USS Winslow (TB-5)-- Part 3: One Battered Ship

Badly damaged, the Winslow was towed clear of the action.  Her commanding officer and a number of other in the crew were wounded.  

Lt. Bernadou saw to it that the wounded and dead were transferred to the Hudson and then left the ship himself, turning command over to Chief Gunner's Mate  George F. Brady, who, along with Chief Gunner's Mate  Hans Johnsen and Chief Machinist  Thomas C. Cooney-- later received Medals of Honor and was promoted to warrant officer.

The day following the engagement, the Winslow arrived at Key West for temporary repairs there and in Mobile, Alabama.  She returned to Key West for ten days before sailing  noth on 16 August.  After brief stops at Port Royal, S.C., and Norfolk, the Winslow reached NewYork on 27 August.  She was placed out of commission at the New York Navy Yard on 7 September 1898 to begin more extensive repairs.  This was one battered ship.

Except for a brief trip to Philadelphia in mid-October, the Winslow remained inactive until early 1901.  She then was in a decommissioned status in New York and later at Norfolk Navy Yard where she was listed as in reserve.

--Cooter

USS Newport News (CA-148)-- Part 7: Decommissioning and Scrapping

Operations by Vietnam resumed October 21 October and continued until December 1972, when the ship was recalled to homeport at Norfolk.  During 1973 and 1974 the ship undertook training cruises and visited many ports around the world before being recalled for decommissioning.

While there was some interest in retaining her for her "big gun" capability in the fleet, a survey to determine further service indicated the ship was beyond economical refitting.

The Newport News was decommissioned on 27 June 1975 and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 31 July  1978.  

She spent her later years as part of the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard Mothball Fleet and was sold for scrap in New Orleans, Louisiana, , on 25 February1993.

The museum ship USS Quincy, in Quincy, Massachusetts, contains her bell and other items.

In the Hampton Roads Naval Museum's The Ten-Thousand Day War at Sea: The US Navy in Vietnam, 1970-1975 section, a large model of the USS Newport News.

--Cooter

USS Montgomery (C-9)-- Part 2: Took Part in the Spanish-American War

The USS Montgomery was launched 5 December 1891 by Columbian Iron  Works in Baltimore, Maryland; sponsored by Miss Sofia Smith; and commissioned at Norfolk  Navy Yard (Virginia)  21 June 1894, Commander Charles Henry Davis, Jr. in command.

Assigned to the North Atlantic Squadron and operated along the eastern edge of the U.S. as far south as the Caribbean Sea.

During the Spanish-American War she  cruised near Cuba and Haiti in April 1898 and in May joined the blockade of Havana.  She took two prizes, the Lorenzo and Frasquito, on 5 May, and shelled the Spanish forts  a week later.

On 13 June a 280 Krupp gun at the Santa Clara  Battery fired on the Montgomery at a range of 9,000 meters, apparently without effect.

--Cooter

Norfolk Naval Shipyard Turns 250

From the October 2, 2017, Virginia-Pilot (Norfolk)  "Ironclad Legacy:  Norfolk Naval Shipyard older than the nation and the Navy, turns 250."  Robert  McCabe.

You can see the famed Hammerhead Crane from 1940.

Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia, is the Navy's oldest and largest shipyard turns 250 on October 15.

Today, it services highly-secured nuclear powered submarines and aircraft carriers by 10,500 civilians and 750 military personnel.

The carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and submarine USS Rhode Island are there right now.

Naval Station Norfolk is the world's largest Navy base and that turns 100 this year.

--Cooter

The Repairs of the Battleship USS North Carolina-- Part 2

From the June 10th WWAY TV.

The USS North Carolina has been sitting for decades in the Cape Fear River mud and is now in dire need of work on the hull. Plans until now had it being towed to Norfolk or Charleston for dry docking.

The ship's commander, Terry Bragg said, "If you take it away it would leave us with nothing but a big hole in the ground." They have come up with a way to keep the battleship in Wilmington and save $11 million. They now intend to build a cofferdam around the ship with work starting this fall and continuing for three years.

Bragg believes that if the North Carolina Shipyard could build all those Liberty Ships in Wilmington during World War II, they can restore the hull of one battleship.

Sounds Like a Win-Win Situation to Me. --Cooter

Some More on the USS Constellation

The 1797 USS Constellation was one of the six original frigates authorized by Congress. It was the first to put to sea, engage, defeat, and capture an enemy vessel. A fine beginning for the US Navy under the Constitution.

In 1853, it was broken up for scrap in the Gosport (Norfolk) Navy Yard in Virginia. The second USS Constellation was started at the same time, which has led to the confusion as to whether Baltimore's current ship is the 1797 or 1853 Constellation.

There is the possibility that the 1853 one was built out of material from the 1797 one. Perhaps all that was done was to rebuild the original.

Who's to Know, Who's to Know? --Cooter