New Owner Sought for Cruiser Olympia

Posted on by March 8, 2011

Yesterday the Independence Seaport Museum posted a “NOTICE OF AVAILABILITY OF TRANSFER APPLICATION PROCESS FOR CRUISER, OLYMPIA” to formally begin the process of seeking a new owner for the historic cruiser launched in 1892.  From the notice:

The Olympia, Admiral Dewey’s flagship and once the most celebrated, state-of-the art naval vessel afloat, will be scrapped or scuttled unless a new owner can be found. In terms of historic value, the National Historic Landmark Olympia has been equated to the USS Constitution and the Constellation as one of the most important vessels in U.S. Naval history. The ship straddles the shift between the age of sail and the age of steel, and marks the launch of the modern steel Navy. Deferred maintenance has reached a critical stage and the ship requires $2-5 million of immediate stabilization. A further estimated $10-20 million will be required for dry-dock and restoration.
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U.S. Commandos Retake Tanker MV Guanabara From Pirates

Posted on by March 8, 2011

Commandos from the USS Bulkeley boarded the Japanese owned tanker MV Guanabara on Sunday after the crew reported that the ship was under attack by pirates.  The commandos captured four pirates aboard the ship without firing a shot.  The crew had withdrawn to the ship’s “safe room.”

U.S. Commandos Free Ship, Crew From Pirates
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Mate on the Phone With his Mother During Collision with Duck Boat

Posted on by March 8, 2011

Last July, there was a collision involving the tug Caribbean Sea pushing a barge and a disabled “Duck boat” DUKW 34 at anchor in the Delaware River off Philadelphia. Two of the 35 passengers on the duck boat drowned in the collision.  The mate, the officer on watch, was apparently talking to his mother on the phone prior to and during the collision.

Tug boat lookout on phone during fatal crash, safety board says
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Did Vikings Navigate with ‘Sunstones’?

Posted on by March 7, 2013

When the sun was out the Vikings could navigate with “sun compass,”  a sort of modified sundial.   According to legend, when the sky was overcast the Vikings used a “sunstone.”  A new study suggests that the sunstone might not have been legend.

Did Vikings navigate with ‘sunstone’?

Vikings could have navigated the oceans in inclement weather with the aid of a crystal that pinpointed the sun’s location behind banks of clouds and fog, a new study suggests.
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Adjust Your Compass Now: the North Pole is Migrating to Russia

Posted on by January 22, 2014

In June of last year, we posted about the Quest for the South Magnetic Pole.  Recently the Independent featured an article describing how the magnetic north pole is  moving faster than at any time in human history, apparently shifting from Canada to Russia.

Adjust your compass now: the north pole is migrating to Russia
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Update: XO Movie Night on the Enterprise – the Admiral’s Report

Posted on by March 6, 2011

On Thursday Adm. John C. Harvey Jr., the head of Fleet Forces Command, announced the results of the investigation of the aircraft carrier Enterprise videos and recommended punishment for 40 officers and senior enlisted sailors.

Lewd Navy Video Report

Lewd Navy Videos Sink More Than The Captain Who Made Them
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Commander Nigel Matthews

Posted on by March 6, 2011

Commander Nigel Matthews

Commander Nigel Matthews, who has died aged 89, survived being run over by an aircraft carrier and flew again the same day.

Nigel Matthews died on December 19. His first wife died in 1977; he married, secondly, Annette Pask (née Pinhey) in 1979 and she predeceased him in 2008. He is survived by four children of his first marriage and a stepdaughter.
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eNotated Edition of Joshua Slocum’s Sailing Alone Around the World – A Review

Posted on by March 7, 2011

I was recently sent  The eNotated Sailing Alone Around the World by Joshua Slocum. Enotation is electronic annotation, where instead of footnotes or endnotes, there are embedded links in the text of an e-book. A book like Slocum’s which contains a fair amount of sailing jargon and many geographical references is a perfect candidate for eNotation.

Before discussing this edition, however, a few words on Sailing Alone Around the World are in order. In 1895,  Joshua Slocum was as ship’s captain at loose ends in the last days of sail. He rebuilt a 37′ gaff rigged oyster sloop named Spray, and proceeded to sail it around the world alone, the first person ever to do so. His book about the voyage, Sailing Alone Around the World, is a nautical classic. I would argue that it is a literary classic, period.   Slocum’s direct, deceptively simple yet vivid language reminds me of Mark Twain. If you haven’t read Slocum, you should. Soon. This edition might not be bad place to start.

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Two Museums, Two Coasts, Very Different Prospects

Posted on by March 8, 2011

Star of India at Maritime Museum of Sand Diego

News from both the Seaport Museum in New York and the Maritime Museum of San Diego.  The Seaport Museum, until recently the South Street Seaport Museum, is shutting down its exhibits and shops. The ships will still be open for tours. We have posted recently about the latest financial crisis at the beleaguered museum.

Struggling Seaport Museum closing exhibit, ships open

In contrast, the Maritime Museum of San Diego, has two major projects underway – the construction of a replica of Cabrillo’s galleon, San Salvador, and a new exhibition of art and artifacts from three Westerners — the explorer Capt. James Cook, writer Herman Melville and artist Paul Gauguin — adrift in Polynesia.

Maritime Museum sails into uncharted waters
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The Fate of HMS Beagle After Darwin´s Voyage to the Galapagos Islands

Posted on by March 5, 2011

 

Robert Prescott, a marine archeologist, believes that he has located the final resting place HMS Beagle.

