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Fundraiser notice Dec 1, 2010 for the tug Pegasus!!
I give thanks for the doomed ships getting a (maybe temporary) reprieve, although there’s no denying that Olympia does NOT rise and fall with the tide. Here she clearly rests
on Delaware bottom. The draft numbers there suggest a countdown . . . til drydocking and rescue?
While it lasted, the snow seemed more appropriate for Christmas than Thanksgiving. Timothy McAllister moves upriver, as does
Captain Dann, seeking a load for an empty Lockwood 2002 barge; see the loaded barge . . . tomorrow. In the background, Castlegate takes on cargo, after having left New York just Tuesday.
Crew of SKS Tyne fotograph each other as they leave Philly and
Camden and their skylines and
waterfront work and
mothballed vessels. SKS Tyne, goodspeed for whatever your next destination and next ….
Pilotboat Overfalls heads south, and
no matter the day, the harbor beat goes on.
All fotos, Thanksgiving Day, by Will Van Dorp.
Soon afterward, I went out for a Thanksgiving lobster. Speaking of, read this great article about the Pilgrims and their Thanksgiving eels.
Uh … transplant to the Delaware?
Wilmington Tug’s Sonie passes junk-rigged Summer Wind as
she pushes light in the direction of the Ben Franklin Bridge. In the foreground left is the faux sternwheel of Philadelphia Belle.
Gulf Service heads in the same direction from over near the big guns of battleship New Jersey.
That transplant … It launched from Philadephia in 1902 to work out of New York, which it did until 1939. See the fourth profile below.
Petrel is an Allied staple on the Delaware.
Jupiter (ex-Socony #14) currently is operated and maintained by a volunteer group called Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild. The tip of boom and yellow-green-white vessel belong to Gazela, the Guild’s other vessel, previously written about here and here (See fotos 7, 8 and 9). 
All fotos by Will Van Dorp.
Thanks for some of your comments.
Sorry for the blurry pic, but these are the words of President McKinley on a plaque inside Olympia. I include them here because they seem appropriately addressed to the vessel itself now. The entire quote is here. Santiago Playa was the location of the largest naval actions of the Spanish-American War. (Click here, scroll down to the “Cuba” section and then farther to the “naval operations” paragraphs for info on Santiago.
This is the most outrageous thing I have ever said on this blog: but I’m only repeating someone’s suggestion that, if the decision is made to “reef” Olympia, she might have a “riding crew” made up of those “museum custodians” who put their own interest$ before the seriousness of their charge to preserve this vessel. Now I’ll add a “Yaarrr … ” for some color.
Here’s a quote from the ISM site: ”ISM will cease public tours of the Olympia on November 22, 2010.” Scroll all the way down for some then-now fotos.
I know this is NOT news, but in light of the ticking clock, you might want to reread this 2007 post from Peter Mello’s SeaFever. Here’s a followup from a year and a half ago. Here’s a recent op-ed piece pleading for “rescue” of the vessel from John F. Lehman, former Secretary of the Navy.
And yes, this post exists only to vent, and encourage venting. Please feel encouraged.
Call this … “what we might lose soon.” I wrote about it here a few months back.
This Proceedings article lays out some of the recent history of deterioration.
Here’s a recent article from the Christian Science Monitor. On its falling into this state, Naval naval historian Lawrence Burr, author of US Cruisers 1883-1904, says, ”It’s an absolute national disgrace. It’s an appalling situation. She is a national symbol, and she marks critical points in time both in America’s development as a country and the Navy’s emergence as a global power.”
Says Harry Burkhardt, leading efforts to save Olympia, “I think what’s happening is a total disgrace. The Liberty Bell has a crack in it, but we don’t melt it down. The Statue of Liberty turned green with corrosion, but we don’t throw it away. The Olympia was a symbol of America’s might and freedom. Now she’s a symbol of negligence.”
Click here for dozens of fotos of Olympia taken a few years back.
Click here and go to page 17 to see a foto of Olympia‘s hull on 5 November 1892, day of launch.
The large gun juxtaposed with the many-paned “picture window” was operated from the fleet commander’s suite.
Right now the vessel’s fate hangs … or teeters in the balance. These might be the last days to visit, to walk her decks and companionways, to photograph her in various light, to sketch her iconic lines.
Here’s a “Friends of the Cruiser Olympia” site.
For some great interior shots, see MarkerHunter’s site.
This can’t really disappear, can it?
All fotos by Will Van Dorp.
Part 1 of this series looked like this. Now more.
Madeline, 2008
Duty, 2006
Lindsey, 1989
Brandywine, 2006
More Lindsey
More Duty.
More Madeline.
More Brandywine, and Amberjack and Bold.
Of course Brandywine ranges far and wide, and these days, maybe so does Inland Sea heading south here from the Ben Franklin Bridge.
