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Posted on 03/25/2005 9:43:51 PM PST by snippy_about_it
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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| Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood and support. The FReeper Foxhole hopes to share with it's readers an open forum where we can learn about and discuss military history, military news and other topics of concern or interest to our readers be they Veteran's, Current Duty or anyone interested in what we have to offer. If the Foxhole makes someone appreciate, even a little, what others have sacrificed for us, then it has accomplished one of it's missions. We hope the Foxhole in some small way helps us to remember and honor those who came before us.
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 World War II During World War II, the Bath Iron Works achieved production miracles unmatched by any other shipyard in the country. by Dale P. Harper On the banks of the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, 12 miles from the sea, is the shipyard known as the Bath Iron Works, where USS Laffey (DD 724) was built. In more than 100 years of business, the yard has built many different types of vessels, but it has gained and maintained its reputation as a builder of destroyers for the United States Navy. During World War II, the Bath Iron Works achieved production miracles unmatched by any other shipyard in the country. Soon after France fell to the German onslaught in June 1940, Navy Secretary Frank Knox sent telegrams to the heads of many American shipyards, directing them to take immediate steps to expand their facilities in preparation for a forthcoming enlarged shipbuilding program. "Speed is of essence," the telegrams stated.  Bath Iron Works President William S. "Pete" Newell began his expansion plans immediately. Land adjacent to the north end of the shipyard was purchased from the Maine Central Railroad to accommodate the addition of two more building ways, enabling the yard to have eight ships under construction at one time. Since no more space was available in Bath, land was purchased in East Brunswick, 3 1/2 miles away, and a prefabrication plant was built there. Whole sections of ships were assembled in East Brunswick and hauled to the Bath yard. Seventy percent of the planned expansion had been completed and paid for by the company before a contract came through that authorized payment and reimbursement by the U.S. Navy. By December 1940, the Maine shipyard was prepared for the challenges that lay ahead. Most other shipyards had waited for Navy contracts and funds before beginning expansion, so they lagged far behind.  When the United States entered the war after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Bath Iron Works began to build destroyers. Various problems arose as the shipbuilding process was accelerated. By 1943, 12,000 employees, including 1,600 women, were working in three shifts around the clock. The city of Bath could not supply all the workers needed, and they could not be brought in from out of state because of a severe housing shortage. Therefore, workers were recruited from 94 Maine communities within a 60-mile radius of the shipyard. Because gasoline was rationed, the personnel department organized a ride-sharing program that resulted in 9,500 workers being transported in 2,200 cars, averaging more than four persons per car. Other workers were brought in on buses that had been leased from the Navy under a plan authorized by an act of Congress. Since many shipbuilders were being drafted or volunteering for military service, the personnel department recruited women and provided a nursery to care for their children. Every problem the company encountered was solved or overcome, and the resulting production efforts sometimes bordered on the fantastic. In peacetime, it took 700 days for the Bath Iron Works to build a destroyer, but during the war that time was cut to 210 days. A ship was launched every 17 days and was then moved to the outfitting dock for completion. In December 1942, temperatures dropped as low as 30 degrees below zero and averaged 10 below zero for a week. The Bath Iron Works' absentee rate was a mere 3 percent, however, and the safety record was the best of any shipyard in the country. Management rewarded good attendance records by allowing employees to ride on a destroyer when it was delivered to the Boston Naval Shipyard, where it officially accepted by the Navy and commissioned. Every employee could be proud of the Maine shipyard's record during the war years. From Pearl Harbor to the war's end, 82 destroyers were built and delivered--about 25 percent of all destroyers built for the Navy during the war. During the same period, Japanese shipyards built only 63 destroyers. The Bath Iron Works alone outproduced the Japanese empire. Bath Iron Works was a major WWII shipbuilder, building almost 100 ships, almost all of them destroyers. It continues in operation today. Bath Iron Works Record of WWII Shipbuilding      |
Good morning, snippy and everyone at the Foxhole.
Morning Snippy.
Morning AZamericonnie.
Nice poster and good message
Morning Aeronaut.
Morning E.G.C.
Supposed to get hit with the Pinapple express this weekend, heavy wind and rains. :-(
good morning
Hi Sam.
Good morning, folks. Gonna update Norton in just a moment. It's cloudy and cool this morning. Rain in the forecast for today.
Hull number 194 -- the USS Taylor was my dad's ship. I went to a reunion last summer and met four plank holders (Members of the commissioning crew). It was great!
Back at ya the lovely and gracious Ms. bentfeather, Saturday Humor Bump for the Freeper Foxhole
A St. Paul construction site boss was interviewing men for a job, when along
came a Norwegian. I'm not hiring any Norwegians, the foreman thought to
himself, so he made up a test to avoid hiring the Norwegian without getting
into an argument.
"Here's your first question," the foreman said. "Without using numbers,
represent the number 9."
"Without numbers?" The Norwegian says. "Dat is easy," and proceeds to draw
three trees.
