I agree with Scott about the relative importance of the three to history. The Texas is still a very important ship, since she is the last WWI era battleship left.

The Mikasa and the Victory are also out of the water as I recall.

Really a shame we did not keep the WWII Enterprise.

If we cut funding for one LCS that’d give us half a billion to preserve all of these ships. Heck I bet Olympia would be good on antipiracy patrols as well!

Why don’t we have an National Naval Museum where all of these ships can be brought together in one place to show the progression of our heritage?

Put the Olympia next to the Texas, followed by a destroyer,a cruiser, an Essex class, then a supercarrier preserved. the sub exhibit can contain a Gato class, the Nautilus and then a GUPPY and Trieste with other boats I’m not sure are out there. Oh, and Albacore as well.

This is like asking “which of your children would you like to save?”

Save all three. they each represent a key point in American naval history
The Texas has been saved in the past and it looks like TPWD has done a good analysis of the problem

I agree with Chuck Hill that it was a shame that the first aircraft carrier named Enterprise was not preserved.

I also agree with URR and say save them all. I hate it when folks and the govt get frugal with preserving our nation’s naval heritage when there is so much waste in the rest of the government.

One days waste, fraud, and abuse of Medicare/Medicaid would maintain the nation’s historic fleet of ships.

#1 would be Olympia. Unique, and historic beyond the others. Also, the lowest price tag. #2 would be Texas, but, seems the Texas BB Commission has a plan and the funding in place to dry berth her. Of course, the $120M price tag on Yorktown staggers. Is dry berthing, like Texas, an option for these vessels? Can that price be brought down by following the Texas plan?

I think all three should be saved – but by mandating that the agencies they were turned over to fund the maintenance. I know they’re all broke, and maybe they’re all closing state parks like Arizona is; but they took on the obligation when they wanted the ships.

I will however add some related comments.

Texas has the right idea in a permanent dry dock for the USS Texas. They are not active ships – they don’t move around for any reason, and there is no reason they should be stored in the water to incur the required periodic maintenance that entails.

In addition, prior to making any further ship donations, the procedure should require a permanent dry dock as part of the display plan.

And last, the navy should consider an enclosed semi-permanent dry dock display for the USS Constitution. Along the lines of the HMS Victory but with the ability to re-float the ship for special occasions. The display could even have a retractable component for the roof and maybe one to three sides for the open air feel when the weather is appropriate. Sports stadiums have developed the technology so it should be doable and reduce some of the periodic maintenance required for that ship. The annual turn-around may or may not be done away with – it wouldn’t have to be canceled but would cost more.

When history is not taught in schools, it has no meaning. Until such time as we value the sacrafices of those who have preserved our freedoms, monuments, whether afloat or ashore, will continue to decay. “Those” people our generally found in our own family histories.

The Coast Guard has been fortunate to have a number of ships saved. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that their maintenance requirements are much more modest. Light ships are probably over represented, but it is still remarkable that we still have a 125 ft Cutter finished in 1927 and a 165 ft cutter from 1935 as well as two 327s that served in WWII.

http://cgsva.lbbhost.com/museumships.html

It may be a case of having to admit that some ships are too far gone to save.

I only know of one LST and that has been saved and one LCVP replica. I don’t know of any LCIs that have been saved. By comparison WWII battleships are very well represented as are WWII carriers, destroyers, and submarines. It would be good to save some of the less glamorous classes so future generations don’t think the “greatest generation” all went to sea on Iowa Class battleships and Essex class carriers with angled decks.

“”UltimaRatioReg Says:

“Everybody agrees to fund ship maintenance when the get the ship.”

Yep. but the VA is now charging service member health insurance for service-related wounds, injuries, and illnesses. So what the hell is the federal government’s complaint?”"

I don’t see that as really related to the issue. We should probably keep this on topic and put your VA/insurance issues in another blog?

Well, several reasons… Australia gets a high percentage of its manufactured goods and other imports via sea (97%). We are an island and our sea battles rank amongst our military history somewhere on par with our land battles. Also, since the majority of the population lives near the coast or near rivers and other waterways, and has a small fishing boat, or uses a ferry at some point, there is a general maritime connection – it is this that councils will look to when dishing out money to restore vessels, although mostly private funds are sought with government (public) support. Warships are major assets in a relatively small and young country, with its modest navy, that makes them the most meaningful type of vessel to retain (Sydney Darling Harbour, for instance). We also feel connected to the UK historically so more salt in the veins there too. On top of all this, every state has mad-keen competitive yachtsmen (sport is a religion here) so in many ways we are a sea loving nation.

