Gulf Breeze RV Resort- Gulf Shores, AL

 

Gulf Breeze RV Resort- Gulf Shores, AL

USS Alabama (BB-60) is a retired battleship which was manned by a crew of 2,500 during war time. She was the fourth and final member of the South Dakota class of fast battleships built for the United States Navy in the 1940's. The first American battleships designed after the Washington treaty system began to break down in the mid-1930s.  They took advantage of an escalator clause that allowed increasing the main battery to 16-inch  guns, but Congressional refusal to authorize larger battleships kept their displacement close to the Washington limit of 35,000 long tons. A requirement to be armored against the same caliber of guns as they carried, combined with the displacement restriction, resulted in cramped ships. Overcrowding was exacerbated by wartime modifications that considerably strengthened their anti-aircraft batteries and significantly increased their crews.

After entering service, the Alabama was briefly deployed to strengthen the British Home Fleet, tasked with protecting convoys to the Soviet Union. In 1943, she was transferred to the Pacific for operations against Japan; the first of these was the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign that began in November that year. While operating in the Pacific, she served primarily as an escort for the fast carrier task force to protect the aircraft carriers from surface and air attacks. She also frequently bombarded Japanese positions in support of amphibious assaults. She took part in the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign in June–September and the Philippines campaign in October–December. After a refit in early 1945, she returned to the fleet for operations during the Battle of Okinawa and the series of attacks on the Japanese mainland in July and August, including several bombardments of coastal industrial targets.

The Alabama assisted in Operation Magic Carpet after the war, carrying some 700 men home from the former war zone. She was decommissioned in 1947 and assigned to the Pacific Reserve Fleet. She remained there until 1962 when she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register with plans to demolish and scrap the parts. After requesting custody of the USS Alabama, the state of Alabama was given its namesake to refurbish and maintain as a museum.

Since 1965, the retired battleship USS Alabama has been in Mobile, AL as a National Historic Landmark open to the public as a museum.  Several movies have used it as the set for military movies- including Under Siege and Men of Courage. In 1969, The USS Drum was decommissioned and brought to the park to be cradled next to the USS Alabama. She is the oldest American submarine still open to the public as a museum.

Obviously, visiting this museum was high on our must do list. There was no way we were leaving Mobile, AL without spending a (full) day touring the boats and the memorial park which honors all veterans and branches of the military. It is likely one of the best memorial parks we have ever visited. There is even a smaller replica of the Veteran Memorial Wall in Washington, DC.  Thank goodness I carry snacks in my purse, because I ended up needing a few of them. After a long day in the military museums, Mark treats me to a Mexican dinner so I can have my favorite meal (fajitas). This compromise works well for us. We both enjoy these museums and memorial parks, but Mark obviously has a much deeper connection. This memorial park scored bonus points by having a submarine included in the tour. Every time we tour a submarine, it becomes much more obvious there was no way in heck I could have spent 12 hours, much less 12 years, on one of them. Kudos to Mark and his submariner buddies for being hearty enough to patrol the seas to protect our country. We are eternally grateful to all veterans for their service- to the ones who gave and the ones who gave all.

Lisa was standing in front of the USS Alabama on our way to start the tour. Recall it consisted of a crew of 2,500 men during wartime. You have to pack and carry a ton of food and supplies to house that many people and be battle ready for combat.

The entry door to the Battle Bridge obviously was not built for big bulky men. I had to duck down to climb through the door.  Mark and his Lapon buddies were a bit smaller, more physically fit and much more nimble in their 20's than they are now. I am not sure how many of them could still get  through the small openings found throughout a submarine at a full run. It would be an interesting challenge to watch though..... I would even volunteer to be a medic just to get a front row seat for the entertainment.

Lisa was looking in awe as she stood between the anchor chains on the bow. This was definitely not a chain you can buy at Home Depot.  So many of the things aboard a military vessel are so much larger and more highly technical than most civilians can even fathom. It is very impressive when you consider they designed and built these highly technical beasts without computers using tools which were significantly inferior to the tools we presently use.

The Alabama's battle history during WWII is depicted in bronze at the memorial.

USS Alabama's awards and the battles it supported are commemorated on the bridge wings of the ship. Each military vessel has some memorial of the awards it earned in combat placed in or on the vessel. Safety for the crew and vessel dictate placement of the memorial. A submarine is successful because of its ability to hide from the enemy. A colorful display on the outside would be visible and interfere with its ability to remain hidden, which would endanger the crew. The awards earned by a submarine are placed on a removable plaque to assure safety for the crew and the vessel. The current costs to build a battleship or submarine are estimated to be between $6.4 -12.3 BILLION in 2023. Safety of the crew is paramount, but the vessels require protection as well.

USS Alabama had 4 of these 5 bladed screws (propellers) weighing in at 18.5 tons each and measuring  17' 4.5" in diameter. These propellers could propel the ship at 25 knots. Nautical miles are different than miles on land. To convert nautical miles to miles, you multiply the length value by 1.151. So 25 nautical miles is equal  to 28.769 miles on land. One nautical mile equates to exactly one minute of latitude,   __________________________________________ 

In June 1944, while on her eighth patrol, the USS Herring with her entire crew of 88 souls were lost at sea following a Japanese attack off the coast of Matua Island. Not only was this the Herring's last patrol, it was also its most successful patrol. She is credited with sinking a total of 9 enemy ships during her service.  In 2016, her wreckage was located near Matua Island by a joint expedition of the Russian Geographical Society and Russian Defense Ministry. It was reported that "Russian divers in cooperation with the Pacific Fleet sailors discovered the submarine at a depth of 104 meters [341 ft]." The wreckage was discovered but never recovered. The sailors the USS Herring remain on eternal patrol buried with the wreckage.

USS Drum (SS-228) is a Gato-class submarine of the United States Navy. It was the first Navy ship to be named after the drum, a type of fish. The Drum is now a museum ship in Mobile, Alabama, at Battleship Memorial Park.

The Drum was the twelfth of the Gato class but was the first completed and the first to enter combat in World War II. She is the oldest of her class still in existence.

USS Drum received a total of 12 battle stars for her World War II service. She is credited with sinking 15 ships, for a total of 80,580 tons of enemy shipping, eighth highest of all US submarines in total Japanese tonnage sunk.

The Drum was donated and then towed to the USS Alabama Battleship Commission in 1969. The Drum was dedicated and opened to the public on 4 July 1969.

The submarine was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1986.

The Drum was moored in the waters behind the USS Alabama, until she was substantially damaged by the storm surge of Hurricane George in 1998. As a result, she is now on display on shore. The Alabama and the Drum also sustained damage when Hurricane Katrina came ashore in  August 2005. Following extensive restoration, tours on board the Drum were resumed in January 2006. Most funding to maintain the submarines comes from a community of past and present  American Submarine Vets.

   And then we said goodbye to the Battleship Memorial Park in pursuit of some amazing combo fajitas. 

                         I can usually be persuaded into about anything with the promise of fajitas. If you                          upgrade them to combo fajitas (chicken, steak and shrimp), then you are sure to persuade me.

                                              Never underestimate the power of bribery.