Warships at Patriot’s Point – South Carolina

Patriot’s Point is located right across the Cooper River from historic old Charleston.  This major tourist attraction based on the mid-twentieth century is all about American History…primarily from World War II through the Viet Nam War.

Since it involved American history, bravery, patriotism combined with ships and aircraft, it was "a can’t miss" on our to do list!

We took this impressive view of Patriot’s Point from our tour boat coming back from a much different military scene, Fort Sumter and the Civil War.  The Ravenel Bridge (I-626) across the Cooper River from Charleston to Mount Peasant is in the background.  A large marina butts right up against the WWII era warships…

Sad Factoid:

·       As of August 2015, a total of 21 persons have committed suicide by jumping off the Ravenel Bridge in the 10 years since it opened for traffic.

 This is is the Aircraft Carrier USS Yorktown, (CV10), also known as “The Fighting Lady”.  She was the 10^th aircraft carrier to serve in the United States Navy.  The Yorktown was commissioned in April 1943, decommissioned in 1947, re-commissioned in 1953 and finally retired in 1970.  She served in both World War II and, after a reconfiguration, also Viet Nam!  The Yorktown’s flight deck is almost as long as 3 football fields and its 196 feet wide. 

As you approach the USS Yorktown on the pier, her size becomes readily apparent! 

The Yorktown was the 4^th US Navy ship to bear this name.  The 1^st was commissioned in 1839 and it was a 16-gun sloop-of-war.  It sunk in 1850.  The second Yorktown was the lead Yorktown-class gunboat commissioned in 1889 and sold in 1921.  The Fighting Lady’s immediate predecessor was the USS Yorktown (CV-5), the lead Yorktown-class aircraft carrier.  That ship had been commissioned in 1937 and it was sunk at the Battle of Midway in 1942.  A total of 141 sailors died on the Yorktown in that battle…

Once you walk out on the flight deck, you really begin to understand the size and scope of this ship.  Then you think about aircraft landing and taking off from this little ‘runway’ and it’s a bit mind boggling!  The deck was expanded in the mid-1950s to increase her capabilities to handle jet aircraft…

It’s hard to conceive but the USS Gerald R. Ford, which is due to be commissioned in March of this year, has a flight deck that measures 1,092 feet long and 256 feet wide.  Fully loaded the Ford will weigh 100,000 tons or so…whereas the Yorktown, modified to handle jet aircraft, weighed in at only 40,600 tons fully loaded.

Bonnie’s husband Bill ‘modeled’ one of the 4 twin 3-inch (76 mm) 50 caliber guns that were used to defend the Yorktown from enemy aircraft when she was deployed later in her career in an anti-submarine warfare role.  During WWII, if I read the information correctly, she had 62 guns of various calibers deployed throughout the ship to ward off incoming aircraft… 

This is the bridge of the Yorktown… By today’s standards, it’s a primitive looking set up!  I can’t imagine standing on the bridge and seeing enemy aircraft swarming in to try to sink the ship and its crew.  You would have to hope that your aircraft and gunnery crews could knock them out of the sky but you’d feel a bit vulnerable, that’s for sure.

Comfy looking sleeping accommodations aren’t they?!  Consider this… During World War II the USS Yorktown carried a crew of 380 officer and 3,088 enlisted men!  They must have been packed in like sardines…

The Yorktown was 1 of 24 Essex Class aircraft carriers built for the US Navy during World War II.  Three other carriers of this class have been preserved as museums: the USS Intrepid in New York City; the USS Hornet in Alameda California, and; the USS Lexington in Corpus Christi Texas.

Note:

·       My brother Robert actually served on the USS Kearsarge, one of the Essex class carriers, during the Viet Nam war.  

Several other vignettes like this are set up throughout the Yorktown.  This obviously is the dentist’s office. 

There are a total of 5 self-guided and well signed tours for visitor to the USS Yorktown.  These include the Living and Working; Engine/Fire Room; Flight Deck/Bridge; WWII Carrier Rooms, and; Wardroom and Brig.  There are also many displays on the hangar deck… A fair amount of climbing and steep stairs are involved in some these tour routes.

