Birk took these waterside fotos the better part of a week ago. It took me a while to figure out the “color” of the mushroom anchor at the bow.
Plastic wrap I conclude, but that could be erroneous. Ambrose certainly is full-bodied with a low center of gravity.
For purposes of comparison, I’ve put up the next two shots I took at South Street 25 months ago. While afloat, Ambrose‘s beamy or “jowly” hull cannot be fully appreciated.
From this NPS Maritime Heritage Program link, I learned that Ambrose was launched in 1907 and originally wore straw colored paint–with her name in black–not the white lettering on red hull she’s sported since the 1930s. Oh . . . the folks in the red suits around her in this shot . . . they must belong to some secret society of the Nacirema.
Many thanks to Birk Thomas for the top two fotos.
tugster: a waterblog 
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January 12, 2012 at 1:07 pm
Harold E. Tartell
There Was Even One Lightship Painted Black. HURON Up On The Great Lakes Was The Only One. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_lightship_Huron_(LV-103), http://www.boatnerd.com/museums/huron/history.htm, https://www.facebook.com/pages/United-States-lightship-Huron/116352788413085. There Were Several Lightships That Bore The Name AMBROSE. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightship_Ambrose I Remember The Last One Very Well That Was Replaced By Ambrose Tower In 1967. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ambrose_Lightship.jpg, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambrose_Light. I Was Stationed In The Coast Guard At That Time Aboard The 311 Foot MACKINAC, Which Was At Base St. George, Staten Island. The Lightships Would Come In For Maintenance, And I Got A Chance To Go Aboard. There Were Also Six RELIEF Lightships On Both Coasts That Would Take Up Station When The Original Assigned Lightship Was Out Of Service For Maintenance. http://www.rudyalicelighthouse.net/CalLts/LV605/LV605.htm, http://www.hnsa.org/ships/relief.htm, http://www.fryingpan.com/pages/lifeframe.html. In May Of 1968, I Was Stationed Aboard The 110′ Icebreaking Tug MANITOU. We Towed One Of The Decommissioned Relief Lightships (I Can’t Remember The Number) From Base St. George, To The Coast Guard Yard In Curtis Bay, Maryland. We Towed Her On The Hawser From St. George, Down The Coast, & Up The Delaware Bay To The Mouth Of The Chesapeake & Delaware Canal At Chesapeake City. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesapeake_and_Delaware_Canal We Took In The Hawser, & Towed Her Alongside ” On The Hip” For The Remainder Of The Trip Through The Canal To The Curtis Bay Yard.
January 12, 2012 at 3:31 pm
tugster
i saw HURON from the Blue Water Bridge back after thanksgiving. wanted to head down to the water to see it close up. here’s a closeup: http://michiganexposures.blogspot.com/2010/06/huron-lightship.html . . . built over near Yankee Stadium on the Harlem River: http://shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/6yachtsmall/consolidated.htm
January 12, 2012 at 9:19 pm
bowsprite
I see a red ship and I want it painted black
No lightships left at all except this one that’s black
I see the ships go by before the Lakes did froze
I have to turn my head until the darkness goes
No more will my green sea go turn a deeper blue
And now a landmark, Huron, you are thus rescued
If I look hard enough into the setting sun
We all rejoice for your 340 tons…