However, we have not always been quick to retain naval heritage as the link below indicates, the Victorian Naval monitor Cerberus was allowed to crumble as the debate raged here whether to restore or not – we did keep the name though and our sailors are trained at HMAS Cerberus in Victoria.

http://www.cerberus.com.au/

I vote Olympia too, hands down.

Intrepid is a viable Essex class carrier monument, and after the Bush administration, I don’t want to be reminded of Texas in any way … especially since BB35 is not in itself historically significant.

“Really a shame we did not keep the WWII Enterprise.”

It is (President) Eisenhower’s shame. I can remember as a kid wanting to see Big E preserved – Aurora Models helped by putting a fund campaign leaflet in its WW2 Enterprise kit, as I remember, and I believe Bull Halsey spoke out for her – and then Eisenhower redlining it anyway, claiming budgetary reasons. It was a cheap shot in all respects.

@Switch: “And last, the navy should consider an enclosed semi-permanent dry dock display for the USS Constitution.” Salt water is the best preservative for old wooden ships. Putting her in air would accelerate degeneration. Dry rot microbes love fresh water and air, hate salt. But the roof would be a good idea, over her slip.

@Mike C: “There’s OLYMPIA rolled over on her side with her screws out of the water a la OKLAHOMA, in downtown Philly…” She’s already pretty much in the mud. The basin she’s in is silted up badly; a dredge job would be necessary to take her to a shipyard.

@URR: “I would much prefer that the Navy stay out of it as much as possible…” Spot on, and sadly one can see that in the last CONSTITUTION refit.

“Which do you save? All of them…Put a $350 million annual line item in the Department of Interior annual budget…” Agreed absolutely that they all should be saved, but Interior has made a sad hash over the years of the San Francisco maritime museum that they acquired many years ago. They did what you suggest the Navy might end up doing, over-bureaucratizing to the budget-breaking point. Neglect to the point of loss of some ships in the collection. I’d suggest someone who knows about preservation, maybe the Smithsonian? At least they have a track record in the wonderful air museum out by Dulles.

There’s the solution: Salvation by Silt! They’re already sitting on the bottom. Who needs to float? Close the hatches, turn off the pumps, and and paint a new boot top line.

If you expect Interior to take up the slack, you obviously haven’t lately been to a national park beyond the DC environs. Out here in the boondocks it’s pretty easy to see bears, trees and flowers don’t vote, per the Rickover reflection on naming subs.

However, considering the quantities of petroleum waste removed from TEXAS during her 1990 drydocking, I would be interested to know if anyone has genuinely surveyed YORKTOWN’s tanks.

Olympia must be saved,

She is a transformative ship–displaying shipbuilding and engineering skills of the early steel age, when ship frames were cast in iron and formed by human muscle.

She was Dewey’s flagship at Manila Bay, and the victory established the US as a global naval power.

Olympia provided sterling service in WW 1, and brought the body of the unknown soldier home from France.

If there is any pride in US Naval history–she cannot be left to sink in the mud of the Delaware river.

OLYMPIA, exactly! Too bad the NHHC has chosen to a) sit on its hands, or b) axially invert for further cogitation, or c) continue to look for more a comfortable spot of sand.

If this is out of their charter, exactly what value is their charter?

From a guy who did tank closeouts on TURNER JOY and SPHINX.

Apparently, things are looking pretty grim for Olympia — seems they’re looking at making her a reef.

Found in today’s Philadelphia papers: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/homepage/20100523_Historic_warship_s_future_may_be_sunk.html

All of them. Olympia and Texas are one-of-a-kinds and Yorktown’s service record is remarkable. Patriot’s Point is/was a joke. They give up the Savannah (nuclear merchant), sell the Ingham (Coast Guard big dog), and have neglected Laffey (5 time kamikaze survivor) to the point of severe leakage. I’d talked to some VIPs in regard starting a Friends of the Yorktown group similar to that of the Olympia but the task looks hopeless. Patriot’s Point vows to simply repaint the vessel and so far their painting skills have been pathetic. Move the aircraft and displays, don’t paint the tires! What money they get they waist in directing the museum towards children.