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Mare Island Naval Shipyard

March 15, 2023

The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean.[4] It is located 25 miles (40 km) northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard (Mare Island, California) from the main portion of the city of Vallejo. MINSY made a name for itself as the premier U.S. West Coast submarine port as well as serving as the controlling force in San Francisco Bay Area shipbuilding efforts during World War II.[5]

Mare Island Naval Shipyard
USS Wadleigh at Mare Island Naval Yard, 10 April 1945.
LocationVallejo, California
Coordinates38°5′24″N 122°15′48″W / 38.09000°N 122.26333°W / 38.09000; -122.26333Coordinates: 38°5′24″N 122°15′48″W / 38.09000°N 122.26333°W / 38.09000; -122.26333
Built1854
NRHP reference No.75002103[1]
CHISL No.751[2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP15 May 1975
Designated NHLD15 May 1975[3]
Designated CHISL1960

The base closed in 1996 and has gone through several redevelopment phases. It was registered as a California Historical Landmark in 1960,[2] and parts of it were declared a National Historic Landmark District in 1975.[3]

Beginnings

In September 1849, Lieutenant Commander William Pope McArthur was placed in command of the US survey schooner Ewing, which had been brought around Cape Horn to the West Coast by Lieutenant Washington Allon Bartlett.[6] Upon reaching San Francisco, Ewing and the other ship assigned to the survey, USS Massachusetts, were hampered from progress due to desertions of their crews to the gold fields, including a mutiny when crew members rowing into the city from Ewing threw an officer overboard in an attempt to desert.[7] They managed to survey the Mare Island Strait[6] before steaming to Hawaii to obtain crewmen from Hawaiian monarch King Kamehameha III.[8] They returned to San Francisco in the spring of 1850 with the coastal survey of northern California beginning on 4 April 1850 and continued up to the mouth of the Columbia River. On 1 August 1850, while still in Oregon, McArthur purchased a 1⁄16 interest in Mare Island for $468.50[6] then returned to San Francisco later that month to prepare charts and write reports.

On 15 January 1852, Secretary of the Navy William A. Graham ordered a Naval Commission to select a site for a naval yard on the Pacific Coast. Commodore D. Sloat along with Commodore C. Ringgold, Simon F. Blunt and William P.S. Sanger (former overseer of construction of Drydock Number One, Norfolk Naval Shipyard) were appointed to the commission. On 13 July 1852, Sloat recommended the island[9] across the Napa River from the settlement of Vallejo.

The Navy purchased the original 956 acres (387 ha) of MINSY on 4 January 1853. McArthur's family share (he had died a few months after purchasing an interest in Mare Island) was $5,218.20.[6] The Navy commenced shipbuilding operations on 16 September 1854 under the command of then-Commander David Farragut, who later gained fame during the U.S. Civil War Battle of Mobile Bay, when he gave the order, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" MINSY served as a major Pacific Ocean repair station during the late 19th century, handling American as well as Japanese and Russian vessels in the course of duty.

 
Monitor Camanche at Mare Island, 1866.

In 1861, the longest lived of the clipper ships, Syren, was brought to Mare Island Navy Yard for $15,000 of repairs. Syren had struck Mile Rock twice while trying to sail out of the Golden Gate.[10]

Marines first arrived for duty in 1862 under the command of Maj Addison Garland, who was the first officer to command the Marine barracks on the island.

Mare Island Naval Shipyard also took a commanding role in civil defense and emergency response on the West Coast, dispatching warships to the Pacific Northwest to subdue Native American unrest. MINSY sent ships such as Wyoming south to Central America and the Panama Canal to protect US political and commercial interests. Some of the support, logistics and munition requirements for the Spanish–American War were filled by Mare Island. MINSY sent men, materiel and ships to San Francisco in response to the fires following the 1906 earthquake. Arctic rescue missions were mounted as necessary. Ordnance manufacturing and storage were two further key missions at MINSY for nearly all of its active service, including ordnance used prior to the American Civil War.[11]

In 1911, the Marine Corps established two West Coast recruit training depots first at Mare Island, the second at Puget Sound, Washington. Mare Island eventually became the West Coast's only recruit training facility when the Puget Sound operation consolidated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1912. Instructors trained recruits there until 10 August 1923, when they relocated to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego.[12] The Marine Barracks Mare Island remained.

World War I

 
Mare Island Naval Shipyard, in 1911.

In July 1917, MINSY was the site of a major explosion that killed six people. On July 9, a gunpowder magazine containing 127,600 pounds of black powder blew up, damaging a number of surrounding buildings, and leaving a mystery as to what had caused it. Suspicion settled on an identified German agent and possible saboteur, Lothar Witzke, but the investigation proved inconclusive and the official verdict was that the cause was unknown. Stephen C. Ruder has suggested in a 2022 article that it may not have been an act of German sabotage but suicide by a civilian, Neil Damstedt, who was the principal victim and only individual inside the magazine at the moment of explosion.[13][14]

MINSY saw major shipbuilding efforts during World War I. MINSY holds a shipbuilding speed record for a destroyer that still stands, launching USS Ward in just 17+1⁄2 days in May–June 1918.[15] Mare Island was selected by the Navy for construction of the only US West Coast-built dreadnought battleship, USS California, launched in 1919. In 1904, the pre-dreadnought battleship USS Nebraska had been launched at Seattle, Washington. Noting the power of underwater warfare shown by German U-boats in World War I, the Navy doubled their Pacific-based submarine construction program at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard by founding a submarine program at MINSY in the early 1920s.[16]

