PT Boat Forum


Moderated by: Dick, Jeff D

The PT Boat Forum ª PT Boats of WWII ª  PT Boats - General

« Prev Page | Next Page » | Page: 4 of 17

« Back to Topic Index Page 1 | Replies: 166 | Pages: 1 2 3 [4] 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

 Author  Topic: PT 59
David Buck

TOP BOSS
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of David Buck   Send Email To David Buck Posted on: Jan 25, 2016 - 1:24am
Hi Jerry,

The 77' boats deck was built using ply, maybe sometime someone decided to replace it?

Maybe to support the new topsides, I don't know, and until someone goes and has a look "well---", but with the weather that I have been seeing over there it may be awhile.

By then I may have saved enough to fly over and see for myself maybe drop in and scare Frank just for the fun of it, why not, a break from home to chase up something that I like!

Weather it be her or not good reason for a trip, say when summer comes along after the snow and storms!

Ta

Dave

Total Posts: 332 | Joined: May 4, 2008 - 2:59am | IP Logged

  Jerry Gilmartin

TOP BOSS
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Jerry Gilmartin   Send Email To Jerry Gilmartin Posted on: Jan 25, 2016 - 11:23am
Hi Dave,
Sounds like a good reason for a road trip! Also I think you should plan on the big launching of the PT305 hopefully sometimes this Summer! Those guys in New Orleans are being cagey and cant say the exact date right now, but I am sure Randy will let us know when the big day will be!
Jerry

Jerry Gilmartin
PT658 Crewman
Portland OR

Total Posts: 1469 | Joined: Oct 8, 2006 - 11:16pm | IP Logged

Jimbo Melanson

New Member
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message   Posted on: Jan 26, 2016 - 6:13am
I will figure out how to post an image sooner or later but the recent google earth pic I downloaded there is no boat. No scars in the mud nothing that resembles an Elco boat. I have built plenty of docks in my time being from Gloucester and around the water all my life.
In front of the original pier as you get deeper into the cove what I thought was an old pier turns out to be an old barge that is falling apart. The guy in the video walks on it (big kahonies I would not have) while filming. Also as you come out of the 207th street bridge and head toward 59's old dock location there is another pile of timbers to port just as you get to the cove. Not sure what that is could be a dying dock or barge also.
Sadly and un-respectfully I think she is gone. 12 years ago I was contacted about her when I had the 761 boat I was told I was crazy for wanting to come down for a look to see what was what. Maybe then there was a chance but the guy disappeared and I had my hands full trying to pickle the 761 and getting the project off the ground..But it appears the clean up has taken its toll on this Historical American artifact. it would have been worth it to save the remains since we did not have the 109. Even though I see what I see in the Google image I still think good look around the place at low tide could certainly verify. Maybe just her stem is gone and she is buried deep in the silt. There were concerns about what the EPA would say about disturbing the silt trying to get at her.

Jimbo

Total Posts: | Joined: Unregistered | IP Logged

Jimbo Melanson

New Member
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message   Posted on: Jan 26, 2016 - 6:25am
trust me....I do not want to be coming off as a know it all. I know all too well the searching for one of these boats. When you are so passionate about it and the pain of every lead the frustration of it not coming to fruition. Up ad down the entire east coast, lagoons, leads, phone calls, e-mails, photographs, volunteers that come and go or folks that do not commit to what they promise....endless hours and money.
I also know how bad a boat like this can hurt you. I got out of the 761 in the knick of time. Thankful that I still have my house and my marriage. Even being under a 501 C 3 I put up a lot of money just to get it pickled. The guy that haunted me for 2 years to take it...one he got it would not listen to those that were willing to help and now we no longer have the 761 among the remaining.
If you find one and have the opportunity to get one be sure there is an endowment that comes with the boat to help with preserving it otherwise you are paying a ton of money to take out the trash so to speak. It is hazardous waste. So unless you have very deep pockets or there is money or a museum with money behind it to help and keep things stable "BE VERY CAREFUL".

