Dry Dock 1 - Historic Marker - Boston, Massachusetts, USA. - Massachusetts Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Dry Dock 1 - Historic Marker - Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Inscription from the Marker:
"This stone and metal structure is Dry Dock 1, completed in 1833. As one of America’s first two granite dry docks, Dry Dock 1 made the repair of large naval ships faster, easier, and safer.

Returning warships to sea duty in less time was a crucial gain for a young nation with a limited budget and a small navy. Costing more than $1.5 million, the dry docks here in Charlestown and Norfolk, Virginia, were the largest civil works projects the federal government had ever undertaken. They proved that the nation was prepared to use its navy to protect its overseas trade.

The first vessel to enter Dry Dock 1 for repairs was USS Constitution in 1833. Today, Dry Dock 1, a working pioneer, is preserved as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.

The top right of the marker contains a picture of a ship on its side. It has a caption of “Careening. Without a dry dock, a ship must be careened at dockside. Careening, or ‘heaving down,’ a ship exposes only half of the hull at a time, requires major dismantling, and places great stress on a wooden hull. Occasionally, a ship would sink while being careened.”

The bottom of the marker features a number of pictures and illustrations. The first is of Laommi Baldwin (1780-1838), by Chester

Note the World War II destroyer USS Cassin Young in the background.
Harding. Chief Engineer Baldwin adapted concepts he had observed in Europe to design a dry dock complex that functioned as one large mechanism. Next to this is a copy of the Dry Dock Plan, signed “Nov. 4, 1828, L. Baldwin”. Baldwin’s innovative plan used the yard’s first steam engine, 16 large pumps to empty the dock’s basin, and a floating gate that sealed the dock from the sea. Next is a photograph of 1851: USS Constellation in Dry Dock. In the dry basin, keel blocks and supports held the vessel upright with its entire hull exposed. Workers could then quickly replace planking and re-caulk and re-copper the ship’s bottom. Finally, there is a photograph of 1961:USS Fred T. Berry in Dry Dock 1. The techniques of dry-docking, as well as Dry Dock 1 itself, are still in use today." Marker text & Support Website:

Agency Responsible for Placement: Other (Place below) Agency Responsible for Placement (if not in list above): Boston National Historical Park Charlestown Navy Yard-National Park Service US Department of the Interior." Year Placed: 2007 County: Suffolk City/Town Name: Charlestown - Boston Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]

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Date Logged Log User Rating   05/16/2022 Don.Morfe visited it 09/24/2018 Duodenfer_ visited it 07/14/2018 lesden visited it 04/01/2018 veritas vita visited it

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