S.S. John W. Brown

"Living History Cruise" aboard the S.S. John W. Brown on August 24, 2007 out of Boston (Charlestown, Pier 4).

From their site (http://www.liberty-ship.com):

One of two surviving fully operational Liberty ships preserved in the United States, the S.S. JOHN W. BROWN is the product of an emergency shipbuilding program of World War II that resulted in the construction of more than 2,700 Liberty ships.


Apparently the record for building one of these ships was 4 1/2 days!

A mock dogfight was staged in the skies over the ship as we floated in Boston Harbor like a sitting duck. The anti-aircraft guns fired blanks at the replica Japanese fighters, only to be chased from the skies by two restored U.S. Aircraft, a P-51 Mustang and a P-40 Warhawk.

See a video of it here

It was a fascinating visit aboard the ship. The sweltering steam engine room was a sight to see, and the informative presentations throughout the day really told an amazing story of the vital role these ships played in the War.

53 photos | 592 views

items are from 24 Aug 2007.