Naval Technology's Next Step: USS Olympia

James N.

Colonel
Annual Winner
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Asst. Regtl. Quartermaster Antietam 2021
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Feb 23, 2013
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East Texas
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I just returned from a trip to Philadelphia, famously home to Ben Franklin; that symbol of Rebellion and Revolution, Independence Hall; that other symbol of Abolitionism, the Liberty Bell; and far less-known, the cruiser USS Olympia, flagship of Civil War veteran Commodore George Dewey in the Spanish-American War Battle of Manila Bay. Launched in 1892, she remains a relic of a now-almost forgotten period of Imperialism and expansionism that nevertheless helped create modern America. Today Olympia looks remarkably ship-shape and is permanently moored together with the WWII through Vietnam-era submarine USS Becuna on downtown Philadelphia's Delaware Riverfront.

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Iron-hulled Olympia was considered state-of-the-art in her day, but retains many features of earlier Civil War-era vessels, while at the same time incorporating innovations familiar to us here like her twin turrets.

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Bow and stern views of Olympia aside Becuna; both are part of the excellent Philadelphia Maritime Museum and are toured with a combined ticket good for both vessels and the museum.

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All this WOOD including paneling and furniture as well as decks was a surprise to me in what was supposed to be a "modern" warship; veterans of the Civil War like Dewey and other old salts must've felt right at home!

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As can be seen, officer's had it rough - they still had to share their sumptuous quarters with large-caliber guns exactly as had their predecessors within the wooden walls of Men O' War of previous centuries!

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Looking more like the pilothouse on a riverboat like the Delta Queen than the wheelhouse of an iron or steel-hulled warship, the above was nevertheless the command center for Olympia; nearby on the starboard deck brass "footprints" mark the spot where Commodore Dewey gave to the captain of his flagship the once-memorable order, "You may fire when ready, Gridley."

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I have MANY more photos from my visit - some FIFTY in all - if you'd like to see more of Olympia, inside and out.
 
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I got a chance to visit both of these when I was there in 1986. OLYMPIA was fascinating, especially as I love armored cruisers. BECUNA convinced me I'd never be a submariner, I got claustrophobia despite the fact there were only four of us on board (myself, my ship's Second Officer and two guides) and the vessel was not overloaded as she would have been at the beginning of a war cruise...
 
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I just returned from a trip to Philadelphia, famously home to Ben Franklin; that symbol of Rebellion and Revolution, Independence Hall; that other symbol of Abolitionism, the Liberty Bell; and far less-known, the cruiser USS Olympia, flagship of Civil War veteran Commodore George Dewey in the Spanish-American War Battle of Manila Bay. Launched in 1892, she remains a relic of a now-almost forgotten period of Imperialism and expansionism that nevertheless helped create modern America. Today Olympia looks remarkably ship-shape and is permanently moored together with the WWII through Vietnam-era submarine USS Becuna on downtown Philadelphia's Delaware Riverfront.

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Iron-hulled Olympia was considered state-of-the-art in her day, but retains many features of earlier Civil War-era vessels, while at the same time incorporating innovations familiar to us here like her twin turrets.

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Bow and stern views of Olympia aside Becuna; both are part of the excellent Philadelphia Maritime Museum and are toured with a combined ticket good for both vessels and the museum.

View attachment 80524
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All this WOOD including paneling and furniture as well as decks was a surprise to me in what was supposed to be a "modern" warship; veterans of the Civil War like Dewey and other old salts must've felt right at home!

View attachment 80532
View attachment 80528

As can be seen, officer's had it rough - they still had to share their sumptuous quarters with large-caliber guns exactly as had their predecessors within the wooden walls of Men O' War of previous centuries!

View attachment 80533
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Looking more like the pilothouse on a riverboat like the Delta Queen than the wheelhouse of an iron or steel-hulled warship, the above was nevertheless the command center for Olympia; nearby on the starboard deck brass "footprints" mark the spot where Commodore Dewey gave to the captain of his flagship the once-memorable order, "You may fire when ready, Gridley."

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I have MANY more photos from my visit - some FIFTY in all - if you'd like to see more of Olympia, inside and out.

Awesome pics. I'll never say no to more postings !!
 
I'm also in the Philadelphia area, and the Olympia has been one of my favorite visits for many years. As good as she looks, the Independence Seaport Museum needs to raise a considerable amount of money to maintain her.

One bit of trivia, the main turrets are replicas, the original turrets and 8" guns were removed during WWI and replaced by single 5"/51 caliber guns, the then state-of-the-art weapon also used as secondary armament on dreadnought battleships. Eight of the ten original 5"/40s were also replaced for a total of ten 5"/51s. Today the forwardmost 5" guns are a 40-caliber on one side and a 51 on the other.
 
I'm also in the Philadelphia area, and the Olympia has been one of my favorite visits for many years. As good as she looks, the Independence Seaport Museum needs to raise a considerable amount of money to maintain her.

One bit of trivia, the main turrets are replicas, the original turrets and 8" guns were removed during WWI and replaced by single 5"/51 caliber guns, the then state-of-the-art weapon also used as secondary armament on dreadnought battleships. Eight of the ten original 5"/40s were also replaced for a total of ten 5"/51s. Today the forwardmost 5" guns are a 40-caliber on one side and a 51 on the other.
I was aware there were serious financial issues facing the upkeep of the USS Olympia, but judging from James N. 's photographs . . . I assumed those issues had been solved.

