USS Olympia Photos and Battle of Manila Bay

[DeRuyter]

Ok this is not Napoleonic so I posted here. Although Olympia still had sails!!

Here are some shots of USS Olympia:

Forward turret


Bridge. Just to the right of the shot you can see a light colored patch on the deck. That is where Adm Dewey stood and delivered is famous "You may fire when ready, Gridley" line. There is a brass footprint but is it off for maintenance.






Deck gun drill (1 lb gun)


6 pound gun. Notice the stock and pistol grip!



Admiral Dewey (notice visiting active US Naval officer in his dress whites).



Some photos of our Battle of Manila Bay game. The ships are 1/600 scale Old Glory kits.





Spanish flagship on fire

Admiral Dewey makes sure history is repeated!




Eric

[Nightmoss]

Thanks for the pictures, Eric. They're great! Is that an LED light for the Spanish flagship fire? Looks like it might be one, similar to what Gunner suggested?

[Ducky]

Yes lookes like one! You have those flickering led lights in fake candles, specially those give a great effect!

[Comte de Brueys]

Nice pictures, Eric.

I have to ckeck the internet for this battle, but I guess it was important for the US control of the Phillipines.

...and you reenacted the battle in 1/600 on board of the ship.

Great!

[7eat51]

Very nice pictures, Eric. Thank you for sharing.

Where is she currently docked?

[DeRuyter]

Thanks for the pictures, Eric. They're great! Is that an LED light for the Spanish flagship fire? Looks like it might be one, similar to what Gunner suggested?

Yes it is. They are little round LED pins:

http://www.flashingblinkylights.com/...ound-leds.html

[DeRuyter]

Very nice pictures, Eric. Thank you for sharing.

Where is she currently docked?

Penn's Landing in Philadelphia. She is part of the Independence Seaport Museum along with the WWII submarine USS Becuna. You can see the battleship USS New Jersey across the Delaware River. Just in front of her is a steel windjammer, Moshulu which has been turned into a restaurant.

[Coog]

Great photos!

[Пилот]

Like playing war game at Austerlitz

Nice pics!

[David Manley]

We did North Cape on board HMS Belfast (one of the participants) on the 60th anniversary - with some veterans attending. Quite an experience!

[DeRuyter]

We did North Cape on board HMS Belfast (one of the participants) on the 60th anniversary - with some veterans attending. Quite an experience!

We sailed past HMS Belfast on the way to Greenwich this past summer. Unfortunately we didn't have time to visit her. Always a great experience to hear stories from the veterans.

[TheBlueMax]

The thing that impressed me the most about the Olympia was all the ornate wooden furniture on board. I have never seen that on any ship I've been on.

[Naharaht]

Nice pictures, Eric.

[Blackjohn]

This is what that plaque looked like on the weekend before the closed her off to the public.



And I'm glad to see she has reopened. I was afraid she'd become a hulk resting on the muddy bottom of the river. My fingers are crossed that she'll get the love she deserves.

[HMS Lydia]

Rumor has that she's going to be moved to Mare Island in California and placed permanenetly in a dry dock. I believe I saw that in U.S. Naval Instutue Proceedings or in Sea Power Magazine. But can't recall the exact source.

[DeRuyter]

Rumor has that she's going to be moved to Mare Island in California and placed permanenetly in a dry dock. I believe I saw that in U.S. Naval Instutue Proceedings or in Sea Power Magazine. But can't recall the exact source.

I think that deal fell through. In May we were told that she is now to stay in Philadelphia as part of the Independence Seaport Museum.

[HMS Lydia]

I think that deal fell through. In May we were told that she is now to stay in Philadelphia as part of the Independence Seaport Museum.

That's great, Philadelphia is a good place for this historic naval vessel. I have toured her several times. The last time I was aboard, an extremely friendly docent game me a personal tour. Very enjoyable.

I went over to USS New Jersey once, and will never go back. This is the only Battleship Monument I've been to that they have different prices for different parts of the ship. And you better not be off the colored line of the tour your on. USS Alabama, USS Texas, USS Massachusetts, USS North Carolina all have a single price for the entire ship, and allow you to go to all open spaces. Some of these have colored tour routes but that is simply so you can follow the tour pamphlet without getting confused about what your looking at.

I have not been to USS Wisconsin since she was turned over to the city of Norfolk, so can't comment. But when she was still reserve fleet but on display at Nauticus, all you could really do was walk around the decks. I have not been on board Missouri or Iowa since they have become museums.