Tom&Shelly
Senior Citizen Member
A couple of weeks ago we went down to visit friends in Philly. Last year we made a point of going across the river to Camden to see the USS New Jersey and, while on that tour, I noticed what turned out to be the cruiser Olympia tied up across the river
(It's the one in white and creme with black guns).
It's the cruiser Dewey was aboard in Manila Bay when he told Gridley he "may fire when ready". A wholly politically incorrect act, so I suspect it's not even taught in our primary schools anymore.
Be that as it may, I drug our friends and Shelly to the Independence Seaport Museum, which is a bit of a children's museum, but also gives the tours of the cruiser. Unfortunately, it's easier to get a good shot of the cruiser from the New Jersey than it is from Philly
conversely, I got a great shot of the battleship from the main deck of the Olympia
Interestingly, the Olympia had a full machine shop, run by electricity
But notice the electricity was supplied by an overhead drive shaft, and the tools were connected by belts, just as they would have been for a stream driven shop on land. Guess it still took awhile for the electric motors to be inexpensive enough to include a dedicated one for each machine.
The museum also has a shop, which they use to teach boat building skills to young people
Shelly asked me when I was going to build a boat, so I asked her when she was going to buy me a band saw like that one! The shop foreman said it was older than him, but that doesn't necessarily imply it's older than me! (Though it's certainly possible.)
We also went to the Philadelphia museum of art, but I don't usually take the camera inside museums. Flash photography not allowed and my pictures seldom come out good enough to justify hauling the camera around. If I'd had it, though, I would have taken a picture of a certain piece of furniture: a dresser that stood at least ten feet tall. One would need a step ladder to get to the upper drawers.
Even though I didn't come close to touching it, a stern look from Shelly when I got close brought one of the museum employees over to yell at me about touching the exhibits. That's why I wish I'd had the camera! "Oops! He-he. Golly, I didn't realize the flash was on!"
Since I wasn't banned outright, we plan to go back someday, and check out the upper floor, which we ran out of time before seeing, as well as looking through some of the other museums on Ben Franklin Parkway.
Tom
(It's the one in white and creme with black guns).
It's the cruiser Dewey was aboard in Manila Bay when he told Gridley he "may fire when ready". A wholly politically incorrect act, so I suspect it's not even taught in our primary schools anymore.
Be that as it may, I drug our friends and Shelly to the Independence Seaport Museum, which is a bit of a children's museum, but also gives the tours of the cruiser. Unfortunately, it's easier to get a good shot of the cruiser from the New Jersey than it is from Philly
conversely, I got a great shot of the battleship from the main deck of the Olympia
Interestingly, the Olympia had a full machine shop, run by electricity
But notice the electricity was supplied by an overhead drive shaft, and the tools were connected by belts, just as they would have been for a stream driven shop on land. Guess it still took awhile for the electric motors to be inexpensive enough to include a dedicated one for each machine.
The museum also has a shop, which they use to teach boat building skills to young people
Shelly asked me when I was going to build a boat, so I asked her when she was going to buy me a band saw like that one! The shop foreman said it was older than him, but that doesn't necessarily imply it's older than me! (Though it's certainly possible.)
We also went to the Philadelphia museum of art, but I don't usually take the camera inside museums. Flash photography not allowed and my pictures seldom come out good enough to justify hauling the camera around. If I'd had it, though, I would have taken a picture of a certain piece of furniture: a dresser that stood at least ten feet tall. One would need a step ladder to get to the upper drawers.
Even though I didn't come close to touching it, a stern look from Shelly when I got close brought one of the museum employees over to yell at me about touching the exhibits. That's why I wish I'd had the camera! "Oops! He-he. Golly, I didn't realize the flash was on!"
Since I wasn't banned outright, we plan to go back someday, and check out the upper floor, which we ran out of time before seeing, as well as looking through some of the other museums on Ben Franklin Parkway.
Tom