World War II

 
The AJC Band, from Hamilton Field, plays at a war bond rally held at Mare Island on 26 June 1945. Behind the band, caricatures of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler have been crossed out and a fanged Japanese figure is labeled "Tough One To Go"

Base facilities included a hospital, ammunition depot, paint and rubber testing laboratories, and schools for firefighters, opticians, and anti-submarine attack during World War II.[17] MINSY reached peak capacity for shipbuilding, repair, overhaul, and maintenance of many different kinds of seagoing vessels including both surface combatants and submarines.

Up to 50,000 workers were employed.[18] Mare Island even received Royal Navy cruisers and destroyers and four Soviet Navy subs for service.[5] Following the War, MINSY was considered to be one of the primary stations for construction and maintenance of the Navy's Pacific fleet of submarines, having built seventeen submarines and four submarine tenders by the end of hostilities.

Before World War II the Navy established Station I at Mare Island as one of four High Frequency Direction Finding (HFDF) stations on the Pacific mainland to track Japanese naval and merchant shipping east of Hawaii. The other stations were: Point Arguello, California (Station Z), Point Saint George, California (Station T), and Fort Stevens, Oregon (Station S).

War bonds

Patriotism and esprit de corps among the workers ran very high. Mare Island's military and civilian workforce raised almost $76M in war bonds; enough to pay for every one of the submarines built at MINSY prior to VJ Day. More than 300 landing craft were built at Mare Island.[19][20]

Dry docks and slipways

Dock No. Material of which dock is constructed Length Width Depth Date Completed Source
1 Concrete and granite 525 feet (160 m) 122 feet (37 m) 35 feet 9 inches (10.90 m) 1891 [21]
2 Concrete 741 feet (226 m) 120 feet (37 m) 31 feet 2 inches (9.50 m) 1910
3 Concrete 693 feet 4 inches (211.33 m) 114 feet (35 m) 35 feet 9 inches (10.90 m) 1940
4 Concrete 435 feet 8 inches (132.79 m) 104 feet (32 m) 22 feet 8 inches (6.91 m) 1942
January 1, 1946
Shipbuilding ways Width Length Source
1 108 feet 8 inches (33.12 m) 680 feet (210 m) [22]
2 89 feet (27 m) 398 feet (121 m)
308 feet (94 m)
3 93 feet (28 m) 488 feet (149 m)
4 96 feet (29 m) 450 feet (140 m)
5 96 feet (29 m) 450 feet (140 m)
6 96 feet (29 m) 450 feet (140 m)
7 96 feet (29 m) 450 feet (140 m)
8 96 feet (29 m) 450 feet (140 m)

Shipbuilding

Mare Island Naval Shipyard constructed at least eighty-nine seagoing vessels. Among the more important ships & boats built were:

 
The collier USS Jupiter was later converted to become the first United States aircraft carrier, USS Langley.
 
Five of the seven top-scoring United States submarines of World War II were built at Mare Island.

With the prelude to, and the outbreak of World War II, the Mare Island Naval Shipyard specialized in submarines, and other than a few submarine tenders and destroyer escorts, no more surface ships were built there. MINSY continued building non-nuclear subs through the Cold War including two of the three Barracuda-class submarines and USS Grayback, an early guided missile launcher. In 1955, Mare Island was awarded the contract to build Sargo, the first nuclear submarine laid down at a Pacific base.

The shipyard became one of the few that built and overhauled nuclear submarines, including several UGM-27 Polaris submarines. 1970 saw the launching of Drum, the last nuclear submarine built in California. In 1972, the Navy officially ceased building new nuclear submarines at Mare Island, though overhaul of existing vessels continued. Nautilus was decommissioned at Mare Island in 1980, then rigged for towing back to Groton, Connecticut, to serve as a museum of naval history.[27]

 
UGM-27 Polaris ballistic missile submarine USS Mariano G. Vallejo

Riverine training

 
Aerial photo of southern Mare Island and the shipyard facility
 
Mare Island Drydock No. 1

In 1966, during the Vietnam War, the U.S. Navy transferred their Brown Water Navy Riverine Training Operations from Coronado, California, to Mare Island. Motorists traveling along Highway 37 could often see U.S. Navy River Patrol Boats, among other river assault type boats, maneuvering through the sloughs of what is now the Napa-Sonoma State Wildlife Area, which borders the north and west portions of Mare Island.

U.S. Navy Reserve Units may still operate the slough portions of the State Wildlife Area for training purposes, as the navigable waters are considered public property. The U.S. Navy Brown Water Riverine Forces were inactivated after the Vietnam War, maintaining only the U.S. Naval Reserve PBRs and auxiliary craft at Mare Island, until the 1996 base closure.


U.S. Naval Construction Battalion Unit 421

Mare Island was also home to the Seabees CBU 421 who completed many construction projects in the bay area including renovation and restoration of St. Peter's chapel. St. Peter's is the oldest Navy Chapel in the United states built in 1901.