All fotos last week by Will Van Dorp.
To see an excellent Flickr foto of Gazela by Gregg M, click here. And for an account plus video of Gazela‘s trip to New Bedford earlier this summer, click here. For my earlier pics of Gazela in Atlantic Basin Red Hook, click here.
As Gazela sailed back to Philly between daybreak last Wednesday and late afternoon Thursday, I was fortunate to be a very “green” member of the crew, my first time sailing on a barquentine. Other vessels passed and overtook us, and I’m including those fotos here in hopes that anyone aboard these other vessels who photographed us might be willing to share those shots of Gazela. Please do.
Gazela departs through the Narrows under a drizzle; precipitation had been off and on for three days, delaying departure by 48 hours. (For pics, doubleclick enlarges.)
From midships, looking aft . . . notice the crew wearing foulies.
Tanker British Serenity overtakes us outside the Narrows. By sunset, 10 hours later, we’d motorsailed off Atlantic City, surfing swells and getting soaked with on & off drizzle.
Skies clear overnight, giving us a just-past-full moon. I stand a midnight–6 am watch from Cape May and up Delaware Bay. This is sunrise.
After breakfast, I nap for an hour until a lurch awakens me. ”Must be someone’s wake,” I imagine, grab my camera, and go on deck. I believe it was Amberjack, also headed up the Bay.
Astern, two vessels are catching up to us: broad on the port beam were EPA-Bold and Vane Brothers Brandywine.
For info on what Bold is doing in Delaware Bay and its schedule for the rest of 2010, click here.
If you have Thursday morning fotos of Gazela, please get in touch. I have additional Bold shots.
Doubleskin 141 looks formidable as it passes and
soon leaves us astern just
southeast of the PSEG power plants. By the way, light was unfavorable to get fotos of the five wind turbines in Atlantic City.
Amsterdam-registered Suomigracht passes us. For more Suomigracht shots, click here and here.
Austin Reinauer was anchored just south of the C & D Canal.
Near the Delaware Pennsylvania line, we cross paths with Aframax tanker Amalthea, which may or may not
have delivered Venezuelan crude.
Gazela was built in Setubal, Portugal; as such, which language might you expect here? A primary wood used is angelique.
A trip that begins in rain might end like this: honey colored sunshine after a trip well done, this member of the crew a little less green.
If you were on any of the vessels above and have pics of Gazela, please get in touch.
All fotos here by Will Van Dorp.
Many thanks to the Philadelphia Ship Preservation Guild and wonderful crew for the opportunity to sail. If you are interested in volunteering, click here. Gazela expects to be back up through the sixth boro once more this fall.
Ooooolala! What’s this? Make your way to Atlantic Basin ASAP; click here for tickets … only two shows Saturday (tonight!) and two Sunday left, before the floating burlesque sails over the horizon.
Staging this burlesque is barquentine Gazela, whose first life fishing for cod continued until the year Armstrong stepped onto the moon. Yessir, this fine vessel served as a dory boat until 1969!
Up to 35 dories (many built in the Merrimack Valley north of Cape Ann) like the one in the foreground here served “mothership” Gazela.
Daytime tours of Gazela as well as nighttime entertainment can be had only through this weekend! This is also the last chance (for a while) to see Mary Whalen at Pier 11. For directions to Pier 11, click here.
So I went to the show “The Seven Deadly Seas” the other night. Before the show, the devil’s advocate (of the Flaming Cherries) emerges from the nether portions of the ship, and
the city darkens as the band begins to play. See the twinkling Manhattan lights off in the distance.
Feisty bawds dueling over everything
can be charmed only by
dancing
and more dancing and
still more dancing that sometimes lead to … lost clothing.
Come learn the story of Calico Jack, who imagined he had all the skills needed to thrive on Wall Street.
Bring a dozen friends and make it the most memorable night of the summer, the summer of Atlantic Basin as prime offshore Broadway.
Will Calico Jack swing here, or is it Camp Butner FCC for him?
Don’t miss the boat.
Fotos by Eric Lorgus (some taken in Philadephia) and Will Van Dorp.
Can you guess the connection between the three fotos that follow? Gazela –540 hp, the oldest wooden square-rigger sailing in the United States, built in Portugal in 1901 (?) to fish cod, and Philadelphia’s tall ship.
Pati R. Moran, 5100 hp and built in Maine in 2007
and “pirate Calico Jack, who, unbeknownst to his crew, has decided toget out of the pirate business, and has sailed to Wall Street to make some business deals, secure a401k, and plan his retirement.”
Once more, Gazela,
Pati R, and
… who’s this with Calico Jack!
Well, buy your tickets here for “The Seven Deadly Seas.” Read a review from the Philadelphia CityPaper here.
