USS Olympia

[macwilkin]

In a word...money. Congress hasn't any.

Actually they do...through the National Park Service. Unlike some of the more recently-created parks (the one in the Pacific where hardly anyone will ever visit), Olympia does have national significance and should be preserved for future generations. NPS maintains a number of sailing vessels at Golden Gate NRA, for example.

T.

[BoldHighlander]

Folks, this is serious:

http://www.fotco.org/

The USS Olympia, the flaghsip of Admiral Dewey at the Battle of Manila Bay in 1898, is in danger of being turned into an artificial reef. Yes, you read that correctly. A historically-important ship is going to be scrapped unless the private organization can raise $10 million dollars by the end of the year.

That just makes me sick with anger!!

[blackbeard]

NPS maintains a number of sailing vessels at Golden Gate NRA, for example.

T.

One tiny correction:
The San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park is no longer part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. It was first a standard (photos, documents, etc) museum on land run by the San Francisco Maritime Museum Association. They acquired their first sailing ship in 1954; Balclutha, a three masted cargo ship built near Glasgow in 1886. Then the ships, buildings, and surrounding marina became part of the California State Park system, then part of the GGNRA. In the late 1980s it became its own entity and is adjacent to the GGNRA. The Association is responsible for 5 ships and several small crafts which are part of the National Park. It also cares for the USS Pampanito, a WWII submarine, which is not part of the Park.

Olympia is a National Historic Landmark, on the National Register of Historic Places. Unfortunately, that title does not come with automatic public funding.

The entire Olympia restoration is expected to cost around $19.5 million, so dig deep and save a treasure!

[berserkbishop]

This is too bad. I hate to see these beautiful historical ships fall into ruin. I worked on restoring the USS Yorktown and USS Clagamore when I was in Charleston. The USS Laffey was in drydock during my time there.

I hope that the USS Olympia can find the funding she needs. It would be a tragedey to sink her.