Dauphin Island - We stayed in Dauphin Island earlier this year for 6 weeks and we returned last week with our visiting friends Ed & Fran. We went to Fort Gaines which is best know for the Battle of Mobile Bay. These pictures are from our visit last January.
Construction of the fort began in 1819, but the work quickly ran over budget and the foundations proved to be so close to Mobile Bay that water flowed into them at high tide. A series of other problems followed and it was not until 1853 that the project again showed progress, but under a completely redesigned plan.
Fort Gaines was considered a state of the art defense by the time it neared completion in 1861. Southern troops seized the fort that year and its construction was completed by them in 1862.
We also took a day trip with our other friends Dennis and Dawn to see the USS Alabama, an impressive ship for sure. We also had seen this ship last year but were happy to go back again as there is just so much to see, you can't possibly take it all in with 1 visit. The ship carried a crew of 105 officers and 2,205 enlisted men, both Navy and Marines. The thing that I found so fascinating was how self sufficient the ship was. Sure it had a laundry room, bakery and mess hall but it had things I didn't really think of like a cobbler shop, a printing shop, a photography darkroom, a church and a film library room. They had a store where enlisted men could buy uniforms and supplies but then they had another store where they could buy magazines, after shave lotion, chewing gum and more. The ship’s store averages a monthly business of more than $12,000. Stocked with a wide variety of merchandise, monthly sales include such items as 2,000 packages of razor blades, 20,000 bars of candy, 7,500 bars of toilet soap, and more than 2,000 boxes of stationery. The clothing store carries uniform accessories. Monthly sales include 1,000 hats and 500 pairs of shoes.
But the coolest thing was they had a soda fountain! The soda fountain dispenses soft drinks and ice cream at the average rate of 500 customers an hour. Slightly less than 3,000 gallons of ice cream are made on board each month.
But the coolest thing was they had a soda fountain! The soda fountain dispenses soft drinks and ice cream at the average rate of 500 customers an hour. Slightly less than 3,000 gallons of ice cream are made on board each month.
On her third anniversary (8/16/45), observed while cruising off the Japanese homeland at the war’s end, the ALABAMA had traveled about 207,000 miles – more than eight times around the earth at the equator.
Length of the ship is 704 feet at the water line. She has a beam of 108 feet.
The ship has nine 16-inch guns. Bombarding a target, she is capable of firing, in a single salvo, approximately ten tons of high explosive projectiles.
The Galley serves the ship’s company (2,500 sailors) in an hour’s time. Some of the daily food requirements include 100 pounds of flour, 900 pounds of sugar, 200 pounds of lard, 300 pounds of coffee, 550 loaves of bread, and 2,000 pounds of fresh potatoes.
Length of the ship is 704 feet at the water line. She has a beam of 108 feet.
The ship has nine 16-inch guns. Bombarding a target, she is capable of firing, in a single salvo, approximately ten tons of high explosive projectiles.
The Galley serves the ship’s company (2,500 sailors) in an hour’s time. Some of the daily food requirements include 100 pounds of flour, 900 pounds of sugar, 200 pounds of lard, 300 pounds of coffee, 550 loaves of bread, and 2,000 pounds of fresh potatoes.
The pictures above are from both our trip to visit January and the trip we just made last month. I think you could go a dozen times and see something new every time you go. If you are ever in the area, put it on your list of things to do!
No comments:
Post a Comment