November 1, 2016

Arriving in New York City

November 1, 2016

The morning of Saturday, September 10 was just lovely, with a soft and hazy sunrise as we got closer to Sandy Hook where we were to pick up our pilot at 7am. Though it was barely light, the ladder needed to be rigged and so the deck department got an early start

Beside the fact that we were getting closer to New York City, there was a jubilant feeling in the air. This was because our pilot who we were shortly to pick up, was one or our own. Karen grew up on the BROWN with her younger sister, Alaina, and worked first in the store and the mailroom at the early age of about 12. Not only did the ship give them a large extended family but they also gained a love of history and the Merchant Marines. Karen, a Sandy Point Pilot, was our 'feet on the ground' person in NYC working to make this trip happen over the last year or so, and we were getting ready to meet the pilot boat so that she could climb aboard and bring us to the pier. In addition to Karen, her sister Alaina, was Chief Mate on the trip and the master of the vessel was Ben, another crew member who got his start on the BROWN at an early age. All three had been members for over 15 years, starting as young kids AND all three graduated from Kings Point.

Elsewhere, on the ship, there were a handful of people who grew up in New York in the different burroughs and went to High School on the BROWN. Many had gotten a chance to 'live the dream' years ago and steer the ship. You see, no matter what person you speak to, or what year they graduated, they all had one dream. As a High School, the ship was stationary and never moved, yet all students had a dream of getting in after hours and working together to take the ship for a spin. Over the last 25 years, those alumni of the High School who are crew members, have gotten a chance to be at the helm. On the trip to NYC we had 5 alumni sail and it was a pretty emotional for them because after the ship left the City, they never thought that they would have a chance to see the ship on the East River again.

Some more pictures coming in...it was an epic experience that we'd like to share with our members and followers.

So many pictures, so little time. Until our next blog, where we go over the things that happened in the week we were in New York as well as the cruise details.

Project Liberty Ship, Inc is a 501(c)3 non-profit, all volunteer organization engaged in the preservation and operation of the historic ship JOHN W. BROWN as a living memorial museum. Gifts to Project Liberty Ship are tax deductible.

andrea horrocks

October 19, 2016

The BROWN Heads to NYC

andrea horrocks

October 19, 2016

The trip to NYC technically began well over a year ago, when planning started in earnest. Eventually, through lots of meetings and lots of contacts, we found that getting a pier in NYC was going to be difficult. Most piers have not been maintained and are silted in. Many piers that already contain historic ships are actually silted in also, leaving ships sitting in mud. Finally we were able to settle on Pier 36 (even though there was a fee involved, and the location was certainly NOT the best) as our choices were limited. As much as the location was 'not the best', it actually was a really cool location. Let us explain: Pier 36, the banana pier is behind basketball city, just a few blocks from Chinatown. But even taxi and uber drivers were challenged to get to 'pier 36', as it seems that its not a big location for anyone. Ever. But at the same time... take a look at this view.

Now that we've given you a teaser of some NYC pictures, let's back up a bit. The adventure started on September 8th, when crew members making the trip were required to be on the ship. A lot of work needed to be done which included the handing out of the 'gumby suits', fire drills and abandon ship drills. Last minute large scale securing of equipment was also handled and cleaning of the ship for our time in NYC also occurred when there was down time, especially for those not sitting watches.

At around 1930 the ship left Clinton Street in Baltimore, headed to the East River in Manhattan. We had lots of crew members and families seeing us off.

Our first overnight was a bit uneventful with the watches going smoothly, and we made good time. Friday the 9th of September was a long day at sea. There was plenty of work that needed to be done, including putting masts into cradles and a scheduled burial at sea. And we had a great sunrise and sunset in the same day though half of it was cloudy and drab, and very hot.

We had a burial at sea for 11 past members of Project Liberty Ship. It's been a while since we had been off shore and met the federal requirements for burials at sea, so we took advantage of this day. Planned by the ships Chaplain and organized by the naval armed guard reenactors, it was a wonderful ceremony and was also videotaped so that copies could be sent to families.