Pacific Reserve Fleet, Mare Island

Pacific Reserve Fleet, Mare Island was a large US reserve fleet that opened in 1946 to store the many surplus ships after World War II. As part of the United States Navy reserve fleets, the fleet "mothballed" ships and submarines. Some ships in the fleet were reactivated for the Korean War and Vietnam War.[55][56] The Reserve Fleet closed in 1996 with the shipyard. The ships were scrapped or moved to other reserve fleets.[57][58]

Base closure

Mare Island Naval Shipyard expanded to over 5,200 acres (2,104 ha) during its service life and was responsible for construction of over 500 naval vessels and overhauling thousands of other vessels. Though it remained a strong contender for continued operations, MINSY was identified for closure during the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process of 1993. Naval operations ceased and the facility was decommissioned on 1 April 1996.

The California Conservation Corps, Touro University California, and numerous commercial and industrial businesses are currently leasing property aboard the former naval shipyard. In May 2000, the Navy completed the transfer of a former housing area called Roosevelt Terrace using an "economic development conveyance"; a method to accelerate the transfer of BRAC facilities back to civilian communities for their economic benefit. The Navy is also transferring property at the shipyard to other government agencies such as Fish and Wildlife Service refuge, a Forest Service office building, an Army Reserve Center, a Coast Guard communications facility, and a Department of Education school.

  •  

    Entrance to The Mare Island Naval Shipyard Industrial Area, April 2011

  •  

    The Mare Island Naval Shipyard facility, April 2011

Appearances in popular culture

The shipyard was featured by Huell Howser in California's Gold Episode 704.[59]

See also

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Category:Mare Island Naval Shipyard by decade.

References

Notes

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 15 April 2008.
  2. ^ a b "First U.S. Naval Station in the Pacific". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved 15 October 2012.
  3. ^ a b . National Historic Landmarks Quioklinks. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  4. ^ Adams, George R. (1 December 1974). "Mare Island Naval Shipyard" (pdf). National Register of Historic Places – Inventory Nomination Form. National Park Service. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  5. ^ a b
  6. ^ a b c d . NOAA Central Library. 30 November 2007. Archived from the original on 25 February 2016.
  7. ^ Gudde, Dr. Erwin G. "Mutiny on the Ewing". Retrieved 2 January 2008. Originally published in The JOURNAL, Coast and Geodetic Survey, 1951-12-01, Number 4
  8. ^ McArthur, Lewis Pacific Coast Survey of 1849 and 1850 Private history 1915 NOAA.gov retrieved 26 December 2007
  9. ^ "Mare Island Navy Yard". Overland Monthly. 1908. pp. 411–12.
  10. ^ Howe, Octavius T; Matthews, Frederick C. (1927). American Clipper Ships 1833–1858. Vol. 2, Malay-Young Mechanic. Salem, MA: Marine Research Society. pp. 653–656.
  11. ^ Lott, A Long Line of Ships, pages 3–134.
  12. ^ Mare Island was first California boot camp
  13. ^ Stephen C. Ruder, "Who Really Blew Up Mare Island?" Naval History (June 2022): 40-45.
  14. ^ Spencer Tucker and Priscilla Mary Roberts, ed. World War One: A Student Encyclopedia (ABC-Clio, 2005): 1606
  15. ^ Mare Island History. Vallejo Convention & Visitors Bureau website. Accessed 22 August 2007
  16. ^ Lott, A Long Line of Ships, pp. 161–180.
  17. ^ "U.S. Naval Activities World War II by State". Patrick Clancey. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  18. ^ Kern, James & Vallejo and Naval Historical Museum Images of America: Vallejo. Arcadia Publishing, 2004.
  19. ^ FAS Military Analysis Network: Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY)
  20. ^ Lott, A Long Line of Ships, pp. 209–237.
  21. ^ "Drydocking Facilities Characteristics" (PDF).
  22. ^ Gardiner Fassett, Frederick, The Shipbuilding Business in the United States of America, p. 177
  23. ^ Cutters, Craft & Coast Guard-Manned Army & Navy Vessels
  24. ^ a b Fahey, The Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet, p. 17
  25. ^ a b Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 945
  26. ^ Tillman(2005)pp. 301–306
  27. ^ Chief of Naval Operations, Submarine Warfare Division: Submarine Chronology 10 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  28. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 907
  29. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 926
  30. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 939
  31. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 946
  32. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 919
  33. ^ a b c d Silverstone, U.S. Warships of World War II, p. 287
  34. ^ a b Silverstone, U.S. Warships of World War II, p. 195
  35. ^ a b Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, pp. 953υ
  36. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, pp. 945υ
  37. ^ a b c d e f Silverstone, U.S. Warships of World War II, p. 197
  38. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, pp. 913υ
  39. ^ a b c d Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p.954
  40. ^ a b c Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 953
  41. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 918
  42. ^ a b c d Silverstone, U.S. Warships of World War II, p. 199
  43. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 956
  44. ^ Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, pp. 933υ
  45. ^ a b Blair, Silent Victory Vol. 2, p. 957
  46. ^ a b c d e f Silverstone, U.S. Warships of World War II, p. 203
  47. ^ Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 473
  48. ^ Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 472
  49. ^ Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 470
  50. ^ Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 406
  51. ^ Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 469
  52. ^ a b Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 468
  53. ^ a b c d e f Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 403
  54. ^ a b c d e Blackman Jane's 1970–71, p. 466
  55. ^ youtube.com, The Mothball Fleet
  56. ^ youtube.com The USN Mothball Fleet - Storing up for a rainy day
  57. ^ ww2db.com Pacific Reserve Fleet, Mare Island
  58. ^ US Navy Pacific Reserve Fleet, Mare Island
  59. ^ "Mare Island – California's Gold (704) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University".