This is the ship’s bakery.  Imagine how much food had to be stored on the ship and then the number of meals that had to be prepared daily!  Since ship operations go on for 24 hours a day, someone needs to be fed almost any time of the day…about 10,500 meals per day.

Bill and Bonnie at the controls… Love those old gauges don’t you?

If you were injured in battle or working elsewhere on the ship, this is where you’d be stitched up or undergo surgery. 

Bill, Bonnie and Laurie were checking out the Pilot’s Ready Room.  This is where the pilots would be briefed on their adversaries and their missions.

Note:

·       The USS Yorktown was originally designated to be named the USS Bon Homme Richard but her name was changed to the Yorktown in honor of the sinking of her predecessor, the USS Yorktown (CV-5) at the Battle of Midway.

How about this radio room and communications center!  When you think about it, most crew members were working in areas of the ship where they couldn’t see what was going on.  During an attack by enemy planes this had to be really tough on the crew.   

Factoids:

·       Late in her career, the USS Yorktown served as a recovery ship for the Apollo 8 space mission.

·       The Yorktown was also used in the movie “Tora! Tora! Tora!”, which recreated the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Destroyer USS Laffey (DD-724) is berthed alongside the USS Yorktown.  The Laffey is an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer and she was the 2^nd ship of the United States Navy to be named for Bartlett Laffey.  Seaman Laffey was awarded the Medal of Honor for his stand against Confederate forces in 1864 at Yazoo City Mississippi during the Civil War. 

The USS Laffey earned the nickname "The Ship That Would Not Die" for her exploits during the D-Day invasion in Europe and the battle of Okinawa when she successfully withstood a determined assault by flights of bombers and the most unrelenting kamikaze air attacks in history.

In 1975, the USS Laffey became the last of the Sumner class of destroyers to be decommissioned by the US Navy.  There were a total of 58 ships built in this class of destroyer.  This is the only one remaining as a museum ship.  A total of 29 Sumner Class destroyers were sold to other nations following decommissioning from the US Navy.

This ship was commissioned in 1944 and it immediately headed for Europe in support of D-Day operations.  She is 376 feet long and she had a crew of 336 officers and enlisted men.

I believe that this is a Mk 28 Mod 2 5"/38 caliber mount.  This big gun was designed to fire at both surface targets and incoming aircraft.  During WWII, this ship had 3 of these dual units plus 23 other guns of various calibers as well as depth charge launchers and 10 torpedo tubes.

 This is an inside view of the turret where the gun crew worked to defend the ship or participate in a protective barrage in support of troop landings.  With a well-trained crew, a firing rate of 22 rounds per minute per barrel was possible for short periods.  The resulting screen of exploding 53 – 55 pound shells could help provide an effective cover against attacking aircraft.

(I would have climbed in and had a better look, but it would have taken an EMS crew to pull me back out again)

The 3^rd vessel on display at Patriot’s Point is the Submarine USS Clamagore.  (SS-343) To be honest, I’m too claustrophobic and old to be climbing around inside a submarine, so we skipped that part of the tour… This submarine is almost 312 feet long and she would have had a crew of about 80 very brave officers and enlisted men.

Built in 1945 for the United States Navy, the Clamagore was still in training when World War II ended.  FYI…She was named for the clamagore or blue parrotfish.  She was 1 of 120 Balao Class submarines that were built and she was later converted to a GUPPY class submarine.  The USS Clamagore is the only surviving member of this latter class of vessel.  One other Balao class survivor, the former USS Tusk was still afloat for the Taiwanese Navy as of the spring of 2015.

More on the other exhibits at Patriot’s Point will follow at a later date.  Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for stopping by for a visit and a trip into American history!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Nick and J’s Café – Knoxville TN

Laurie heard about a restaurant that was mentioned on a local a television newscast.  When I checked it out on Trip Advisor, it came up as a winner with 81 excellent or very good reviews, just 3 average reviews and only 1 terrible rating.  Yelp and Google also yielded positive feedback. 

