Hat Tip John A. Noble

I don’t go to galleries, museums, or other events enough, I know, but ’tis the season when it’s dark and rainy, and indoors can be bright, dry, and cheery. Rainy Sunday afternoon recently, I stopped in at the Noble Maritime Collection on Staten Island to show it to a friend not familiar with Noble’s work. Snug Harbor –location of  Noble Maritime— is always a good place to visit.   I’ll put links to John A. Noble in general at end of post, and I know some of my readers knew him.

Here’s one of the images that caught and held me.   Spend some time and savor it;  farther below is more information. 

How about those 1949 Cadillacs?   I needed to know more about the Cadillacs, of course.  And I found some.  Can you name the other “Cadillacs” of the Moran fleet?  Any more about them?  Answer follows.

Here’s a slightly closer up of the image above.  This image is on display as part of a current exhibit called “Andrea Doria:  Rescue at Sea.” 

While you mull over what you know about the Moran Cadillacs, how ’bout a glance at some Cadillacs of that general vintage. 

Never before have I looked at a hood ornament and thought how much that figure resembles a version of mermaid . . . not a woman and fish; rather, a woman and a ray.  Agree?

The first of four here is a Cadillac, again . . . that general vintage.  Can you name the other three?

All photos, any errors or digressions, WVD.

Here and here are some starter John A. Noble links.    Here’s an online gallery of some of his works for sale.

As to Moran’s Cadillacs:  Grace (now Towell Power), Doris (last Piar), Barbara (reefed as Georgia), Carol (reefed near her sister), and Moira (later Cedar Point) from Levingston Shipbuilding, now gone.  They launched at the rate of one each month between April and August 1949.  Paul Strubeck mentions their naval architect–Tams Inc., in his book Diesel Railroad Tugboats I reviewed not even two months ago here. 

While I’m on books, Erin Urban offers at least two books on John A. Noble. 

 

 

 

 

Robbins Reef 3

Here are previous posts in this series.

And today, April 1, I’m not fooling;  Noble Maritime Collection is a “must see” in NYC.  You can actually see their buildings from the KVK, just west of the salt pile.  Their latest exhibition is called “Robbins Reef Lighthouse:  A Home in the Harbor,” a collection of works by contemporary artists asked specifically to depict the light.  The painting below “The Barbican of the Kill van Kull” is by Pamela Talese.

What follows below are just a few of the pieces from that one exhibit.

 

The photo above is by Michael Falco.

 

William Behnken and

 

L. F. Tantillo 

 

and others also have pieces.  If you’ve never been to the museum and you devote two hours to all the fine maritime treasures there, you’ll still feel rushed.

Here and here and here are some previous posts I’ve done about the museum.

 

 

People on the Boro 18

Here are the previous 17 iterations of this title.  I thought of this the other day when there were three others photographing with me along a short stretch of the KVK.

Recreation along the waterway there has been popular for a very long time.  I took this photo recently at Noble Maritime at –you guessed it–Sailors Snug Harbor.  I’m always surprised at how many people say that fine institution is on their list but they’ve not yet gone.  More on this soon.  Go.

Here’s another photo from Noble Maritime.  Can you identify anyone on this 1878 photo?

Did you guess it?  Taking the air along or on the waterways puts you in fine company.

Some folks works there, possibly because they enjoy that environment.

See the folks on this MSC vessel?  Look near the middle of the M on MSC.

There.  They’re probably waiting to assist the pilot off the ship.

Standing by with lines is critical.

As is having a refreshing cup of coffee . . .  Enjoy the rest of these photos.

 

 

 

All photos here, including the one below, were taken by Will Van Dorp.

Recently I had the good fortune of crossing paths with David Rider of Seamen’s Church Institute, and what was he doing . . . photography.  See his March 2016 shots here.

And for some reflection on taking better photos, check out this Youtube pilot video.  I hope more in the series get made, if they haven’t already.

Robbins Reef 2

Many thanks to Erin Urban, executive director of Noble Maritime for those photos and information.

What’s this?

The interior view is unique;  the exterior  . . . of course has been seen so often that your eyes might see right past it.  This beacon in the harbor has appeared in countless tugster posts, and will continue to do so.  Here’s just one. What you may not know is that in the lighthouse there is a “construction cam” focused on work at the New York Wheel.  Be sure to try “live stream cam 2” and its time lapse.  

Below is a view of CMA CGM La Scala from a week ago, the same day the Noble Maritime crew was at the light.

Here’s the abridged written report:

“Weather:  Cloudy, not windy, mid-60s°      Access:  The Emily Miller out; the Nicholas Miller back.  Left at 9:20; back at 12:30.

Tasks accomplished:  We brought out materials with which to clean up, including contractor’s bags, brooms, cardboard boxes, and another dustpan.  We also brought out a 60 lb. bag of mortar and water.  We added a new light in the cellar and brought out two more Mag lights and a long extension cord so we can light the cellar and any other places that need it.  We also brought out another 5-gallon can of gasoline.

André cemented the area in the cellar below the new cellar door.

Pete and Kevin got the light set up in the basement and then began the clear out.  Then, with Erin, they began removing accumulated trash and unneeded equipment.  We cleaned and cleared all the rooms, especially the second floor supply room and the stairwell, and organized a tool cabinet on the first floor.  We found a box of stuff having to do with the web camera and stored it on the fourth floor in the room where the web camera batteries are set up.

The New York Wheel worker charged up the batteries for the web camera and got it working again; it had been down since last fall.

Next steps: We will go out to do more work on the interior.   We have to shovel out the cellar, for example, and finish painting the small rooms on the fourth level.