Bibliography

  • Blackman, Raymond V.B. Jane's Fighting Ships 1970–71. London: Jane's Yearbooks.
  • Gardiner Fassett, Frederick (1 January 1948). The Shipbuilding Business in the United States of America. Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers.
  • Lott, Arnold S., Lt. Comdr., U.S.N. A Long Line of Ships: Mare Island's Century of Naval Activity in California. Annapolis: United States Naval Institute, 1954.
  • Silverstone, Paul H., U.S. Warships of World War II. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1968.
  • Steffes, James, ENC Retired. Swift Boat Down: The Real Story of the Sinking of PCF-19. (2006); ISBN 1-59926-612-1.
  • Tillman, Barrett Clash of the Carriers. New York: New American Library, 2005. ISBN 978-0-451-21956-5.
  • 1941 Society of Naval Architects Bulletin, Harold W. Linnehan, writing as a visitor from Design section, Mare Island, California.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mare Island Naval Shipyard.
  • Mare Island Navy Yard – 1928. Elbridge Ayer Burbank pencil sketch.
  • National Park Service World War II in the San Francisco Bay Area: Mare Island Naval Shipyard
  • Darryl Manzer. "Straightening Nails: A Story of Reuse and Renewal". Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society. Retrieved 20 February 2005.
  • "Mare Island Naval Shipyard" (pdf). Photographs. National Park Service. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  • Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. CA-3, "Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Near State Highway 37, Vallejo, Solano County, CA", 9 photos, 2 data pages, 1 photo caption page
  • HAER No. CA-3-A, "Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Structural Shop", 10 photos, 14 measured drawings, 4 data pages, 1 photo caption page
  • HAER No. CA-3-B, "Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Pattern Shop", 12 photos, 3 data pages, 1 photo caption page
  • HAER No. CA-3-C, "Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Sail Loft", 8 photos, 3 data pages, 1 photo caption page
  • St.Peter's Chapel "http://www.mareislandmuseum.org/venues/st-peters-chapel/"