We ended up making really good speed with the wind at our back for the first part of our trip and had to slow down at times. Friday was horribly hot (in the 90's) and though we'd been making good time in the morning, by the afternoon we needed to slow down, and the sun that had been absent, came out. We were overcome with what was termed 'The Desperate Houseflies of New Jersey". Somewhere, off the coast of Jersey, we were found by flies looking for land, perhaps. Either way, they were bitey, and relentless and the lack of wind made them worse. There is not much in the way of comfort on a 74 year old Liberty Ship, so crew members were doing what they could to stay cool, like eating lots of ice cream and bringing hammocks out on the hatches to sleep.

Clearly, this trip was way too long to be explained in one weekly blog. More to come next week.

On a side note, now that we are back home in Baltimore and things have relaxed a bit, things had to go and get hectic again. Our landlords (the owners of Pier One on Clinton Street) have begun demolition of the pier. This is at least a 6 month endeavor and we were moved over to another pier on Clinton Street. Though this is extremely generous, it is also a secured pier, and we must abide by the security plan, which does not make visitation an easy operation. Currently, the ship is closed to the public and this may be for as little as a couple of months or for the duration of our stay here. Stay tuned for more info. Until our blog next week where we continue with our NYC trip, have a great week.

andrea horrocks

August 31, 2016

Who was John W. Brown?

andrea horrocks

August 31, 2016

One of the biggest mistakes that people make is to think that the JOHN W. BROWN is named after the abolitionist John Brown who led a raid on an armory in Harper's Ferry. This is completely incorrect.

First you need to understand how Liberty Ships were named as they were being cranked out quickly in the early 1940's in large numbers. The earliest ones were easily named after famous Americans (particularly those who had signed the Declaration of Independence), but it moved onto other noteworthy and famous Americans. 17 Liberty ships were named after important African Americans in History, like Booker T. Washington, and the only African American female named Liberty ship the SS Harriet Tubman. There were over 2000 Liberty ships built in just a few short years, so coming up with names became more difficult. Groups that could raise more than $2 million in war bonds could propose names. Other times, names were notable union leaders because it became an incentive to those working in the shipyards. All liberty ships were named after deceased people, but there is one exception. According to Wikipedia, 'The only living namesake was Francis J. O'Gara, the purser of the SS Jean Nicolet, who was thought to have been killed in a submarine attack, but, in fact, survived the war in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.'

John W. (William) Brown was born in 1870 in Canada and at some point moved to Maine with his family. If you're ever in Bath, Maine, you can't help notice Bath Iron Works (BIW), a full service shipyard specializing in the design, building and support of ships built for the U.S. Navy, including the recent USS ZUMWALT. Back to John W. Brown.... He started as a joiner at Bath Iron Works and became an american citizen in 1896. He eventually became involved in the labor movement and would help organize unions and strikes, if needed. He even wrote a union column called "Workers Should Know" from 1936-1940.

Brown and his wife Eva owned a house in Woolwich, MaIne, across the river from Bath, and raised 3 daughters there. There is still family around and we are proud to have had his family on board the SS JOHN W. BROWN a couple of times for cruises.

In 1941 Brown was semi retired and was an adviser to Local 4, Industrial Union of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America at Bath Iron Works. John William Brown died in 1941 at the age of 71. He accidentally shot himself with his shotgun. In the book Good Shipmates written by crew member and the last managing editor of the Baltimore Evening Sun, Ernest F. Imhoff, the grandson of John W. Brown spoke about his grandfather. Earle A. (Skip) Gainsley Jr said in 2002, that the target of the shotgun was to be a whippoorwill that had been keeping the family awake at night. He told his wife "I'll get that damn thing if it kills me".

That's this weeks history lesson, folks. Come back 'round and see what we have going on next week. HINT, hint, hint... we are leaving for NYC next Wednesday!!!! Tickets are still available for this once in a lifetime (and trust us, it's been a LOT of effort to make this trip come to fruition) event. Here is the link for eventbrite to order tickets.