Whew. $12-15 million!

http://www.wtrf.com/story/29108557/uss- ... estoration

To quote an old joke, the definition of a boat is a hole in the water into which money is poured. :)

As the owner of a small (12-foot) wooden boat myself, I can attest that this is true no matter the size of the vessel.

-Philip Marshall

The same drydock where the S. S. Nobska was scrapped in 2006.

I still have on my bulletin board an article from the New Bedford Standard Times, dated in late 1990's, about how the rebuilding of the S. S. Nobska was going to revitalize the dying City of New Bedford and provide an invaluable educational experience for its school students. It was accompanied by obviously staged photos of students "working" on the triple expansion engine.

Now, eight years after the Nobska was scrapped, taking millions of dollars of funding with it, even the website maintained as a "memorial" has disappeared. There was a discussion a while ago where one of the contributors went looking for the triple expansion engine that supposedly was stored securely in a warehouse in Fall River, and even that had disappeared.

PC

When I think of Marine preservation, I only think of one name:

Kalakala.


The Art Deco ferry used in Seattle became part of a cannery in Alaska. An epic venture to go get the ferry free and into open water was greeted with fanfare when she returned to Seattle in the fall of 1998 (just a couple of weeks after I arrived in the area). Dinged up and badly needing restoration, everyone in Seattle was excited and a mass celebration ensued at the return of the classic ferry...


...then, nobody wanted anything to do with it.

Nobody could get funding rolling at the ferry was moved from place to place, rolling up debts left and right for mooring and maintenance fees nobody had the money to pay.

I had just moved to the area when the ferry came back to Seattle. I saw her several times since then, but never got to walk her decks.
She wound up partially flooded at one point at her moorings. One threat after another to 'do something or else' was met by either utter silence or shrugged shoulders by those in charge of the ferry.

This was a classic case of nobody thinking past the up-front costs.
Then, the inevitable came:

I really would rather not think of all the money, sweat and anguish that was lost on this. If they'd just left her land-locked in Alaska, she probably would still exist today.

I think this has the Constitution beat, a Constellation:

http://www.lufthansa-technik.com/super-star-news

Preserved by an individual, being restored Lufthansa!

Regards,

Art S.

And I would note (with relevance for the T1 project) that the Connie is being restored as a working modern aircraft, not a slavish replication of '50s technology. I invite comment from preservationists on what is, and isn't, being preserved as the work progresses. The design of the new cockpit instrumentation and the repairs to one of the doors are particularly notable. On the other hand, it would appear that the powerplants are being carefully restored and not 'improved' with respect to emissions, sfc, or more modern combustion technology.

I think an operating restoration of a GG1 electric would require many similar decisions. This raises a question (which many preservationists here will probably reject out-of-hand, and that is their right): if your goal is an operation or a 'look-and-feel' rather than a concours restoration, what is permissible to change and what is anathema?

Interesting that all these millions will be spent on the Ironsides, and little money is available for the USS Olympia, Admiral Dewey's flagship, last of its kind, and as significant in US Naval History as the Ironsides. This ship is restored inside, but with a rotting hull, it has a limited future, if any--one idea has been to sink it to become a reef!!!
America has a VERY POOR history of preserving naval vessels.
You think Steam locomotives are rare nowadays, look at ships!
BTW, the destruction of the Nobska was a criminal act perpetuated by the NPS, IMHO--under the excuse that the drydock was needed immediately for the Ironsides!

America has a VERY POOR history of preserving naval vessels.
You think Steam locomotives are rare nowadays, look at ships!


one that should have been preserved without question before many others that did survive. still gets me POed at the site of these pics...

Enterprise was the carrier that fought the most throughout the entire war. She engaged in every major carrier action, except one (Coral Sea).
The Big 'E' was the most decorated ship of World War II. She was the first carrier awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, and the only carrier awarded both the Presidential Unit Citation and the Navy Unit Commendation during World War II.
Secretary of the Navy Forrestal stated in 1945 that Enterprise was "the one vessel that most nearly symbolizes the history of the Navy in this war."

http://www.navsource.org/archives/02/020602.jpg

http://www.navsource.org/archives/02/020656.jpg
http://www.navsource.org/archives/02/020655.jpg

There were many aspects of the so-called "preservation" of the S. S. Nobska that probably should have been investigated. The scrapping of the ship brought the public debate over the project to a very "convenient" ending. If you can't see it any more, the problem no longer exists. There were political footprints all over that ship.

PC

Biggest difference between the USS Constitution and the USS Olympia. Old Ironsides is still considered active US Navy Property, Olympia was retired, & mothballed by the US Navy and is now privately owned.

Rich C.

Indeed. U.S.S. Constitution is still on the register and crewed.

As for aircraft, they're also a money pit. Even a relatively small airplane such as a Cessna 414 costs over $100k for annual operations (not including major repairs). We have owned a Cessna 414 for over twenty years and have probably spend over a million dollars on her since acquiring her (two repaints, three engine replacements, new instrumentation). Annual inspections alone are roughly $50k each.

As for the Connie or any transport aircraft restoration, you have to apply modern technology. Aircraft that operate at or above 29,000 feet are now required to carry transponders that are RVSM certified. The old equipment is doorstop material now and the authorities do not grant variances from the regulations for historical equipment based solely on historic status. Pressurized aircraft require additional inspections as they age and certain components must be removed when time expired, regardless of condition.

On a personal note, my great uncle worked on many Connies as a mechanic for TWA. They were the best tri-motor aircraft the money could buy.

Were they tri-motor aircraft after he was done working on them? ;-}

Or was he referring to how well they handled [s]if[/s] when an engine went out?

That was a remark as to the quality of the engines that the Connie had. While the Connie looked nice, the design left plenty of room for improvement. With them, engine failure was a question of when, not if. The DC-6 and 7 were all around better airplanes: better range, capacity, speed and reliability. Also, if the loadmaster wasn't fully attentive to his duties, it was very easy to stand the cargo variant on it's tail.

What is a crying shame is the lack of tugboats preserved in this country.

PRR and NY Central were both running steam tugs right until 1968.

Very, very few RR marine vessels have been preserved, let alone your everyday tugboat, covered barge, etc.

But, the costs kill it. To drydock a tug for a normal, 5 year scheduled period (what most insurance wants), is 75-100k...

When the CVS Pharmacy had the New York Central #16 scrapped after purchasing the restaurant property where it was stuffed and mounted, the New Bedford Standard Times ran an article about how the pieces of the tug were going to form the basis for a restored and operable vessel that would be returning to Massachusetts on tour in the future. Of course it was all fluff, the tug ended up as a pile of scrap metal and was hauled away.

PC