March 15, 2023
mare, island, naval, shipyard, minsy, first, united, states, navy, base, established, pacific, ocean, located, miles, northeast, francisco, vallejo, california, napa, river, goes, through, mare, island, strait, separates, peninsula, shipyard, mare, island, cal. The Mare Island Naval Shipyard MINSY was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean 4 It is located 25 miles 40 km northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo California The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard Mare Island California from the main portion of the city of Vallejo MINSY made a name for itself as the premier U S West Coast submarine port as well as serving as the controlling force in San Francisco Bay Area shipbuilding efforts during World War II 5 Mare Island Naval ShipyardU S National Register of Historic PlacesU S National Historic Landmark DistrictCalifornia Historical Landmark No 751 2 USS Wadleigh at Mare Island Naval Yard 10 April 1945 Show map of CaliforniaShow map of the United StatesLocationVallejo CaliforniaCoordinates38 5 24 N 122 15 48 W 38 09000 N 122 26333 W 38 09000 122 26333 Coordinates 38 5 24 N 122 15 48 W 38 09000 N 122 26333 W 38 09000 122 26333Built1854NRHP reference No 75002103 1 CHISL No 751 2 Significant datesAdded to NRHP15 May 1975Designated NHLD15 May 1975 3 Designated CHISL1960The base closed in 1996 and has gone through several redevelopment phases It was registered as a California Historical Landmark in 1960 2 and parts of it were declared a National Historic Landmark District in 1975 3 Contents 1 Beginnings 2 World War I 3 World War II 3 1 War bonds 4 Dry docks and slipways 5 Shipbuilding 5 1 Riverine training 5 2 Pacific Reserve Fleet Mare Island 6 Base closure 7 Appearances in popular culture 8 See also 9 References 10 External linksBeginnings EditIn September 1849 Lieutenant Commander William Pope McArthur was placed in command of the US survey schooner Ewing which had been brought around Cape Horn to the West Coast by Lieutenant Washington Allon Bartlett 6 Upon reaching San Francisco Ewing and the other ship assigned to the survey USS Massachusetts were hampered from progress due to desertions of their crews to the gold fields including a mutiny when crew members rowing into the city from Ewing threw an officer overboard in an attempt to desert 7 They managed to survey the Mare Island Strait 6 before steaming to Hawaii to obtain crewmen from Hawaiian monarch King Kamehameha III 8 They returned to San Francisco in the spring of 1850 with the coastal survey of northern California beginning on 4 April 1850 and continued up to the mouth of the Columbia River On 1 August 1850 while still in Oregon McArthur purchased a 1 16 interest in Mare Island for 468 50 6 then returned to San Francisco later that month to prepare charts and write reports On 15 January 1852 Secretary of the Navy William A Graham ordered a Naval Commission to select a site for a naval yard on the Pacific Coast Commodore D Sloat along with Commodore C Ringgold Simon F Blunt and William P S Sanger former overseer of construction of Drydock Number One Norfolk Naval Shipyard were appointed to the commission On 13 July 1852 Sloat recommended the island 9 across the Napa River from the settlement of Vallejo The Navy purchased the original 956 acres 387 ha of MINSY on 4 January 1853 McArthur s family share he had died a few months after purchasing an interest in Mare Island was 5 218 20 6 The Navy commenced shipbuilding operations on 16 September 1854 under the command of then Commander David Farragut who later gained fame during the U S Civil War Battle of Mobile Bay when he gave the order Damn the torpedoes full speed ahead MINSY served as a major Pacific Ocean repair station during the late 19th century handling American as well as Japanese and Russian vessels in the course of duty Monitor Camanche at Mare Island 1866 In 1861 the longest lived of the clipper ships Syren was brought to Mare Island Navy Yard for 15 000 of repairs Syren had struck Mile Rock twice while trying to sail out of the Golden Gate 10 Marines first arrived for duty in 1862 under the command of Maj Addison Garland who was the first officer to command the Marine barracks on the island Mare Island Naval Shipyard also took a commanding role in civil defense and emergency response on the West Coast dispatching warships to the Pacific Northwest to subdue Native American unrest MINSY sent ships such as Wyoming south to Central America and the Panama Canal to protect US political and commercial interests Some of the support logistics and munition requirements for the Spanish American War were filled by Mare Island MINSY sent men materiel and ships to San Francisco in response to the fires following the 1906 earthquake Arctic rescue missions were mounted as necessary Ordnance manufacturing and storage were two further key missions at MINSY for nearly all of its active service including ordnance used prior to the American Civil War 11 In 1911 the Marine Corps established two West Coast recruit training depots first at Mare Island the second at Puget Sound Washington Mare Island eventually became the West Coast s only recruit training facility when the Puget Sound operation consolidated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1912 Instructors trained recruits there until 10 August 1923 when they relocated to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego 12 The Marine Barracks Mare Island remained World War I Edit Mare Island Naval Shipyard in 1911 In July 1917 MINSY was the site of a major explosion that killed six people On July 9 a gunpowder magazine containing 127 600 pounds of black powder blew up damaging a number of surrounding buildings and leaving a mystery as to what had caused it Suspicion settled on an identified German agent and possible saboteur Lothar Witzke but the investigation proved inconclusive and the official verdict was that the cause was unknown Stephen C Ruder has suggested in a 2022 article that it may not have been an act of German sabotage but suicide by a civilian Neil Damstedt who was the principal victim and only individual inside the magazine at the moment of explosion 13 14 MINSY saw major shipbuilding efforts during World War I MINSY holds a shipbuilding speed record for a destroyer that still stands launching USS Ward in just 17 1 2 days in May June 1918 15 Mare Island was selected