United States lightship Chesapeake (LV-116)

Edit links
Coordinates: 39°17′8.5″N 76°36′31.6″W / 39.285694°N 76.608778°W / 39.285694; -76.608778
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Chesapeake (LS-116)
Lightship Chesapeake (LV 116)
History
Lighthouse service United States
Owner
BuilderCharleston Drydock & Machine Co., Charleston, South Carolina
Cost$274,434
Laid down6 February 1929[1]
Launched22 October 1930[1]
Acquired23 June 1930[1]
Commissioned1930
Decommissioned6 January 1971
Reclassified
  • WAL-538 April 1950
  • WLV-538 January 1965
StatusMuseum ship
General characteristics
Type
Lightship
Displacement130 long tons (132 t)
Length133 ft 3 in (40.61 m)
Beam30 ft (9.1 m)
Draft13 ft 9 in (4.19 m)
Propulsion
Diesel-electric
, 350 hp (261 kW)
Speed9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph)
Complement10 seamen, 5 officers, 1 cook
Armament2 × 20 mm rapid fire machine guns (World War II only)
Chesapeake (lightship)
Baltimore, Maryland
Coordinates39°17′8.5″N 76°36′31.6″W / 39.285694°N 76.608778°W / 39.285694; -76.608778
Area0.1 acres (0.040 ha)
Built1930
ArchitectGreen, Lewis, II; Charleston Drydock & Machine Co.
NRHP reference No.80000349[2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP1 August 1980
Designated NHL20 December 1989[3]

United States lightship Chesapeake (LS-116/WAL-538/WLV-538) is a

lightships have served at the Chesapeake lightship station and have been called Chesapeake. Lightships were initially lettered in the early 1800s, but then numbered as they were often moved from one light station to another. The name painted on the side of lightships was the short name of the Light Station they were assigned to and was the daytime visual aspect of the many Aids to Navigation on board lightships. The United States Coast Guard
assigned new hull numbers to all lightships still in service in April 1950. After that date, Light Ship 116 was then known by the new Coast Guard Hull number: WAL-538. In January 1965 the Coast Guard further modified all lightship hull designations from WAL to WLV, so Chesapeake became WLV-538.

Chesapeake had many redundant systems in order to maintain her position through most storms. The 5000-pound (2300 kg) main anchor was backed up by a second 5000-pound anchor attached to the side of the ship. The 30,000 candela main light was also backed up with a secondary lamp and the Radio Locator Beacon also had a backup system. On more than one occasion (in 1933, 1936, and 1962) the main anchor chain snapped during violent storms and the ship had to use her engines to stay in place and drop her second anchor.

History

The light vessel was built at Charleston Drydock & Machine Co. in Charleston, S.C. for $274,434.00; the keel was laid on 6 February 1929, the ship was launched on 22 October 1930 and delivery was on 23 June 1930.[1] She was one of six ships in the LS 100 class of lightships, which included LS 100, LS 113, LS 114, LS 115, LS 116 and LS 117. The first light station assignment for the LS 116 was the Fenwick Shoal station off the coast of Delaware, marked FENWICK. In 1933 Lightship 116 was then assigned to the Chesapeake Light Station, about 17 miles offshore from the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay. The ship was also absorbed into the Coast Guard in 1939, as were all vessels in the United States Lighthouse Service.

Service in the US Coast Guard meant a pay cut for the sailors aboard Chesapeake and other Lightships, as well as the requirements for the crew to pass Coast Guard physical exams and wear uniforms. Coast Guard officers, usually a Warrant Bos'n,[clarification needed] were also placed in command of the lightships, which meant a more efficient, orderly and strict operation. It did also, however, mean better supplies and training reached the crew. During World War II, Chesapeake was based out of Sandwich, Massachusetts, where she served as an examination and guard vessel at the north entrance of the Cape Cod Canal and helped protect the important port of Boston. As WW2 ended, she was returned to the CHESAPEAKE light station.

In the 1960s with the introduction of automated buoys as well as permanent light stations, the lightship fleet was slowly mothballed. Chesapeake left her station at the mouth of the

lightships
were built after Chesapeake.

Chesapeake's last tour of duty was at the mouth of the

Baltimore in 1982. In 1988 Chesapeake became part of the Baltimore Maritime Museum, now the Historic Ships in Baltimore museum and is moored at Pier 3 in Baltimore's Inner Harbor. She is open for touring after a paid admission to the museum. Chesapeake was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 1 August 1980[2] and was designated a National Historic Landmark on 20 November 1989.[3] Chesapeake and her companions are major contributing elements in the Baltimore National Heritage Area.[4]

Name and station assignments

  • FENWICK, Fenwick Island Shoal, DE (1930–1933)
  • CHESAPEAKE, Chesapeake, VA (1933–1942)
  • LS-116, Examination and Guard Vessel World War II Sandwich, MA (1942–1945)
  • CHESAPEAKE, Chesapeake, VA (1945–1965)
  • DELAWARE, Delaware Bay, DE (1966–1970)

Gallery

  • Lightship Chesapeake in Baltimore's Inner Harbor
    Lightship Chesapeake in Baltimore's Inner Harbor
  • This is a photo of an overhead beam in the Engine Room of the Lightship Chesapeake showing her original hull number was LS 116, not LV 116.
    This is a photo of an overhead beam in the Engine Room of the Lightship Chesapeake showing her original hull number was LS 116, not LV 116.

See also

Resources

  • Delgado, James P. (June 30, 1989). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form / Lightship No. 116" (pdf). National Park Service. Retrieved October 25, 2012.
  • "Vessel Designation: LV 116 / WAL 538". U.S. Coast Guard Lightships & Those of the U.S. Lighthouse Service. United States Coast Guard. Retrieved October 25, 2012.
  • Interviews with LV-116's former crew members and the first commanding officer's daughter, conducted by NPS historian Frank Hebblethwaite.

References

  1. ^ a b c d Pacific American Steamship Association; Shipowners Association of the Pacific Coast (1930). "Progress of Construction: Charleston Dry Dock and Machine Co". Pacific Marine Review. 27 (August). San Francisco: J.S. Hines: 165. Retrieved April 22, 2015.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ^ a b "Lightship No. 116 "Chesapeake"". National Historic Landmarks Program (NHL). National Park Service. Archived from the original on September 26, 2011. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  4. ^ "Baltimore National Heritage Area Map" (PDF). City of Baltimore. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 22, 2013. Retrieved March 11, 2012.

Further reading

  • United States Coast Guard (1945). Aids to Navigation. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.
  • Price, Scott T. "U. S. Coast Guard Aids to Navigation: A Historical Bibliography". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office.
  • Putnam, George R. (1933). Lighthouses and Lightships of the United States. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chesapeake (ship, 1930).

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_lightship_Chesapeake_(LV-116)&oldid=1169590191"