TAMING THE BEAST

THE SAGA OF THE CURTISS SB2C

HELLDIVER

In wartime it is not uncommon for certain weapons to be rushed into production simply as a matter of logistic expediency.  Then again, it's often a matter of political dynamics where in Newton's Law that objects in motion tend to remain in motion is mindlessly perpetuated, as in lucrative government procurement contracts.  There were dozens of examples of this phenomenon in WW II which often saw ships built that were not needed, tanks mass-produced that blew up with such frequency that they were nicknamed "Ronsons," or guns delivered that no one dared to fire.  But few of these boondoggles reached the enormity of the saga of the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver, a dive-bomber that went on to win combat laurels even though it's very existence caused a scandal which eventually collapsed one of America's largest aircraft manufacturers, the once-esteemed Curtiss-Wright Corporation.

Hope you give it a read.....this is extremely interesting to read....it will blow your mind!!!

Click: HERE

AMPHITRITE : CONVICT SHIP

Here is a short article about one of the many 'Convict Ships' that went back and forth from Great Britain to the Australian Colonies....

She encountered a huge storm....landed on a sand bar off the coast of France.

All but three drowned.....and wait until you read about why this happened....WOW!!!

Just click HERE if you wish to give this a going over.

CSS ALABAMA - CONFEDERATE STATES NAVY CRUISER

Well folks this, at least to me, is somewhat of a strange tail about what started out to be a ship built by the British, but the building of the vessel was overseen by a Captain of the Confederate Navy.

Once completed then there was some heated discussion on whether this "290" which was assigned to this vessel while on the blocks, was going to be permitted to leave port.

Well she did "sneak" out of port...and went on a rampage of  a true raider or merchant ships.....

Ok.......I've said enough...I'll let you read this short article on just how much hell this vessel done....and in the end....you'll be very surprised at who "paid the bill" for all this.

You can read about it HERE

BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS

Early during the Civil War, President Lincoln’s Secretary of the Navy, Gideon Welles, realized the necessity of capturing New Orleans. With a population of 170,000, it was the largest city of the Confederacy. More important, however, was the fact that the inland seaport controlled the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Welles believed that whoever dominated the waterway would win the war.  On the west side of the river were three states which had cast their lot with the South - Louisiana, Arkansas, and Texas. If they could be cut off from helping the rebels, then the Confederacy would be blockaded, both along the river and the east coast.

On 12 November 1861, Cmdr. David Porter approached Gideon Wells with a plan to capture New Orleans by using the Federal Fleet. Porter advocated a heavy bombardment of the river defenses followed by a quick thrust by fast Naval vessels up the channel to the city. The adventuresome young officer planned to use 13-in Army siege mortars, mounted on dismantled schooners, to reduce the enemy fortifications.

Now I'm not attempting to imply that this article has something "new" to this event.....but it certainly does, in my opinion lead the reader to the true "Hell" that both sides went through in this battle...I just found Mr. Tombs memoirs most interesting.  So here is "The memoirs of Engineer James Tomb offer an eye-opening perspective on one of the Civil War’s most-controversial battles."

BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS

Hope you find it super interesting.

SS DUNCAN L. CLINCH [LIBERTY SHIP]

Now here is a "Liberty Ship" that was assigned a name that goes back a few years......Oh yes, way back to 1816 when the Seminole War broke out

Colonel Duncan Lamont Clinch....was much endeared by the slave-owners of Georgia....well that is a tad of a story in itself...so I'll let you indulge in that if your interest in what happen to the Liberty ship named after this Colonel.

The SS Duncan L. Clinch...didn't have a long sea life, but she did give it her all.

Here is her short story

SS Duncan L. Clinch