The Fate of HMS Beagle After Darwin´s Voyage to the Galapagos Islands

HMS Beagle was the ship that sailed around the world with the young naturalist by the name of Charles Darwin onboard. The ship was sold for scrap in 1870 but until now it´s final fate has remained one of the world´s great naval mysteries.
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The Fyddeye Guide to America’s Maritime History edited by Joe Follansbee, on Kindle – A Dual Review

Posted on by March 6, 2011

I recently purchased Joe Follansbee’s The Fyddeye Guide to America’s Maritime History – 2,000+ Tall Ships, Lighthouses, Historic Ships, Maritime Museums, and More. Rather than purchasing a dead-tree version, I bought the guide as an e-book for Kindle. This is, therefore, a dual review – a review of the guide book itself and how it works as an e-book.
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Commander Christopher Biggins – Captain of the Omani sail training ship SHABAB OMAN

Posted on by November 27, 2013

Shabab Oman

Christopher Biggins, captain of the Omani national sail training ship Shabab Oman, for over two decades, died recently.   An obituary by Frank Scott, author of A Square Rig Handbook, reposted with permission from the  Marine History List:

Commander Christopher Biggins

Chris Biggins who recently died of cancer was Captain of the Omani national sail training ship Shabab Oman for over 20 years, and during that time he made her a major force in the international world of sail training.
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Henry Morgan’s Cannons Found in Panama

Posted on by March 4, 2011

Photo: Donnie Reid

Six guns from the ships of privateer Admiral Sir Henry Morgan are believed to have been found in the Chagres River in Panama.

Henry Morgan’s cannons found in Panama, archaeologists say

Archaeologists have recovered six cannons from the ships of Welsh privateer Henry Morgan, the first artifacts found in Panama to be linked to the man who remains a legend there, the team said Monday.
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Coast Guard Cutter Midgett Busts Midget Sub Loaded with Cocaine

Posted on by March 3, 2011

The US Coast Guard Cutter Midgett recently busted a midget sub loaded with cocaine while on a cruise of the Eastern Pacific.    The 35′ long self-propelled semi-submersible was carrying 6,000 kilograms of cocaine from Columbia bound for the United States.  This was only the second ever seizure of a self propelled semi-submersible by a U.S. Coast Guard cutter.  In addition to the catching the narco-sub, the Cutter Midget seized 11 tons of cocaine and marijuana on five trafficking vessels and detained 20 suspected narcotics traffickers.  The cutter also performed three search and rescue missions while on patrol.

Coast Guard cutter returns from patrol, interdicts semi-submersible with cocaine
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Innovative sails for container ships – in development ??? Maybe not.

Posted on by March 3, 2011

Definitely not a containership

I saw the headline and immediately shook my head.  There may indeed be an application for sails on bulk carriers, but containerships, well, not so much.  With a five high (or higher) stack of boxes on deck, containerships have exactly the stability they need – no more, no less.  Adding sails without removing cargo capacity could be a challenge.  I clicked on the link and had to smile.  The drawing was of a tanker with hybrid solar cell sails, and not a containership.  Tankers generally have no shortage of stability.  Even Sail-World should know the difference between containerships and tankers.   I guess the moral of the story is that not all ships are containerships and you have to take what you read in the press with a proverbial grain of salt.    The designs by Eco Marine Power look very interesting, nevertheless.

Innovative sails for container ships – in development

U. S. Coast Guard Cutter Acushnet, “Queen of the Fleet,” for Sale

Posted on by March 4, 2011

U. S. Coast Guard Cutter Acushnet

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Acushnet, oldest commissioned Coast Guard cutter, and the officially designated “Queen of the Fleet” will be sold as surplus at an online auction scheduled to end on March 16th.   Current bidding is $66,000. (Updated 4/04)

US NAVY DIVER CLASS VESSEL (Note the GSA auction site rather oddly does not allow direct linking to individual auctions.  Click the arrow to the right on the GSA auction page to see the  Acushnet auction.)
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Gold Rush Tunes from the Depths of Lake Labarge

Posted on by March 2, 2011

Photo: Donnie Reid/Institute of Nautical Archeology

We have posted previously about the discovery of the Yukon Gold Rush iron sternwheeler A.J. Goddard which sank in a storm in Lake Labarge in October of 1901.  Now with the discovery of a gramophone and three recordings, the music of the Gold Rush has literally risen from the depths of the lake.  To listen to a recording of the Rendez Vous Waltz, recovered from the A.J. Goddard, click here.

Yukon shipwreck yields Gold Rush tunes
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Brad Van Liew Wins Third Leg of Velux 5 Oceans

Posted on by March 2, 2011

Brad Van Liew arrived in Punta del Este, Uruguay yesterday, winning the third leg of the Velux Five Oceans Singlehanded Around the World Race.   The remaining three racers, Zbigniew “Gutek” Gutkowski, Derek Hatfield and Chris Stanmore-Major are all within only 50 nautical miles of each other and are expected to arrive in port on  Thursday.

Brad Van Liew Wins Third Leg of Velux 5 Oceans
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The Marine Quarterly – A Journal of the Sea

Posted on by March 2, 2011

The Maritime Quarterly, a new maritime journal, was launched on the first of this month.  Looks very interesting.   Extracts are available on its website.  About the journal:

The Marine Quarterly is a new kind of sea journal, reporting subjects of strong interest to everyone who goes on the sea. It will be full of big, authoritative articles on sailing, fisheries, adventuring, merchant shipping, conservation, natural history, heritage, trade, naval matters, and anything else connected with salt water.
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