Boston - Navy Yard and USS Constitution

Saturday, August 20, 2016

We bought a two day hop on, hop off bus pass to get a guided overview of the city and allow us to see more than if traveling by foot. Our first stop was the Charlestown Navy Yard which is now a historic district under US Park Service management.

Carla at the Wheel - USS Constitution

The USS Constitution, "Old Ironsides", and the USS Cassin Young are docked at Pier 1 and open for tours. The Constitution was in dry dock undergoing extensive overhaul which is scheduled for every 20 years. The work on her hull will be completed sometime next year. All of the cannon have been removed and most of the ship was off limits for tours. Still, we did get a good idea of what she might have looked like fully restored. The Constitution is the oldest commissioned warship in the US Navy and is manned by active duty sailors who serve as guides aboard the ship. Dwayne had been aboard several years ago and was somewhat disappointed that Carla had to use her imagination rather than see the ship as she was before going into dry dock.

We did not have time to tour the Cassin Young which is a destroyer built during World War II. The Cassin Young fought in the Pacific Theater and was hit on two different occasions by Japanese kamikazi planes. Although badly damaged, she was able to survive WWII. She also saw service during the Korean Conflict. She was decommissioned in 1960 and today serves as a tangible memorial to those who served our country during two terrible wars.

https://www.nps.gov/bost/learn/historyculture/usscassinyoung.htm

A Tiny House

We spent the rest of the day riding the bus and walking about the city. We learned that as much as 70% of the landmass of Boston was filled in over the years to create the city as she is today. The tops of hilly islands were hauled away and deposited into the swamps and lowlands around them to form a continuous landmass. Many of the structures in these landfill areas are built on pilings driven to bedrock. Logan Airport is almost entirely on landfill. South Boston which is the predominantly Irish section of the city has numerous commercial buildings being renovated or torn down for new construction. It was amazing to see how many of the buildings across the river from Logan Airport were built in the past 5 years. Real estate values have been rising at a rate well above the national average. Housing in Boston is expensive. It appears to have been the case for many years as we came across what is most likely the tiniest house in Boston. It is sandwiched between two other buildings and slightly wider than its front door. Although narrow, it is deep.

Boston - Navy Yard and USS Constitution

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