by the Navy for construction of the only US West Coast built dreadnought battleship USS California launched in 1919 In 1904 the pre dreadnought battleship USS Nebraska had been launched at Seattle Washington Noting the power of underwater warfare shown by German U boats in World War I the Navy doubled their Pacific based submarine construction program at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard by founding a submarine program at MINSY in the early 1920s 16 World War II Edit The AJC Band from Hamilton Field plays at a war bond rally held at Mare Island on 26 June 1945 Behind the band caricatures of Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler have been crossed out and a fanged Japanese figure is labeled Tough One To Go Base facilities included a hospital ammunition depot paint and rubber testing laboratories and schools for firefighters opticians and anti submarine attack during World War II 17 MINSY reached peak capacity for shipbuilding repair overhaul and maintenance of many different kinds of seagoing vessels including both surface combatants and submarines Up to 50 000 workers were employed 18 Mare Island even received Royal Navy cruisers and destroyers and four Soviet Navy subs for service 5 Following the War MINSY was considered to be one of the primary stations for construction and maintenance of the Navy s Pacific fleet of submarines having built seventeen submarines and four submarine tenders by the end of hostilities Before World War II the Navy established Station I at Mare Island as one of four High Frequency Direction Finding HFDF stations on the Pacific mainland to track Japanese naval and merchant shipping east of Hawaii The other stations were Point Arguello California Station Z Point Saint George California Station T and Fort Stevens Oregon Station S War bonds Edit Patriotism and esprit de corps among the workers ran very high Mare Island s military and civilian workforce raised almost 76M in war bonds enough to pay for every one of the submarines built at MINSY prior to VJ Day More than 300 landing craft were built at Mare Island 19 20 Dry docks and slipways EditDock No Material of which dock is constructed Length Width Depth Date Completed Source1 Concrete and granite 525 feet 160 m 122 feet 37 m 35 feet 9 inches 10 90 m 1891 21 2 Concrete 741 feet 226 m 120 feet 37 m 31 feet 2 inches 9 50 m 19103 Concrete 693 feet 4 inches 211 33 m 114 feet 35 m 35 feet 9 inches 10 90 m 19404 Concrete 435 feet 8 inches 132 79 m 104 feet 32 m 22 feet 8 inches 6 91 m 1942January 1 1946Shipbuilding ways Width Length Source1 108 feet 8 inches 33 12 m 680 feet 210 m 22 2 89 feet 27 m 398 feet 121 m 308 feet 94 m 3 93 feet 28 m 488 feet 149 m 4 96 feet 29 m 450 feet 140 m 5 96 feet 29 m 450 feet 140 m 6 96 feet 29 m 450 feet 140 m 7 96 feet 29 m 450 feet 140 m 8 96 feet 29 m 450 feet 140 m Shipbuilding EditMare Island Naval Shipyard constructed at least eighty nine seagoing vessels Among the more important ships amp boats built were The collier USS Jupiter was later converted to become the first United States aircraft carrier USS Langley Battleship USS California Heavy cruiser USS San Francisco Five of the seven top scoring United States submarines of World War II were built at Mare Island 1858 USS Saginaw sloop of war wood 1872 USS Mohican sloop of war wood 1874 USC amp GS McArthur Steamer 1875 USS Monadnock monitor steel 1886 USRC Cosmos Revenue Cutter wood 1904 USS Intrepid training ship steel barque 1907 USS Prometheus collier steel 1911 USS Jupiter collier steel Later converted to aircraft carrier USS Langley 1913 USS Kanawha tanker steel 1913 USRC Guard Revenue Cutter Service harbor tug wood 23 1913 USS Palos gunboat steel 1913 USS Monocacy gunboat steel 1914 USS Maumee tanker steel 1915 USS Cuyama tanker steel 1916 USS Shaw destroyer steel 1916 USS California battleship steel 1916 USS Caldwell destroyer steel 1917 Fifteen submarine chasers wood 1917 USS Fairfax destroyer Destroyers for Bases Agreement 24 1917 USS Taylor destroyer 1918 USS Boggs destroyer World War II 1918 USS Kilty destroyer Guadalcanal campaign Philippines campaign 1944 45 Battle of Okinawa 1919 USS Kennison destroyer World War II 1918 USS Ward destroyer attack on Pearl Harbor Guadalcanal campaign Philippines campaign 1918 USS Claxton destroyer 24 1919 USS Hamilton destroyer invasion of North Africa Philippines campaign 1920 USS Montana battleship scrapped before completion under terms of the Washington Naval Treaty 1920 USS Litchfield destroyer World War II 1920 USS Zane destroyer attack on Pearl Harbor Guadalcanal campaign 1921 USS Wasmuth destroyer attack on Pearl Harbor 1922 USS Trever destroyer attack on Pearl Harbor Guadalcanal campaign 1922 USS Perry destroyer attack on Pearl Harbor Battle of Peleliu 1922 USS Decatur destroyer World War II 1927 USS Nautilus submarine sank 6 ships in 14 World War II Pacific patrols 25 1 of 6 Northampton class heavy cruisers 1928 USS Chicago Battle of Savo Island Battle of Rennell Island 1 of 7 New Orleans class heavy cruisers 1931 USS San Francisco attack on Pearl Harbor Battle of Cape Esperance Naval Battle of Guadalcanal Battle of the Philippine Sea 26 Philippines campaign 1944 45 Battle of Okinawa 2 of 18 Mahan class destroyers 1934 USS Smith Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands Philippines campaign 1934 USS Preston Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands Naval Battle of Guadalcanal 1 of 8 Bagley class destroyers 1935 USS Henley attack on Pearl Harbor Guadalcanal campaign 31 of 65 Evarts class destroyer escorts 1942 USS Brennan DE 13 1943 USS Manlove DE 36 1943 USS Lake DE 301 1944 USS Finnegan DE 307 With the prelude to and the outbreak of World War II the Mare Island Naval Shipyard specialized in submarines and other than a few submarine tenders and destroyer escorts no more surface ships were built there MINSY continued building non nuclear subs through the Cold War including two of the three Barracuda class submarines and USS Grayback an early guided missile launcher In 1955 Mare Island was awarded the contract to build Sargo the first nuclear submarine laid down at a Pacific base The shipyard became one of the few that built and overhauled nuclear submarines including several UGM 27 Polaris submarines 1970 saw the launching of Drum the last nuclear submarine built in California In 1972 the Navy officially ceased building new nuclear submarines at