Bringing Gazela and crew/acting troupe to Atlantic Basin is the result of hard work of PortSide NewYork. ”About bringing her to NYC, Eric Lorgus, President of Gazela, had this to say, ‘Tall ships have found it increasinglyhard to visit this place, and I’ve been trying to crack NYC foryears. We really appreciate the efforts PortSide has made on ourbehalf. Carolina herself has pursued this will tenacity and zeal.’
Carolina Salguero, Director of PortSide NewYork says about the visit ‘PortSide was founded to bring the BlueSpace, or the waterpart of the waterfront, to life in New York City. We are excited that Gazela is coming, because tall ships are education and inspiration afloat. We hope her visit opens the door to more visits by more boats—of all types—at this pier and other piers.We are encouraged by recent government initiatives focusing onthe water itself and grateful that the EDC [New York City Economic Development Corp] has made Pier 11 available to us for Gazela’s visit.’
Gazela will be open for deck tours during the day. These arerun on an open-house basis. To defray costs of the trip, a modest $5 donation is being requested, but is not mandatory. The cabaretalso subsidizes the trip.”
As to the connection between Gazela and Pati R., I’m leaving that open to your guesses for a few days yet.
See press release here. Show dates are August 19–22, 8 pm and 10 pm shows, for a total of eight shows.
Fotos 1, 2, 4, 5, and 7 by Will Van Dorp. Show fotos are compliments of Peter Gaffney of Cabaret Red Light.
I don’t mean to say there are or should be doomed. I don’t mean that at all. It’s just uncanny that along a less than 10-mile strip, at least four such huge icons lie as if in an intensive care unit, some in a coma and others tending toward comatose. Similarly, river bank greenery half obscures some of the slipways where state-of-the-art ships splashed out of such legendary yards as Delaware River Iron Shipbuilding, Merchant Shipbuilding, Sun Shipbuilding, American International Shipbuilding, New York Shipbuilding (and who knows which others I left out.)
The SS United States hangs in the balance. If you’re in Philly July 1, watch the stacks illuminate. Click here for a tour into the ship’s bowels.
This glimmer of hope JUST in from today’s Wall Street Journal.
I could see three props on deck.
Click here for a vintage cutaway. Click here for statistics of all sorts including how fast she could travel in reverse!
Answer: 25 kts in reverse: that’s faster than Titanic forward. It’s strange to think this vessel’s service life was a mere 17 years, which ended 41 years ago.
Take a tour here.
A few miles south of SS United States is CV-67, John F. Kennedy, whose 37-year career spanned conflicts from Vietnam to Iraq.
Click here for a foto archive . . . and more.
Might the carrier go to Rhode Island?
And CV-59, a 39-year veteran just back from Rhode Island, might she be reefed?
And then, there’s C-6 Olympia, not hauled since World War 2, located right across the river from BB-62.
Here’s Olympia‘s Facebook page. Whitherward?
Tour the vessel–including views of the five-inch guns–here.
Here’s a 1997 maintenance report, and
slightly different analysis from 2000.
Doomed? Hope? Who has deep pockets these days? Please forward this post to lots of friends.
All fotos by Will Van Dorp.
Unrelated: Follow the rowers that left the sixth boro (aka New York harbor) for the UK June 17.
Not a tug . . . Blount-built Sailor (1977) delivers lubricants to suezmax crude carrier Cape Bowen. A sixth-boro Blount boat is Twin Tube. Sailor and Twin Tube–now that’s an evocative set of names– have similar hulls but houses at opposite ends. But have you guessed the answer to the ponderable at the end of the post a few days back?
Also not a tug: fragile lightship Barnegat, here on the mud in North Camden.
Still not a tug: SS United States. Don’t the lines suggest the throat pleats of a rorqual? Got some names of tug companies common in the Delaware but not depicted here the past few days?
Bouchard is one. Morton IV is a regular in the sixth boro, here approaching the Commodore Barry Bridge.
K-Sea is another. I’m not sure why Coral Sea lies beside Arthur W Radford here in the Navy Yard.
And then there’s Penn Maritime . . . here’s Amberjack. Penn specializes in transporting heated asphalt.
But Vane Brothers is ubiquitous. Here’s Pokomoke, and
Patuxent,
Bohemia,
Charles Hughes, and
Roanoke. Two other Vane boats lay in the Schuykill, but too close to Sunoco to risk taking a foto.
All fotos by Will Van Dorp, but again special thanks to Jeff Schurr and John Curdy.
You might wonder what’s happening in the sixth boro. Me too. I need to have a look, although I’ve really enjoyed Pelican Passage‘s shots these weeks. See some fireworks here. As for me, it’s prime gallivant season the next few weeks. See you on the go.
News flash: unrelated . . . is it true that a duck nursery has been located inside Cornell‘s bow pudding? Don’t you feel cooled just looking at this January foto?
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