the Gosport Shipyard in Portsmouth. Which brings us up to 1861. Once the Civil War kicked off, Michael happened to be working as a tool keeper in the steam engineering department, where he and several other machinists and shipyard employees had the opportunity to watch, firsthand, the beginning of the Confederate project to convert the Merrimack into the Virginia. The Louvestes enjoyed relative "invisibility" due to their age and their race, and realized the threat such a vessel would present to the Union blockade. In February 1862 Mary, with the help of her husband and his co-workers, snuck onto the shipyard and traced a near-perfect copy of the plans, sewing them into the hem of her dress. She then traveled unnoticed to Washington (likely by steamboat and not on foot as some more fanciful accounts insist!) and delivered the copied plans for the CSS Virginia directly to Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles. Work on the Monitor promptly picked up the pace, ensuring that the vessel would actually be present in time to square off against the Virginia, and thwart what would have otherwise been an uncontested Confederate domination of the entire Hampton Roads area. After the war, Secretary Welles travelled in person to what was now known as the Norfolk Naval Station, and inquired after Mary so that he might present a reward for her services to the Union, though history does not record what form (if any) that reward ultimately took. That same year she did compose a letter to Commodore A. H. Kilty at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, where she spoke of "Our Navy" and its "heroic defenders." This letter was retained as part of Welles's collection.

Michael died in 1880 and Mary followed shortly afterwards in October of 1883. On November 8, local newspaper The Norfolk Virginian, bore a front-page headline of "Death of a Respected Old Colored Woman;" the verbiage being significant because newspapers rarely reported on the goings-on of Black Americans. "Mary Louveste, an old and respectable colored woman, was found dead in her bed on yesterday morning in her house at the corner of Newton's Lane and Nivison Street." The article goes on to speak of Mary and Michael's marriage: "the two always bore excellent characters (sic) and stood well in the community by reason of their thrift and polite bearing. The old woman possessed some property and recently sold her house for upwards of $2,000. Efforts were lately made to get her to go to the hospital to spend the rest of her days, but she refused to go." No mention is made in the article of her brief-but-critical career in espionage, nor of her connection to Secretary Welles. No visual representation exists of Louvestre; my accompanying illustration is taken from a conjectural sculpture by a local artist.

[historyofguns]

The article by Peter Suciu on "The Armory Life" discusses the USS Long Beach (CGN-9), America's first nuclear-powered cruiser, highlighting its significance in naval history and its challenges. The USS Long Beach, built by Bethlehem Steel and commissioned in 1961, was notable for being the first all-missile ship and having a nuclear power plant. It played significant roles in operations like Operation Sea Orbit and the Vietnam War. Despite its advanced design, its retirement and dismantling highlight the substantial costs and issues associated with nuclear-powered vessels. The article underscores the legacy of the USS Long Beach and its impact on subsequent naval strategies, ending the experiment with nuclear-powered surface combatants and reserving nuclear power for submarines and aircraft carriers in modern navies.

[mareislandfoundation]

Wooden Dry-Docks?

The USS Emory S. Land (AS-39), a submarine tender, has recently docked a couple of times for overhaul in Mare Island’s dry dock 2. She owed her presence in that dry dock to decisions made a century and a quarter ago. Then, like now, the US Navy was limited by the lack of shoreside infrastructure and specifically, dry docks.

In 1897 Rear Admiral Francis Bunce chaired a board investigating the lack of shore infrastructure. That board recommended a forty percent increase in the number of dry docks at naval shipyards which included a new dry dock 2 at Mare Island Naval Shipyard that was to accommodate the largest naval warship envisioned. To save money, the new Mare Island dry dock was to be constructed of timber rather than stone or concrete. Believe it or not timber dry docks were considered by some to be just as durable as a stone dock (Mare Island’s first floating drydock was constructed of wood and lasted nearly 40 years before it was completely worn out and scrapped). The dock was so long that it had to be angled in from the waterfront to fit without impacting existing facilities. Following debate, the new dry dock was authorized and funded by Congress, but the Navy Bureau of Yard and Docks was not happy with the proposed timber construction. Experience had taught them that timber graving docks deteriorated in 20-25 years and were subject to catastrophic flooding.