Mare Island though overhaul of existing vessels continued Nautilus was decommissioned at Mare Island in 1980 then rigged for towing back to Groton Connecticut to serve as a museum of naval history 27 1 of 10 United States Porpoise class submarines 1936 USS Pompano sank 6 ships in 7 World War II Pacific patrols 28 1 of 6 Salmon class submarines 1936 USS Sturgeon sank 9 ships in 11 World War II Pacific patrols 29 1 of 10 Sargo class submarines 1937 USS Swordfish sank 12 ships in 13 World War II Pacific patrols 30 1939 USS Fulton submarine tender World War II 2 of 12 Tambor class submarines 1939 USS Tuna sank 4 ships in 13 World War II Pacific patrols 31 1939 USS Gudgeon sank 11 ships in 12 World War II Pacific patrols 32 1941 USS Sperry submarine tender 33 World War II 1942 USS Bushnell submarine tender 33 World War II 8 of 77 Gato class submarines 1941 USS Silversides 34 sank 23 ships in 14 World War II Pacific patrols 3rd highest number for a U S submarine 35 1941 USS Trigger 34 sank 18 ships in 12 World War II Pacific patrols 11th highest number for a U S submarine 36 1942 USS Wahoo 37 sank 20 ships in 7 World War II Pacific patrols 6th highest number for a U S submarine 38 1942 USS Whale 37 sank 9 ships in 11 World War II Pacific patrols 39 1942 USS Sunfish 37 sank 15 ships in 11 World War II Pacific patrols 25 1942 USS Tunny 37 sank 7 ships in 9 World War II Pacific patrols 40 Vietnam War 1942 USS Tinosa submarine 37 sank 16 ships in 11 World War II Pacific patrols 40 1942 USS Tullibee 37 sank 3 ships 4 World War II Pacific patrols 41 1943 USS Howard W Gilmore submarine tender 33 World War II 10 of 120 Balao class submarines 1943 USS Seahorse 42 sank 20 ships in 8 World War II Pacific patrols 6th highest number for a U S submarine 43 1943 USS Skate 42 sank 10 ships in 7 World War II Pacific patrols 40 1943 USS Tang 42 sank 24 ships in 5 World War II Pacific patrols highest number for a U S submarine 44 1943 USS Tilefish 42 sank 2 ships 6 World War II Pacific patrols 45 1944 USS Spadefish 46 sank 21 ships in 5 World War II Pacific patrols 4th highest number for a U S submarine 35 1944 USS Trepang 46 sank 11 ships in 5 World War II Pacific patrols 39 1944 USS Spot 46 sank 1 ship in 3 World War II Pacific patrols 39 1944 USS Springer 46 sank 4 ships in 3 World War II Pacific patrols 39 1945 USS Stickleback 46 1 World War II Pacific patrol 45 1947 USS Tiru 46 1945 USS Nereus submarine tender 33 2 of 3 United States Barracuda class submarines 1951 USS Bass 1951 USS Bonita 1 of 2 Grayback class submarines 1957 USS Grayback 47 UGM 27 Polaris ballistic missile submarine USS Mariano G Vallejo 1957 USS Sargo submarine nuclear powered 48 1959 USS Halibut submarine nuclear powered 49 1959 USS Theodore Roosevelt submarine nuclear powered 50 1960 USS Scamp submarine nuclear powered 51 1961 USS Permit submarine nuclear powered 52 1961 USS Plunger submarine nuclear powered 52 1962 USS Andrew Jackson submarine nuclear powered 53 1963 USS Woodrow Wilson submarine nuclear powered 53 1963 USS Daniel Boone submarine nuclear powered 53 1963 USS Stonewall Jackson submarine nuclear powered 53 1964 Trieste II deep submergence bathyscaphe 1965 USS Kamehameha submarine nuclear powered 53 1965 USS Mariano G Vallejo submarine nuclear powered 53 1967 USS Gurnard submarine nuclear powered 54 1968 USS Guitarro submarine nuclear powered 54 1969 USS Hawkbill submarine nuclear powered 54 1969 USS Pintado submarine nuclear powered 54 1970 USS Drum submarine nuclear powered 54 Riverine training Edit Aerial photo of southern Mare Island and the shipyard facility Mare Island Drydock No 1 In 1966 during the Vietnam War the U S Navy transferred their Brown Water Navy Riverine Training Operations from Coronado California to Mare Island Motorists traveling along Highway 37 could often see U S Navy River Patrol Boats among other river assault type boats maneuvering through the sloughs of what is now the Napa Sonoma State Wildlife Area which borders the north and west portions of Mare Island U S Navy Reserve Units may still operate the slough portions of the State Wildlife Area for training purposes as the navigable waters are considered public property The U S Navy Brown Water Riverine Forces were inactivated after the Vietnam War maintaining only the U S Naval Reserve PBRs and auxiliary craft at Mare Island until the 1996 base closure U S Naval Construction Battalion Unit 421Mare Island was also home to the Seabees CBU 421 who completed many construction projects in the bay area including renovation and restoration of St Peter s chapel St Peter s is the oldest Navy Chapel in the United states built in 1901 Pacific Reserve Fleet Mare Island Edit Pacific Reserve Fleet Mare Island was a large US reserve fleet that opened in 1946 to store the many surplus ships after World War II As part of the United States Navy reserve fleets the fleet mothballed ships and submarines Some ships in the fleet were reactivated for the Korean War and Vietnam War 55 56 The Reserve Fleet closed in 1996 with the shipyard The ships were scrapped or moved to other reserve fleets 57 58 Base closure EditMare Island Naval Shipyard expanded to over 5 200 acres 2 104 ha during its service life and was responsible for construction of over 500 naval vessels and overhauling thousands of other vessels Though it remained a strong contender for continued operations MINSY was identified for closure during the Base Realignment and Closure BRAC process of 1993 Naval operations ceased and the facility was decommissioned on 1 April 1996 The California Conservation Corps Touro University California and numerous commercial and industrial businesses are currently leasing property aboard the former naval shipyard In May 2000 the Navy completed the transfer of a former housing area called Roosevelt Terrace using an economic development conveyance a method to accelerate the transfer of BRAC facilities back to civilian communities for their economic benefit The Navy is also transferring property at the shipyard to other government agencies such as Fish and Wildlife Service refuge a Forest Service office building an Army Reserve Center a Coast Guard communications facility and a Department of Education school Entrance to The Mare Island Naval Shipyard Industrial Area April 2011 The Mare Island Naval Shipyard facility April 2011Appearances in popular culture EditThe shipyard was featured by Huell Howser in California