SHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS Currentl y at the Naval War College Museum (Founders Hall , Coasters Harbor l sland , Newport , Rl 02840; 40 I 84 1405 I) are two very worthwhile ex hibits .
" The Commodore and the Shogun: Matthew C. Perry and the Opening of Japan, 1853-1854" celebrates the people, ships and cultures o f what is stil l regarded as the most importa nt peacetime nava l mi ss ion in Ameri ca n d iplomati c hi story. Here, one gets a fee l not onl y fo r the parti cul ars o f the treaty negoti ati ons, but fo r the nearl y fa ntas ti c diffe rences between th e navy of the a ntebellum United States and the martia l spirit o f samu ra i Japan. These diffe rences are dra maticall y ju xtaposed in tw o sets of views o f the occas ion - prints by Peter B. H. Heine (who illustrated Perry 's three-volume report of th e mi ss ion) a nd a collecti on of panoramic scrolls whi c h offer the contemporary Japanese view of Ameri cans in their country.
"America 's Mosquito Fleet: PT Boats in World War II " is a coll ecti o n of photographs, arti fac ts, manuscripts and im prints acquired, fo r the most pa rt , fro m members of Peter Tares, the PT Boat O fficers Assoc iati on. The ex hibit concentrates on the fo ur major theate rs of operati on in which PT Boats were acti ve (the Ph ill ipines, the Solomons, the Mediterranean and the Eng lish Channe l), as well as on the development o f the motor torpedo boat. Both ex hibits w ill be on view throu gh the end of the yea r.
The fi rs t International Register of H istoric Ships Update has been re leased by Norm an Bro uwer, author of the work co- publi shed last year by Sea Hi story Press and the Naval In stitute Press. The Update includes ten changes of status, five deletions-three ships scrapped , two scutt led-and twenty- nine additions to the Register. Those interested can obtain co pies o f the Update by sendin g $2.50 to the NMH S, Attn: Update. Those pu rchas ing the Register from the Society wi ll rece ive the Update at no additional cost. Further in fo rm ati on on cand idates fo r the Register can also be add ressed to Mr. Bro uwer in care of th e Society . Commi ss ioned at San Francisco in 1895, the armored cruiser USS Olympia (Brouwer, p260) ga ined swift renown when she led Commodore George Dewey ' s victori ous squ adro n aga inst the Spanish fl eet at Ma nil a Bay in 1898 . After serving as flags hi p of the Caribbean Division and later as a trai ning ship fo r Naval Acade my midshipmen , she was reti red as a barracks shi p in 19 12.
* All references to "Brouwer" refer to Norman Brouwer' s Intern ati onal Register of Histori c Ships, Sea History Press , 1986.
Duri ng Worl d War I , she sailed patro l duty in the North Atlantic and the Medi terranean, and she returned to the US bearing the remains of the Unknown Soldier from France in 192 1. She th en lay in th e Phil ade lphia Navy Yard until acquired for restoration as a national monument by the C rui ser O lympi a Assoc iati on in 1957. In 1983, fo llowi ng the acc ide ntal death of a deck hand, a j ury fo und the Associati on gu ilty of neglige nce and awarded th e man's fam il y $250,000, a cl aim not covered by the Assoc iat ion's insurance. When the fami ly attem pted to attac h the ship , the Navy intervened, citin g that the possible sale o f the Olympia woul d not be in accordance with the restri cti ons imposed on the origi nal transfer of the crui ser to the Associat ion. Granted an extension by the courts, the Assoc iati on is making headway in ra isi ng the necessary funds to honor their debt. Major fu ndrais ing events are sched uled for the fa ll , inc lud ing the Association 's annual "n ight under the stars" aboard the Olympia. Yo ur support and in terest w ill be warm ly rece ived by the Associat ion (PO Box 928, Penn 's Land ing, Phil ade lphi a , PA 19 106; 2 15 922- 1898).
HMS Rose, a reconstru cti on of th e Briti sh ship that blockaded New po rt , Rhode Island , in 1775 (w hich acti on led to Pro vidence's petiti on to the Cont ine ntal Congress fo r naval relie f; see "Stephen Hopkins," p46), has late ly undergo ne an extensive restorati on. Orig inall y built fo r John F. Mill ar in 1970, she passed th ro ugh a success ion of ow ners before being acqu ired by Kaye Will iams of Brid geport , Connecti cut. Wi th the HMS Rose's restorati on nearl y com plete, W illi ams plans to sa il the vessel in sail tra ining, with operati ons sched uled to begin in the spring of 1987 . (HMS Rose Foundation, Captain 's Cove Seaport , 1 Bostwi ck Avenue, Bri dgeport, CT 06605 ; 203 335- 1433.)
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Come Celebrate our I 16th year on City Island ___.,,..THE FINEST NEW ENGLAND LOBSTERS 1 : '\
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Thwaites Inn & Marina
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SEA HI STORY , A UTUMN 1986
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