"What's this?" the boss asks.
"'Ave you got no brain? Tree and tree and tree make nine," says the Norwegian.
"Fair enough," says the boss. "Here is your second question. Use the same
rules, but this time the number is 99."
The Norwegian stares into space for a while, then picks up the picture that
he has just drawn and makes a smudge on each tree.
"'Ere you go."
The boss scratches his head and says, "How on earth do you get that to
represent 99?"
"Each of da trees is dirty now! So it's dirty tree, and dirty tree, and
dirty tree. Dat is 99."
The boss is getting worried he's going to have to hire this Norwegian, so he
says, "All right, last question. Same rules again, but represent the number
100."
The Norwegian stares into space some more, then he picks up the picture
again and makes a little mark at the base of each tree, and says, "Ere you
go. One hundred."
The boss looks at the attempt. "You must be nuts if you think that
represents a hundred!" The Norwegian leans forward and points to the marks
at the base of each tree, and says, "A little dog come along and crap by
each tree. So now you got dirty tree and a turd, dirty tree and a turd, and
dirty tree and a turd, which make one hundred. So when I start?"
"Monday."
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
I don't recall offhand, but wasn't the first of class Arleigh Burke built at Bath Ironworks?
I ain't snippy but you do recall correctly O Darksheare, lookie here amongst others
http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/factfile/ships/ship-dd.html
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
On This Day In History
Birthdates which occurred on March 26:
1479 Vasili III great prince of Moscow (1505-33)/son of Ivan III
1516 Konrad von Gesner Zürich Switzerland, naturalist (Bibliotheca Universalis)
1753 Benjamin Thompson physicist(discovered that heat equaled motion, which led to the 2nd law of thermodynamics)/spy (American revolution) (Royal Institute of Great Britain, Woburn MA)
1773 Nathaniel Bowditch mathematician/astronomer/polyglot/author (Marine Sextant)
1813 Thomas West Sherman Brevet Major General (Union Army), died in 1879
1817 Herman Haupt Brigadier General (Union volunteers), died in 1905
1840 George Smith London England, assyriologist (cuneiform (script))
1863 Henry Royce founder (Rolls-Royce Limited in 1884)
1868 Fuad I king of Egypt (1922-36)
1874 Robert Frost San Francisco CA, poet (Mending Wall, Road Not Taken)
1875 Syngman Rhee "President" of South Korea (1948-60)
1880 Duncan Hines US, restaurant guide writer (Out of Kentucky Kitchens)
1904 Joseph Campbell mythologist (Mythic Image)
1905 Viktor Emil Frankl pyschiatrist (Man's Search for Meaning)
1911 Tennessee Williams Columbus MS, dramatist (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof)
1914 William Westmoreland Saxon SC, army general (Vietnam era)
1917 Rufus Thomas Cayce MS, singer (Walking the Dog)
1919 Strother Martin Kokomo IN, actor (Cool Hand Luke)(What we have here is a failure to communicate)
1921 Peter Horsley CEO (Osprey Aviation)
1930 Sandra Day O'Connor El Paso TX, 1st woman Supreme Court Justice (1981- )
1931 Leonard Nimoy Boston MA, actor (Spock-Star Trek, Mission Impossible)
1934 Alan Arkin New York NY, actor (Catch 22, In-Laws, Simon, Wait Until Dark)
1934 Gino Cappelletti ORFU, AFL running back (AFL Player of Year 1964)
1937 Wayne Embry holder of 7 basketball records (Miami of Ohio)
1939 James Caan Bronx NY, actor (Brian's Song, Killer Elite, Godfather)
1940 Nancy Pelosi (Representative-Democrat-CA)
1942 Erica Jong [Mann] New York NY, author (Fear of Flying)
1943 Robert Woodward investigative reporter (Watergate, CIA crimes)
1944 Diana Ross [Earle] Detroit MI, (Supremes, Lady Sings the Blues, Mahogany)
1946 Johnny Crawford Los Angeles CA, actor (Mark-The Rifleman)
1948 Steven Tyler New York NY, rock vocalist (Dream On, Walk This Way, Aerosmith-Janie's Got a Gun)
1949 Vicki Lawrence Inglewood CA, actress (Carol Burnett Show, Mama's Family)
1950 Martin Short Hamilton Ontario, comedian (Saturday Night Live, SCTV, 3 Amigos)
1954 Curtis Sliwa founder (Guardian Angels)/radio personality (WABC)
1960 Marcus Allen NFL running back (Los Angeles Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, Heisman 1981)
1962 Yuri Pavlovich Gidzenko Russia, Lieutenant-Colonel/cosmonaut
1969 Elizabeth Howell Clinton MS, Miss Mississippi-America (1990)
2233 James T Kirk captain of USS Enterprise (Star Trek)
Thanks!
Off to work I must go, I hear the sheetrock callingIt sounds like "O CRAP"
Regards
alfa6 ;>}
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