s Gold Episode 704 59 See also EditRosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park California during World War II Wikimedia Commons has media related to Category Mare Island Naval Shipyard by decade References EditNotes National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service 15 April 2008 a b First U S Naval Station in the Pacific Office of Historic Preservation California State Parks Retrieved 15 October 2012 a b Mare Island Naval Shipyard National Historic Landmarks Quioklinks National Park Service Archived from the original on 8 October 2012 Retrieved 18 March 2012 Adams George R 1 December 1974 Mare Island Naval Shipyard pdf National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form National Park Service Retrieved 18 May 2012 a b Battleship Iowa Mare Island a b c d The Frontier Coast NOAA Central Library 30 November 2007 Archived from the original on 25 February 2016 Gudde Dr Erwin G Mutiny on the Ewing Retrieved 2 January 2008 Originally published in The JOURNAL Coast and Geodetic Survey 1951 12 01 Number 4 McArthur Lewis Pacific Coast Survey of 1849 and 1850 Private history 1915 NOAA gov retrieved 26 December 2007 Mare Island Navy Yard Overland Monthly 1908 pp 411 12 Howe Octavius T Matthews Frederick C 1927 American Clipper Ships 1833 1858 Vol 2 Malay Young Mechanic Salem MA Marine Research Society pp 653 656 Lott A Long Line of Ships pages 3 134 Mare Island was first California boot camp Stephen C Ruder Who Really Blew Up Mare Island Naval History June 2022 40 45 Spencer Tucker and Priscilla Mary Roberts ed World War One A Student Encyclopedia ABC Clio 2005 1606 Mare Island History Vallejo Convention amp Visitors Bureau website Accessed 22 August 2007 Lott A Long Line of Ships pp 161 180 U S Naval Activities World War II by State Patrick Clancey Retrieved 19 March 2012 Kern James amp Vallejo and Naval Historical Museum Images of America Vallejo Arcadia Publishing 2004 FAS Military Analysis Network Mare Island Naval Shipyard MINSY Lott A Long Line of Ships pp 209 237 Drydocking Facilities Characteristics PDF Gardiner Fassett Frederick The Shipbuilding Business in the United States of America p 177 Cutters Craft amp Coast Guard Manned Army amp Navy Vessels a b Fahey The Ships and Aircraft of the U S Fleet p 17 a b Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 945 Tillman 2005 pp 301 306 Chief of Naval Operations Submarine Warfare Division Submarine Chronology Archived 10 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 907 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 926 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 939 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 946 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 919 a b c d Silverstone U S Warships of World War II p 287 a b Silverstone U S Warships of World War II p 195 a b Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 pp 953y Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 pp 945y a b c d e f Silverstone U S Warships of World War II p 197 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 pp 913y a b c d Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 954 a b c Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 953 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 918 a b c d Silverstone U S Warships of World War II p 199 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 956 Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 pp 933y a b Blair Silent Victory Vol 2 p 957 a b c d e f Silverstone U S Warships of World War II p 203 Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 473 Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 472 Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 470 Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 406 Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 469 a b Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 468 a b c d e f Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 403 a b c d e Blackman Jane s 1970 71 p 466 youtube com The Mothball Fleet youtube com The USN Mothball Fleet Storing up for a rainy day ww2db com Pacific Reserve Fleet Mare Island US Navy Pacific Reserve Fleet Mare Island Mare Island California s Gold 704 Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University Bibliography Blackman Raymond V B Jane s Fighting Ships 1970 71 London Jane s Yearbooks Gardiner Fassett Frederick 1 January 1948 The Shipbuilding Business in the United States of America Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers Lott Arnold S Lt Comdr U S N A Long Line of Ships Mare Island s Century of Naval Activity in California Annapolis United States Naval Institute 1954 Silverstone Paul H U S Warships of World War II New York Doubleday amp Company 1968 Steffes James ENC Retired Swift Boat Down The Real Story of the Sinking of PCF 19 2006 ISBN 1 59926 612 1 Tillman Barrett Clash of the Carriers New York New American Library 2005 ISBN 978 0 451 21956 5 1941 Society of Naval Architects Bulletin Harold W Linnehan writing as a visitor from Design section Mare Island California External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mare Island Naval Shipyard Brief history written in 1939 Recently written history with photos Mare Island Navy Yard 1928 Elbridge Ayer Burbank pencil sketch National Park Service World War II in the San Francisco Bay Area Mare Island Naval Shipyard Mare Island Historic Park Foundation Darryl Manzer Straightening Nails A Story of Reuse and Renewal Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society Retrieved 20 February 2005 Mare Island Naval Shipyard pdf Photographs National Park Service Retrieved 18 May 2012 Historic American Engineering Record HAER No CA 3 Mare Island Naval Shipyard Near State Highway 37 Vallejo Solano County CA 9 photos 2 data pages 1 photo caption page HAER No CA 3 A Mare Island Naval Shipyard Structural Shop 10 photos 14 measured drawings 4 data pages 1 photo caption page HAER No CA 3 B Mare Island Naval Shipyard Pattern Shop 12 photos 3 data pages 1 photo caption page HAER No CA 3 C Mare Island Naval Shipyard Sail Loft 8 photos 3 data pages 1 photo caption page St Peter s Chapel http www mareislandmuseum org venues st peters chapel Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mare Island Naval Shipyard amp oldid 1141821599, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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