On another trivia note, I recall a documentary that concluded those guns in the elegant officer's quarters also served as a subliminal reminder to visiting foreign dignitaries of the emerging power of the US Navy.

"During dinners, receptions etc . . . the foreign officials would be seated in view of the guns."

At the moment I can't recall the source of the above paraphrased quote.

Late 1990's History Channel perhaps ?
 
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She is gorgeous. I used to live near Philly back in the late 70s/80s and visited her often. We weren't able to visit the pilot house at the time. You could go down into the engine room. They had fixed up one half of it and there was a Hatch leading to the other side. It was an open hatchway with a small chain across leading to what appeared to be a huge, bottomless black space.

I also remember that they moored her under the bridge for a while. This was when they were painting the Bridge. She looked like she was in WW I dazzle paint as she was covered in blue splodges from workmen spilling paint from the bridge above.

Yes, more pictures please!
 
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Awesome pics. I'll never say no to more postings !!
Fantastic pictures, James!
Agreed, I would love to see more of your photos.

I've always been a big fan of the "Great White Fleet" era of our naval history.
James,

MORE PICTURES, PLEASE!

Sincerely,
Unionblue
She is gorgeous. I used to live near Philly back in the late 70s/80s and visited her often. We weren't able to visit the pilot house at the time. You could go down into the engine room. They had fixed up one half of it and there was a Hatch leading to the other side. It was an open hatchway with a small chain across leading to what appeared to be a huge, bottomless black space.

I also remember that they moored her under the bridge for a while. This was when they were painting the Bridge. She looked like she was in WW I dazzle paint as she was covered in blue splodges from workmen spilling paint from the bridge above.

Yes, more pictures please!


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Thanks for your encouragement - always happy to oblige! Currently only a portion of the engines are visible, along with good signage describing the workings of the ship:

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Adjacent to the engine room is a still-working (at least an electric motor turns belts and pulleys, etc. at the press of a button) machine shop where parts could be fabricated for repairs and maintenance:

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I've already shown the exterior of the pilot house; here's the interior and ship's wheel seen through the Plexiglas covering which also reflects the dockside setting:

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Next, interior shots of officers' and crew's quarters!
 
Senior and Junior Officer's and Crew's Quarters

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Please forgive the quality of some of these photographs - my camera gets "confused" in low-lit spaces such as these, especially when the entrances are covered with sheets of Plexiglas! (I experienced the same problems when photographing interiors of submarine USS Becuna moored alongside Olympia and USS New Jersey moored across the Delaware River at Camden, N. J.) Above and below are the spacious officer's stateroom and mess.

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Senior officers had private accommodations like the individual stateroom with its built-in bunk, desk, and chair above; while junior officers had more Spartan dorm-like bunks below. Note especially the claw-foot tub and tiled floor in the foreground.

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Officer's heads were similarly semi-private and basic, but far nicer than those for the enlisted crew, as will be seen!

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Common for naval vessels for centuries were the accommodations for the crew: hammocks and on Olympia these unique folding mess tables, both of which could easily be stowed away when the decks were cleared for action.

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Toilet facilities for the enlisted crewmen consisted of a long wooden bin covered over by a plank with holes cut into it; the whole is now covered by another Plexiglas sheet as seen below:

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Next: Deck, stacks, tops, and turrets.
 
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I saw Olympia and Becuna in 2008, I hope that they find the funds to restore them soon. Philly is a great place to visit.
 
I think that the hull is steel, not iron as stated above. After the ABCD ships of 1883 steel became the metal of choice for most warships of the USN.
 
Yes, the hull is steel. With all steel-hulled ships, you must counter deterioration of the steel caused by its being in sea water. BB Texas has the same problem and needs to have its underwater hull essentially replaced.

In the 1960's the US Navy had a lot of ships that were built in WW2 and were about to go obsolete all at once. To spread out the loss, so that a normal shipbuilding program could replace the ships over a decade, many of the better destroyers (the Gearing class) were sent through a FRAM (Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization) program. I served on one of the last of these ships to remain in commission. The weak point, after the FRAM, was the deterioration of the hulls. The hulls got so thin that the inspectors could push a pencil through the hull plates in the engine room, especially behind the condenser.
 
One thing that is hard to capture is what it was like fully manned; all those men in such close quarters. No place private, all noise.
Since in the 1890's most American homes were small and families large, privacy was something most of the ratings had probably never had at home. It was probably not as bothersome to them as it would be to us. Heck, for those who had to share a bed with their brother back at hone,having ones own hammock was a step up, literally.
 
Beautiful ship; great pictures. Thank you.

It got me thinking about the vast developments that happened between CW ironclads/monitors and Olympia-style ships.

It's my understanding that post-CW there were opposite camps on which direction the navy's ships should be designed. I guess this is a question for our forum's naval historians. Are there any good references to trace the development of of our post-CW navy. I remember reading something about 1.) the different naval philosophies of someone named Isherwood vs Ericsson and 2.) that European countries had more advanced naval technologies than the USA, so we copied from them - or not.
 
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