I liked the odds and it was definitely worth a try for lunch one day in early January…

Nick and J’s Café is located next to a gas station and a highway interchange.  From the outside it doesn’t look like anything special.  Laurie and I thought that this might have been a former Huddle House Restaurant…

The inside of Nick and J’s Café was just what one might expect for a diner style restaurant.  It was clean and bright and the staff was friendly when we stopped by for a mid-afternoon ‘lunch’.  Monday through Friday, this restaurant opens at 7 AM and closes at 4 PM.  On Saturday, they are open from 8 AM to 2 PM.

Given the hours they’re open, you would be right in assuming that Nick and J’s Café only serves breakfast and lunch.  One plus for me right up front was the Tabasco sitting on all the tables!

Unfortunately for us, breakfast is only served until 10:30 AM Monday through Friday and until 11 AM on Saturday.  We would have probably ordered breakfast for our late lunch if we could have…

The good news was that since we had to order off the lunch menu, we had to broaden our selection process beyond a basic breakfast.  Laurie went for the 8 oz. Mushroom Swiss Burger and Fries. ($7.99) The French fries were decent but the hand formed burger was excellent!  There were lots of mushrooms buried under that melted Swiss cheese… She was happy indeed!

The menu features 13 burgers plus add-ons such as bacon, city ham, jalapenos or a fried egg.  Monday through Friday Nick and J’s features 3 different daily Signature Lunch Specials.  For example, on Monday diners can chose between the Chicken and Dressing, the Meat Loaf or the Country Style Steak with Brown Gravy.  Each entrée comes with 2 vegetables and a roll or corn muffin. ($6.99)

I checked out the extensive items listed on the Specialty Board and the Sandwich Board…a total of 28 choices…not including the burgers!  My search revealed Pastrami Sandwich served on grilled marble rye bread with spicy mustard and Swiss cheese. ($7.75) The sandwich normally comes with French fries but I opted for the coleslaw instead…

The coleslaw was far better than average but the Pastrami Sandwich was truly top notch!  The secret is that the restaurant uses beef brisket to make his pastrami.  They don’t skimp on the meat either!  This was the best Pastrami Sandwich I’ve had anywhere in the mid-south…and I’ll be hard pressed to pass it up on our next visit. Laurie said SHE was going to try it next!

After our visit, it was easy for us to understand why this little diner is so highly rated.  They serve excellent diner food and it’s a real value too!  Nick and J’s Diner is located at 1526 Lovell Road in Knoxville Tennessee.  Phone: 865-766-5453.  Website: www.nickandjscafe.com.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for lunch!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave 

Charleston Walking Tour III

Another day of exploring Charleston’s historic district… Lots of walking but fortunately, the area is relatively compact plus there is free bus service that cruises throughout the district... Although this service doesn’t go through the historic residential area, it does pass through the adjoining commercial district with stops conveniently close to Charleston’s beautiful old homes.  

This is Two Meeting Street Inn on South Battery Street across from White Point Garden and the Charleston Harbor.  Laurie and her sister Bonnie ‘discovered’ this inn on our walk and immediately decided that this beautiful home would be a great place to stay during a subsequent visit!

Two Meeting Street Inn is actually a bed and breakfast establishment.  This Queen Anne mansion was completed in 1892…a father's wedding gift for his daughter.  Room rates vary from $195.00 to $489.00 per night.  A hot southern breakfast is included.  To learn more, you can go to http://www.twomeetingstreet.com/.

These views along our route caught my eye because of the architectural or natural beauty… Even the little alley ways beside these historic old homes are strikingly beautiful!

This is Washington Square Park.  This 1.5 acre oasis of greenery is located on the edge of the downtown district and the historic homes at the tip of the city’s peninsula.  This city square dates back to 1818.   It was known as City Hall Park until October 10, 1881, when it was renamed in honor of George Washington.    Washington’s statue wasn’t actually installed in the park until 1999.

