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USS Olympia (C-6)


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VirtualMariner

Independence Seaport Museum

211 South Columbus Blvd.

Philadelphia, PA 19106

 

website: Independence Seaport Museum

 

USS Olympia

The USS Olympia is the last remaining ship of its kind, the lone remnant of The Great White Fleet. Launched in 1892, the Olypia was a unique specimen even in her own day, as no sister ships were ever built. A veteran of the Spanish-American War, she was Dewey's flagship at the Battle of Manila Bay. Not only is this ship an American treasure, it's the oldest surviving steel warship in the world.

 

Unfortunately, the fate of this great ship is highly in question these days. There is even talk of scrapping or scuttling it, which would be a tragedy, in my opinion. For now, though, it is still open and available for touring. It's well worth the time and money if you're in the Philadelphia area.

 

Here are some photos I took when I visited the ship earlier this year:

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VirtualMariner

Officer's Country; the ornate circular bench is actually built this way to conceal the ammo elevator leading up the the gun turret.

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VirtualMariner

Enlisted decks. The crew lived and ate in different areas of the ship, such as this, but they didn't have dedicated berthing compartments such as we have now.

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Great shots! I have not visited the ship yet (SHAME ON ME!!) I hope that her future is somehow secure. I haven't heard anything since the last working meeting back in April (I believe). The ship has to be saved.

 

-Ski

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It has been decades since I visited the ship, but it was a timewarp. I was really young, and when I stepped on there, very little of it made sense. I had a rough idea of history, dates and times. But seeing that translated into the technology of the day took me back.

 

Now today, with "steam punk" being all the rage, you would think the Olympia would have a new following.

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If you check on the site for the Historical Naval Ships Assoc. (HNSA.org) you can get an idea of what is going on with Olympia and other museum ships. There is very little chance the Olympia will see the scrappers! Below is an update from the "AnchorWatch Newsletter" on their site.

 

“OLYMPIA TRANSFER STATUS UPDATE”

Olympia is currently one of two historic ships at Independence Seaport Museum (ISM) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she has been operated by the Seaport Museum since 1995. Last spring, ISM announced that the hull suffers from extensive corrosion and is in dire need of dry-docking and repairs, to the tune of $10 Million. Unable to secure outside funding to cover these expenses, the Seaport Museum's Board of Port Wardens determined that because Olympia does not have strong enough ties to the

Delaware River region--the museum's focus area--that they are seeking a new steward for the ship.

Since Olympia's availability was publicized, more than a half dozen groups have indicated that they are interested in becoming the new steward of the vessel. In the interest of long-term preservation of the ship, strict requirements must be fulfilled before the ship is transferred to any group. In March, ISM issued a Transfer application (TAPP), available on the museum's website at www.phillyseaport.org. The deadline for Phase One (letter of intent and executive summary application) is September 1, 2011. ISM is committed to seeing the Transfer process to its completion by the end of 2012. In the meantime, ISM will continue to stabilize the ship and keep her afloat, safe and dry. While under the Seaport Museum's care the Olympia will remain open to visitors daily

 

Also from the same newsletter is this

 

“NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION ESTABLISHES USS OLYMPIA NATIONAL FUND”

The National Trust for Historic Preservation recently announced its establishment of the USS Olympia National Fund, in support of efforts to preserve the embattled USS Olympia. Launched in 1892, Olympia is the oldest surviving steel warship in the world. Veteran of two wars, the Olympia brought home the Unknown Soldier from WWI in 1922. She remains a floating symbol of the United States' emergence as a global power and a world leader.

The USS Olympia National Fund has been established by the National Trust as a repository of funds raised through the collective efforts of individuals and groups for the stabilization, repair, relocation, and restoration of the USS Olympia. The principal purpose of the Fund will be to help underwrite the costs of stabilization and/or repairs of the vessel; secondarily, the fund may be used for restoration costs for the Olympia and/or costs of relocating the vessel from its current berth at the Independence Seaport Museum (ISM) to a new location chosen as a result of a transfer application process (TAPP) being overseen by the ISM.

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  • 2 weeks later...
VirtualMariner

Some of you requested more photos, but it took me a while to get around to it. Sorry for the delay, but here are some more...

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Great pictures! Can you imagine how dirty the crew and decks probably were when coaling? That was probably one thing the sailors of the later decades loved about the switch away from coal.

 

RC

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  • 10 months later...

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