South Boston Naval Annex
South Boston Naval Annex | |
---|---|
South Boston, Massachusetts | |
Type | Shipyard annex |
Site information | |
Controlled by | United States Navy |
Site history | |
Built | 1920 |
In use | 1920–1974 |
The South Boston Naval Annex was a 167-acre (68 ha)
History
Opening
The Department of Defense purchased a large part of the Commonwealth Flats in 1920, and split up the land between the Naval Annex and the South Boston Army Base. At this time, the Navy began construction of buildings, which would continue up until World War II.[2] Rail service to the annex was provided by Track 61.[3]
World War II
At the South Boston Annex, work was started in March 1940 on a quay wall and wharf and on a machine shop 1,300 feet (400 m) long and 500 feet (150 m) wide. The following spring a new power plant project was undertaken, to provide six boilers, a compressor and a primary connection to the Edison system. An additional waterfront project, comprising two 980-foot (300 m) timber piers and a steel sheet pile bulkhead, was started in the summer of 1941, followed in September by construction of an additional shop 420 feet (130 m) long and 120 feet (37 m) wide.[4]
In December 1941, work was started on a
Work was also undertaken in 1941 on a 500-man barracks for ship's crews, necessitated by the fact that with three-shift repair work, the crews could not be quartered aboard.[4]
The expansion of the Annex continued with the construction of an additional 900-foot (270 m) pier, started in the fall of 1942, a rigger's shop, a paint shop, and a general shop, started in November of that year, and extensive improvements and additions to utilities, streets, tracks, and equipment.[4]
The Navy’s 1940-43 expansion of the South Boston Annex was built "in an area contiguous to the Commonwealth Dock, a 1,200-foot drydock originally built by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and subsequently acquired by the Navy (p. 168)."[4] This pre-existing graving-dock facility is what’s now called "Dry Dock Number 3".
Post-War to closure
After the war, the annex was used to store ships that were placed in reserve. In 1974, the
Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Boston
Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Boston also called Boston Group, Atlantic Reserve Fleet opened in 1946 as part of the
Present day
Today, the former yard is home to the various companies which have moved in over the years, having been integrated into the larger
On 7 August 1992 the
Many of the buildings and cranes of the Navy Annex still stand, with their numbers being maintained. Dry Dock Number 3 is used by the Boston Ship Repair company to repair ships[9] – mostly those of the US Navy, United States Maritime Administration and Military Sealift Command.
See also
- Port of Boston
- South Boston Waterfront
- List of military installations in Massachusetts
References
This article incorporates public domain material from Building the Navy's Bases in World War II. Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
- ^ "Weekly listing". National Park Service.
- ^ Boston Marine Industrial Park. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
- ^ "History of the Park". Boston Marine Industrial Park. Archived from the original on 9 March 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2013.
- ^ a b c d e "Chapter VIII: Navy Yards and Graving Docks". Building the Navy's Bases in World War II. Vol. 1, Part II: The Continental Bases. The Navy Department Library (online), Washington D.C.: Naval History and Heritage Command. 2018 [1947]. pp. 167–207. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
- ^ npshistory.com Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Boston
- ^ Boston Group, Commander Atlantic Reserve Fleet (COMLANTRESFLT)
- ^ youtube.com, The Mothball Fleet
- ^ The USN Mothball Fleet - Storing up for a rainy day
- ^ "Boston Facilities: Graving Dock". nashiprepair.com. North Atlantic Ship Repair LLC. 8 August 2022.
65,000 tons displacement capability: Length: 350.5 meters (1,150 feet); Breadth at the top of blocks: 38.1 meters (125 feet); Breadth at the top of dock: 45.4 meters (149 feet); Channel Draft: 12.2 meters (40 feet); Crane Capacity: Up to 65 tons
External links