The Italianate designed Calhoun Mansion was built in 1876 by a business man and it was inherited by his son-in-law, Patrick Calhoun…a grandson of John C. Calhoun, the 7^th Vice President of the United States.   The home has 24,000 sq. ft. with 30 main rooms and many smaller rooms.  The main hall is 50 feet long and 14 feet wide and there is a ballroom with a 45 foot high ceiling.

The Calhoun Mansion is still a private residence but it is open to the public for tours every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas.  To grasp the scope of this home as well to catch a glimpse the over-the-top Victorian décor, as well as tour information, go to http://calhounmansion.net/.  We will definitely add this to our itinerary for our next visit to Charleston!  

Charleston is a city of spectacular churches!  This is the First (Scots) Presbyterian Church.  To give you an idea of the scope of history in Charleston, this is the only the fifth oldest church in the city…and it was built in 1814!  The congregation itself dates back to 1731, when a dozen Scottish residents left the Independent Church of Charleston to form their own church.

This is the former German Fire Company building and it was built in 1851… The ‘Deutschen Feuer Compagnie’ (German Fire Company) was one of several companies organized after the Great Fire of 1838.  The building continued to be used as an engine house until 1888.  Subsequently it served as a meeting hall, first for the Carolina Light lnfantry and later for several black fraternal lodges. In 1982 it was rehabilitated and it now serves as a law office. 

The Citadel Square Baptist Church was the fourth Baptist church built in Charleston.  This relatively ‘new’ church was opened in 1856.  Hurricanes have blown the steeple off this church on 2 occasions…the last time by Hurricane Hugo in 1989.

 

Note:

·       I remember ‘commandeering’ Montgomery Ward’s corporate jet and sending a loss prevention/security crew to Charleston to protect our damaged store from looters and to help with the recovery after Hurricane Hugo.  They landed at dusk at the airport which didn’t have any working landing lights or much else either…and they got the job done.

St. Michael's Episcopal Church is the oldest surviving religious structure in Charleston.  It was built in the 1750's by order of the South Carolina Assembly.  The walls are of brick that was stuccoed over and painted white.  The two-story portico facing Broad Street was the first of its size in colonial America and it features Tuscan columns. 

Notes:

·       The church houses a clock and change ringing bells that date back to colonial times and the clock is the oldest tower clock in North America.

·       St. Michael's Churchyard is the final resting place of some famous historical figures, including 2 signers of the Constitution…John Rutledge and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney.  

  

St. Philip’s Episcopal Church was completed in 1836 but the spire wasn’t finished until 1850.   Established in 1681, St. Philip's is the oldest religious congregation in South Carolina.

Notes:

·       Henrietta Johnston was the wife of an early rector.  She became the first recorded female artist in the American colonies.  See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrietta_Johnston.

·       Another artistic first with connections to the church was Mary Roberts, the first female American miniaturist painter, whose burial was recorded in the register in 1761.  See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Roberts_(painter).

·       The tower of St. Philip's served for many years as the rear tower of a set of range lighthouses which served to guide mariners into Charleston's harbor.  The front tower of the range was located on Fort Sumter.  The church is one of only two in the United States known to have served such a function.

These 2 photos are of the Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.  I couldn’t feature all of those other historic churches without including this one… Founded in 1816, Emanuel AME is the oldest African Methodist Episcopal church in the Southern United States, with the first independent black denomination in the United States as well as one of the oldest black congregations south of Baltimore. 

The history of this church is both amazing and tragic.  This structure was completed in 1892.  Over the years, this congregation has been linked to slave revolts, lynching’s, black church banning’s and burning.  Sadly and most recently it was the site where avowed racist Dylann Roof shot and killed 9 people on June 17, 2015.  The history of this church can be found at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emanuel_African_Methodist_Episcopal_Church.