We will at the same time do a video explaining all the aspects of the work we have to do at the lighthouse.  Our spring projects will include getting more ventilation and painting the exterior so we can set up the canopy and the solar power to light the interior and exterior of the site.”

Click here for a USCG history of aids to navigation.  Here are some 360 degrees views from Robbins Reef.

Many thanks to Erin and her crew for their work and for permission to use these photos and this report.

At the same moment, I was getting these photos of CMA CGM La Scala, with JRT Moran tailing and

Kirby Moran made up to the lower set of recessed shell bits.

 

Last two photos by Will Van Dorp.

 

Disintegration

I’m excited to be doing another showing of Graves of Arthur Kill tonight.  I hope to sell some copies, but I also look forward to hearing others’ stories of visiting the marine scrapyard over on the Arthur Kill.

Over the years i’ve done two series of blogposts on the yard:  the ghosts series and the graveyard series.   Another way of viewing the place is as disintegration.  Enjoy these fotos and then I’ll explain where in a perfect world with endless resources I’d like to go next.

So I’d be thrilled if I could work with someone who could do time lapse simulation like this and this.   I’d take a vessel like Hila aka ATR-89 from the time it arrived at the yard, and project its progressive disintegration over about a century.

Meanwhile, we have our imaginations.    By the way, we’re selling the video also at Noble Maritime, all proceeds going to the museum.

All fotos here by Will Van Dorp.

By the way, bowsprite has her own commercial activities operating South Street Seaport’s 14 Fulton Street pop-up shop.

Bright Lights 5

Here were 4, 3, 2, and last but not least enlightening 1.

And where’s this?

Let’s spiral outward a few.

A noteworthy woman once lived here, you know  . . .  the

. . . Germany-born Kate.

See more here on the Noble Maritime Collection site.  Noble is the steward of the light and is seeking help restoring it to Kate’s tenure at the light.

I have a folder devoted to fotos “illuminated” by the light.  Like January 2010.

February 2012,

also February 2012,

November 2012,

right after Irene in August 2011,

and July 2012.

Anyone have Robbins Reef Light with noteworthy vessels . . . to share?

Click here for some of my favorite images of Kate’s Light.

Thanks to Erin Urban for the passing along the first six photos, taken by Brian DeForest.

KVK Tourism

And I thought I was a solitary tourist wanting to see the sights here?  I always do bring outatowners here to my “offices” for the scenery.

And to think that he too thought a maritime center devoted to contemporary shipping is sorely needed along the busy channels of the sixth boro.

First, Noble Maritime IS open this Saturday and Sunday, Labor Day.  More than half the fotos in this post are from the well-worth-seeing display called “Tides of 100 Years.”    Snug Harbor also caught some attention in the New Yorker  this week.

The KVK always intrigues and amuses.  Like, this tanker . . . made me think Torm is mini?    No way . . . it’s heavily-laden,  it’s rusty,

it’s orange (or would you call that cantaloupe?).

Over beyond it at Bayonne’s dry dock, USNS Dahl is getting a make-over.

Farther west, Maersk Phoenix is transferring a petroleum product and soon to head into the Mediterranean.

John Noble is the godfather of this blog.  And this exhibit helps you form a fuller idea of the artist.

And lest you think, it’s only his fabulous artwork, it’s more . . . like this manual below.  John Noble had a Jeepster, one of my all-time to-be-coveted vehicles!  See the flickr image to the left margin of this blog.   Anyone remember his topless Jeepster around Staten Island?

And here’s a taste of his workshop . . ..

If you have a chance this weekend or soon, come to see this exhibit.  Spend some time in the museum, and then find a place across the road to sit and watch his inspiration.

Tangentially related:  My Jeepster story does NOT involve John Noble or even NY.  I was born in coastal North Carolina, a marshy farming area where deep ditches tend to outline roads.  My slightly older relatives–who will stay unnamed–used to waterski behind the Jeepster.  Run the tow line from the car to the ditch, where the skiier crouches at the ready hoping to begin the ride before a snapping turtle, alligator, or water moccasin happens along.  Once the tow gets going, keep your skis cranked forward in the ditch, not toward the car.  Can be done. Has been.  Wish I had fotos!

If anyone has Noble Jeepster stories, please leave a comment.

What the Storm Brought

From my reading Stephen King phase, I remember a formula that involved a storm or fog moving on and leaving something inexplicable, usually malevolent.  If I

hadn’t expected Gazela at this appointed hour, my imagination would have raced.  Instead, it did my heart good to see Gazela–who was still dory fishing on the Grand Banks when Armstrong  strolled around some lunar real estate since abandoned.  Crossing paths with Gazela as it entered the KVK was John P. Brown.  If you’re interested in dining (DINING) aboard Gazela Friday evening, click here for info and reservations.

Gazela‘s in town as part of Atlantic Salt fest.    For fotos of Gazela in clear bright August sunshine, click here.

This too, had I not been forewarned, would have conjured up Stephen King thoughts;  given its beam, I’d call this “one big-ass ship” aka Makulu . . . if you speak Zulu.  Dimensions:  735′ loa x 210′ beam!

It looks like it could carry all of BAT to some foreign shore.

In spite of its color, it’sBlue Marlin.  Click here and scroll through to see Blue Marlin–back when it was still blue–carrying the DDG-67 USS Cole from Yemen back to Mississippi in 2000.  Click here on Fogonazos to see some huge loads.

I saw some Reinauer boats skittering around the boro today . . . for fear of being loaded onto this orange Blue Marlin.  I expect to see more of Blue Marlin loading the next few days.

All fotos by Will Van Dorp.

Unrelated but almost . . . See these fotos Capt Joey of Good Morning Gloucester took of Wanderbird high and dry up in Cape Ann.