Reminder:

Some of us don't have NY Times registration; others have forgotten/lost their passwords...........

I am kind of surprised that the NY Times would run that article, the last couple of failed marine preservation attempts in New England the local newspapers have almost totally ignored the story when the time to light the cutting torches was approaching. A typical example was the NOBSKA, when the preservation attempt was first organized the New Bedford Mass. newspaper was just gushing with gooey candy coated journalism about how it was going to be used to train local school children, etc. At the end, when it was sitting in the drydock needing a couple hundred thousand dollars to finish the hull work, they couldn't spare even a little bit of space to mention it.

The time to attempt preservation of a ship is right as it is retired from commercial or military service, allowing it to sit and bounce off the bottom at every low tide while the superstructure rots and the vandals steal equipment just leaves you with an enormous cleanup job in addition to a new construction job, at a price tag that can often exceed what a replica would cost.

Going back to another historic vessel we have discussed here recently, I cannot predict what the eventual fate of the M/V ISLANDER will be, but I think the Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority did exactly the right thing by arranging for state police guards for the ship on her last voyage, and immediately making arrangements to run her under her own power to a shipyard with 24 hour security as soon as she was released from service. That way she is stored in an operable and seaworthy condition until the ultimate decision is made on whether she will be sold, preserved, or scrapped.

There has been discussion among New York based restoration groups of having a vessel that could be a traveling museum and classroom, visiting communities in the Hudson River valley. So far it has all been based around difficult goals of bringing back highly deteriorated vessels whose reconstruction would change their classifications with the Coast Guard and present expensive engineering problems. The ISLANDER is an operable vessel, with a fully enclosed vehicle deck that could house mobile classrooms and displays. It has a supportable main propulsion system with two EMD 8-645E6 diesel engines, has modern Caterpillar generating engines, and typically used less than 100 gallons of fuel per round trip to the islands. With twin engines and two shafts the main propulsion is redundant, if one engine has to be shut down for any reason she can still be operated with a single engine to bring her home, an important safety consideration if your intended customer base will include school children on field trips.

Of course, since it is a diesel, it is probably of no interest to the maritime preservation community. Burning #2 diesel in a propulsion plant with 30% efficiency is so much less interesting than having loads of Bunker C or Navy Blend brought in by the tanker load to feed a vessel with less than 10% efficiency.

The ISLANDER, which operated in Massachusetts, is being stored in Connecticut, running there under her own power. She is halfway to the Hudson River Valley already.

Obviously the NY Times is interested in this story because the ferry is ex-Staten Island service, and is visible from a major commute route, so it has a lot of relevance to the local audience. It is also relevant as a local hazardous waste cleanup story.

And here is a link to pictures of the SS COLUMBIA, the vessel that is being proposed to operate in the Hudson River Valley as a floating museum and environmental classroom:

http://www.sscolumbia.org/Gallery%20-%2 ... mages.html

And here is a link to a photo gallery on the recently retired M/V ISLANDER of the Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority. The present condition of the ship is just about as shown in the photos:

http://www.tabblo.com/studio/stories/sh ... 71g0hfurcx

I think the comparison illustrates why the time to attempt preservation of a ship is as soon as possible after the equipment is retired, not twenty or thirty years and several failed restaurant or amusement park conversion schemes later.

The same state-of-affairs seems to be true of railroad equipment,too.
Case in point: The first pair of LIRR M-1 cars (9000-9001) was supposed to be set aside for preservation. Unfortunately, they were not hidden away from various prying hands...and were left within easy walking distance of the main shop.

Now, railroad employees (and management) being what they are, the cars got picked over to such a degree that they will be consigned to scrap.
The rumor is that another pair will be substituted.

Dave

In the early '80's there was a restoration effort being made in Sandusky, OH to preserve and restore the former Cedar Point Amusement Park ferry the "George A. Boeckling" (named for the owner of the park in the early 1900's). I had a chance to tour the boat on the dock in Sandusky in '82. I understand that she burned to the water line a year or so after that. We're talking about a fairly good-sized, multi-deck, side-wheeler, at least a couple of hundred feet long. A real shame to loose a fine example of an early lake steamer.

Here's a photo link for the Boeckling

http://www.boatnerd.com/news/newpictures01/gaboeckling-7-15-01-jh-pg.jpg