As a result, the Secretary of the Navy became engaged to obtain additional funds to allow the proposed timber dock at Mare Island to be changed to concrete. In late 1899 the Board of Trade of San Francisco and the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce adopted resolutions asking the California delegation, in Congress to aid the Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of the Navy Bureau of Yard and Docks in their efforts to have the construction material changed. The effort was successful, and a concrete dry dock was constructed. The new dry dock was the largest dry dock at any naval shipyard at that time. The decision to use concrete was to prove wise as the new dry dock was to serve the Navy through two world wars, the Korean, Vietnam, and Cold Wars. The dry dock continues in use to this day by the private Mare Island Dry Dock LLC. It is hard to say what would have happened if the dry dock had been built of timber as originally proposed, but certainly the dock would not have been available during our Nation’s greatest hour of need during World War II.

Dennis Kelly

[everydaygesu]

[carbone14]

Le croiseur lourd USS Chicago (CA-29) - Mare Island Naval Shipyard – Vallejo – Californie – Avril 1931

[ltwilliammowett]

A shipyard, by Paul Bril (1553/4-1626)

[lonestarbattleship]

USS SARATOGA CV-3) at Hunters Point, California on January 2, 1944. This after a refit and an increase to her light AA battery, at the request of her commanding officer.

Photos and information from Navsource: link

[kazifatagar]

New: AGC rejects representation to drop RM21m CBT charges in LCS Project

The Attorney-General Chambers (AGC) has rejected the representation submitted by Boustead Naval Shipyard Sdn Bhd managing director Tan Sri Ahmad Ramli Mohd Nor to drop three criminal breach of trust (CBT) charges of the company’s fund totalling RM21.08 million involving the littoral combat ship (LCS) project for the Royal Malaysian Navy. Social Media Links Follow us…

[hotelbooking]

Quality Inn & Suites Bremerton near Naval Shipyard The hotel provides front desk services such as concierge service, express check-in or check-out and safety deposit boxes for guests' convenience. Staying for a long time, or just need clean clothes? dry cleaning service and laundry service offered at the hotel will keep your favorite travel outfits clean and available. For lazy days and nights, in-room conveniences like daily housekeeping let you make the most of your room. Please be advised that smoking is not allowed in the hotel to allow cleaner air for all guests. Smoking is limited to designated areas only, for the health and well-being of all guests and staff. Feel right at home during your stay at Knowing that bathroom amenities play an important role in increasing guests' satisfaction, the hotel provides a hair dryer, toiletries and towels in some select rooms. Nothing starts a morning better than a delicious free breakfast, which you'll always enjoy at Never let a day...

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Yesterday, we saw a tiny floating home in Canada for $500k. Today, I came across this 1997 houseboat in Boston, MA. It has 2bds, 2ba, 900 sq ft, for $399k.

You can pull it up beside the doc and tie it, so it's like a floating house.

The outdoor deck is very large, and on the roof of the boat. Part of it is covered.

And, the other half is open. They have a hammock and some beach chairs where you can get the sun. This deck is 800 sq ft, so there's plenty of room for entertaining.

It's on the lovely Boston Main Channel waterfront right next to the Charlestown Naval Shipyard Park.

It has a nice cozy living room.

Roomy dining area and full-size kitchen with a dishwasher. This is a lot more for less.

The floating home had a lofted sleep area, but this houseboat has 2 full bedrooms. This bedroom has a closet with a washer/dryer.

The 2nd bedroom has sliders to a private deck with stairs to go up to the rooftop.

Bath #1 is fully tiled in a nice blue.

And, here's bedroom and bath #2. This bath is quite large.

Plus, a bonus room that can be used as an office.

This is a nice enclosed deck that could be very pretty with plants and wicker furniture.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1-E-Pier-Dr-13-Boston-MA-02128/2055047115_zpid/?