AsHIP NOTES, SEAPORT & MUSEUM NEWS ff/fl/ SPUN YARN
The Independence Seaport Museum Library in Philadelphia has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the Albert M. Greenfield Foundation for a one-year project. 1he project is to organize and catalogue two recently acquired primary source document coll ectio ns: the records of Seamen's Church Institute, of Philadelphia, a home away from home for seafarers since the 1840s, and the records ofJohn E. Hand & So ns Co., a m ajor supplier to the US Navy during World War II and a local manufacturer of nautical instruments dating back to 1873. Finding aids will then be created to enable researchers to locate the specific materials they need. The library's holdings include 12,000 vo lumes in the general reference collection, more than 400 rare books, over 9,000 ships plans, abo ut 25,000 items in its image files, and many co llections of letters, diaries, logs and business papers. (21 1 So uth Columbus Blvd. & Walnut St., Phi ladelphia, PA 19106; Ph. 215 4 13-8658; www. phillyseaport. org) . . . A crowd of 2,000 and a fleet of 7 visiting "Tall Ships" witnessed the successful launch of half of the John Smith Shallop in early November in Chestertown, Maryland. Governor Robert Ehrlich separated the two halves of the
boat and launched the stern half (nam ed "Maryland") into the waters of the C hester River. The forward half of rhe shallop (nam ed "Virginia") will be launched in No rfo lk, Virginia, in March of next year in preparation for the 2007 reenactment of Smi rh's voyage that will depart from Historic Jamestowne in May 2007. 1 h e shallop (both halves) is currently o n view in the Maryland State House befo re it embarks on a tour of museums in the C hesapeake. Incidemally, the shallop was built in two halves to replicate the original, which 36
electrical system suftered th e most serious damage.1h e fire was confin ed to a lO 'x lO ' space outside of the CPO mess forward on the starboard side. There was no fire damage on the other side of the bulkhead in the C PO head or in the spaces below. The bottom line is tha t the C PO Passage, CPO Mess, and the m ain deck passageway above will require heavy cleaning, re-insulating, and repainting. The berthing space forward of the mess deck and all the compartments in the superstructure will need thorough cleaning. Basic clean up began immedia tely. There have been initial conversations with their insurance agent, a marin e surveyo r from their underwriter, and Scarano Boatyard to discuss the best m ethod of making repairs. The hull insurance policy has a high deductible, which reportedy was shipped to Virgi ni a in two made it affordable ir1 th e first place. 111ree pieces in the hold of a ship. (Sultana Proj- days afte r the fire, there was a record midects, Inc. , 105 South Cross St. , POB 524, winter turnout of twenty volunteers who Chestertown, MD 21620; Ph . 4 10 778- showed up ready ro work. Based on the 5954; www.johnsmith400.org; e-mail: experience of the fire, they will be impledmcm ullen@schoonersultana.org) m enting several safety improvements. On 4 January, a fire broke out onboard With nearly three months to effect repairs USS Slater at her winter berth in Rens- befo re re-opening to the public, hopes are selaer, NY. 111e fi re was started by stray high, but volunteer labor and financial supsparks from a welding project that was port are needed more than ever. Tin Can part of the restoration of the forward Sailors, Inc. and The Albany Port District head. 111is space is immediatel y adjacent Commission already have made major doto the passageway o utside the CPO mess, nations to the recovery effort. Her design forward on the starboard side. A fire-retar- as a wa rship to withstand battle damage, dant canvas, rigged to protect the rest of truly helped minimize the effects of the the ship from the dirt and dust, ignited. fire. She can still take it. (D estroyer Escort The C0 2 fire extinguishers used were inef- Histo rical Museum, USS Slater D E-766, fective against a C lass A fire. The compart- POB 1926, Alban y, NY 12201; Ph. 518 ment filled with smoke and the area was 43 1- 1943 e-mail: shipsde766@aol.com ; evacuated. 111e fire departments located www. ussslater.org) ... SS Lane Victory, the so urce of the fire with a thermal im- at Berth 94, San Pedro, CA, is looking aging camera and extinguished the flames. for volunteers to work in the office. No The canvas had set fire to several old experience necessary. SS Lane Victory is a WWII-era kapok life jackets that were on fully operational WWII cargo ship, veta shelf above the canvas. D espite the fact eran of three wa rs, owned and operated that all the watertight doors were closed, by the US Merchant Marine Veterans of smoke filled the entire superstructure from WWII, non-profir, all volunteer organizathe m ess decks to the pilothouse. The ti on. In other departments, volunteers are needed for gangway watch (greeting visitors), as Tour G uides, on deck (chipping USS Slater and painting), and engine room (steam turbine). (SS Lame Victory, POB 629, San Pedro, CA, 90733-0629 Ph. 3 10 5 199545 ; e-mail: sslanevictory@juno.com; www.lanevictorY'.org) ..• Bill Thiesen, most recently the curator and assistant
john Smith ShaUop in the Maryland State House
SEA HISTORY 114, SPRING 2006