Just click on any of these photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for another tour of historic Charleston!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Pearlz – A Fun Place to Party and Dine!

During our visit to Charleston, I can say that we were consistent… We consistently dined at restaurants that I hadn’t researched and listed for our trip! 

On our first day of walking around the historic old town section of town, our dinner choice ended up being a place that we’d walked past and noted the menu at the start of our explorations for the afternoon.  Bonnie and Bill had noted that this place had a Happy Hour Menu that we needed to take advantage of…

This is Pearlz Oyster Bar.  It’s located right on Bay Street in downtown and it’s the original location for what is now a 4-retaurant ‘chain’.  It turns out that Pearlz is owned by Home Grown Hospitality Group, a company is based in Charleston that operates 8 different restaurant concepts as well as a 14 room Inn that is located in the historic area of town.

The restaurants are all in the South Eastern USA, primarily in South Carolina.  Besides Pearlz Oyster Bar they also operate: Rioz Brazilian Steakhouse (2); Tbonz Gill and Grill (5); Liberty Brewery and Grill (2); Liberty Tap Room and Grill (5); Capriz Italian Feast (1); Flying Fish Public Market and Grill (1), and; Kaminsky’s Baking Company (2).  There will be more about Kaminsky’s in a future posting…

The interior of Pearlz is what I would term ‘oyster bar’ casual with a big bar, a blackboard, white tile walls and colorful decorations… It is definitely a friendly place!  When Pearlz opened for Happy Hour, there was a line waiting for the opportunity to partake of the restaurant's offerings.

When it came to the Happy Hour menu, we only took advantage of 2 appetizer offerings and the special bar offerings.  The first of the Happy Hour items was this order of Corn Fritters. ($2.95) They were a very positive start to our dining experience… 

Laurie went for a half order of Oysters from the Raw Bar. ($7.95) She had ‘discovered’ oysters during our 2014 trip to New Orleans and she was happy that she’d gotten on that bandwagon! (I personally think that it would have looked better on a smaller serving dish)

I ordered the Fried Shrimp with sweet and spicy chili citrus sauce. ($11.95) They were excellent but at $2.00 per shrimp, they were a little pricy…

The House Cocktail Menu included this ‘loaded’ Pearlz Bloody Mary complete with a large shrimp, okra, olives, lime and lemon. ($6.00) This was a good deal for the money and both Laurie and Bonnie loved this over-the-top libation!  Bill and I focused on the Homegrown Draft Beer Menu…with the beers at $3.00 each.

Bonnie and Bill skipped the appetizer menu per se…and went with this giant Seafood Deluxe Plateau that was loaded with goodies! ($65.00) When you consider the shrimp, the multitude of oysters, lobster, mussels, clams, tuna tatar, etc. that comprise this creation, it’s a heck of a deal for 2 people for dinner!  It was also very, very good!

Bill and Bonnie were very happy campers!  There was so much food on their ‘plateau’ or tower that we got to sample a bit as well.  You might have noticed
that the presentation was excellent too!

It was no surprise to me that Laurie ordered a Lobster Roll for her dinner. ($16.95) Lobster is either #1 or #2 on her menu…with bacon filling the other top slot!  She was very happy as she hadn’t had a good lobster roll for a long, long time. 

Following up on the seafood theme I started with my appetizer, I ordered the Shrimp Linguine for my entrée. ($11.95) This was a very tasty dish especially after I added extra Parmesan cheese and sprinkled some Tabasco on the linguine!  The shrimp themselves were seasoned and cooked just right…

We should consider ourselves to be very fortunate if we had a fun restaurant like this with quality seafood in the Knoxville area!  The ambiance, service and good food combined for a great experience…even if I hadn’t originally had this restaurant on my ‘Charleston to do list”!

Pearlz Oyster Bar in historic downtown Charleston is at153 East Bay Street. Phone: 843-577-5755.  Its website is found at:  http://www.pearlzoysterbar.com/location/downtown-charleston-sc/.

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a fun dining experience!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave