I visited the U.S.S. Alabama with my dad and the kids when Jon was around 8 and Katie was 5, so that would be more than 25 years ago. Joani opted for shopping back then, so today was her first chance to explore the giant battleship.
While one of the ships main objectives was to shell entrenchments on enemy-held territory, it was clear they had a huge problem with aircraft harassment. There were anti-aircraft guns positioned everywhere above decks.
This little bird had no idea he was perched on the barrel of a 50 caliber machine gun. I don't think I would have wanted to be here any more than he would have when the guns were in action.
Someone forgot to polish the ships bell!
Time to head below decks. There were as many as 2,500 sailors aboard when this ship was in action during WWII. Even as large as the ship was, it had to be extremely crowded. I'm sure it required a lot of adjustment to the around the clock activity and the near total lack of personal space (unless you were one of the senior officers).
The idea of providing 7,500 meals a day seems almost unimaginable, especially with all of the complications of being at sea. Imagine restocking the pantry or creating a decent variety of meals and feeding people all day long who were expecting breakfast since they just woke up while others want dinner since they are near the end of their watch. That's on a good day! Add the ever-present specter of a klaxon calling everyone to battle stations and it all falls into total disarray.
Somehow all those sailors have to stay neat and trimmed. The five chairs in the barber station must have stayed pretty busy! (OK, two are out of the picture to the left)
It is difficult to imagine manning the boilers as a battle raged many decks above praying the torpedo planes fail in their mission. I doubt the "warmth" of the engine room was much of a plus either.
The transformers below power the lights, presumably, in this portion of the ship. I suspect they were original equipment and still in operation (they were warm and humming) more than 70 years after installation.
Imagine the sense of relief looking out on the shoreline as the ship made landfall when the war was finally over.
Battleship Park had a complete collection of all modern fighter jets including one of only two YF-17's (it lost a development competition to the F-18). They had an SR-71 and a B-52 among many others that might have taken another hour to really appreciate. After nearly four hours on the battleship, our energy level drove the decision to tour the submarine first. I actually forgot about the YF-17 as we quickly walked through the hanger to get to the submarine display.
Outside was the tangled wreckage of a plane that had us curious. I asked one of the employees if a hurricane had damaged the plane. He told me it was loaned to a studio to make the movie "Men of Honor." There was a little problem (apparently pilot error) that caused the aircraft to be returned in less than pristine condition. He said the museum had learned their lesson about working with movie production companies.
The U.S.S. Drum was a nearly complete contrast to the Alabama. From the first hatch, it was clear the average sailors aboard were of significantly less girth than myself.
It must take a rare psychological outlook to serve on a submarine. It's more than just coping with the cramped, claustrophobic space. What about every creak and pop reminding you of the crushing pressure of the water wrapped around you 200 feet under the ocean's surface. Worse yet, what about when surface ships, dropping depth charges, have located your position! Of course, you better get along well with others. If you had a problem with one of the other 82 crew members you couldn't avoid seeing them in the tight quarters. I learned I could never be a seafaring sailor and I have a new respect for those who served to protect our nation.
No surprise, a lot of the submarine volume and personnel were dedicated to torpedoes. There were six fore and four aft tubes and a total complement of 24 torpedoes. Even more space was used to move the submarine through the water. Underwater, the propellers were driven with large electric motors running on a massive bank of batteries. On the surface, diesel engines powered the props and generators to charge the batteries. There were two 126 cell batteries. Each battery cell weighed 1,647 pounds. That worked out to a whopping 100 tons per battery! Batteries comprised almost 15 percent of the total weight of the sub.
Joani looked up the narrow passage to the periscope deck but let me explore it alone. I can't imagine there could have been more than three or four people working in there at any given moment.
I wonder if there was ever a gauge that they looked at but just couldn't remember what it was?
After a total of five hours climbing through the battleship and submarine and skipping lunch, we, needless to say, were ready to get home to Sam, have some supper and finish off the evening with a glass of wine!
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