Jimbo

Total Posts: | Joined: Unregistered | IP Logged

David Buck

TOP BOSS
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of David Buck   Send Email To David Buck Posted on: Jan 28, 2016 - 5:02am
Hi Jimbo,

Well as I said to Jerry "I don't know" and as to your words to the wise I will agree about all of them, and my intention was not to start a restoration on the boat but to call attention to the fact that she may still be there, as the stories that have got around about her being dredged up turn out to be just that stories and not fact.

So with that in mind first lets just say that the city of New York did dig her up why would they replace her with an old barge that is just going to become another item to dig up in future years?

Also if they did dig her up around 12 years ago then the cove at that time would be well and truly silted up, not really worth putting a pier in then.

However one other fact that has come to light is that the cove was used from about the time that the boat was sunk in it as a general dumping ground for a large amount of toxic waste from the Transit Authority yards "nowhere else to toss it put it over the fence into the cove there's an old boat sunk there toss it on top of that' I can see the foreman giving that advice to those that needed to get of something that could not be got rid anyway else.

Here are a few things I found with a little bit of digging.

I have found that the cove was on the original plans for the Transit Authority yards the date given is 1930.

I next have a photo 1936? that shows the cove with a ferry leaving the "Landing Road Pier ( this is the name given to the large pier that is on the right of the Google photos that leads off into the Harlem river )with the cove at this time having nothing in it at all.

The next is an aerial survey 1937of the cove along the road, there is a large covered pier that was being used to depose of waste from the Transit Authority, this pier takes up more than 50% of the straight section of the road way , there appears to be a small pipeline leading away from the pier into the cove.

We jump a few years and the next one is a 1950 aerial survey, we now see that there are two piers the first along the roadway the second at right angles to it and fitted to its side closest to the shore or end of the cove, the shoreline has been moved to fit this pier in.
There are now 9 Boats that are tied up to the first pier with there sterns toward the roadway, it may be possible that one of the boats is the ex 59 boat as there is one that is fairly large. The information given is that the Transit Authority leased a number of berths to offset the cost of running the pier.

The next is a 1954 aerial survey not much has changed however the cove seems to be shrinking a little and we are missing one boat, the large boat is still there and out of interest she is tied up with her stern toward the road, at the end of the road next to the angle of the large pier.

We next move to 1960 the aerial survey shows that the second pier has been removed and that the number of boats has declined there now being only two in the cove, three of the others have moved further up the Harlem river and are berthed alongside a wharf at the end of a road that is beyond the north end of the transit yards, the large boat is still there.

Moving on to the photo of the 59 boat sunk in the cove, it is quite clear that the large pier that was in the earlier aerial surveys is no longer in the cove as its length would have been well over 100' long and around 40' wide and in the 1970 picture would have blocked out any view of the buildings in the background of the shot.

looking further I found another aerial survey of the cove taken In 1986 and guess what there appears to be a collection of timbers that match up with the currant google images, there are also two aerial surveys that were taken in 1990 and 1996 both are fairly fuzzie but they both show the same field as what we are seeing, so unless New York city replaces like for like when they "dug up the boat" then I would think that it may still be her, also I have photos here that show a boat that was there for at least twenty years before she sank, if a barge had been used to replace her then one would think that we would have been able to find photos of the barge as a barge, not a barge sunk and falling apart as if she had been placed there in a rotten condition ,remember they were on a clean up kick of some sort.

There was further information on the site where I found most of the aerial surveys mostly about the operation of the toxic waste dump from the Transit Authority but very little else.

So if you would like to have a look at the photos I can send them to Dick or Jerry to put up on the site but I would really like to find some further photos from the 1970s they would help answer a few questions.

And one final note stopping the video at certain points I found that the cross members of the boat may have been sistered up as I can identify two new beams with a old beam between them, there also is three rows of screws along the beams too, one in each new beam one in the old one.

Anyway just my two cents worth while I'm looking for something else to do.

Ta

Dave.

Total Posts: 332 | Joined: May 4, 2008 - 2:59am | IP Logged

  TED WALTHER

TOP BOSS
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of TED WALTHER   Send Email To TED WALTHER Posted on: Jan 28, 2016 - 6:27am
Dave;
Send them! especially all that show the large boat.
Take care,
TED


Total Posts: 3058 | Joined: Oct 16, 2006 - 7:42am | IP Logged

rickas

Advanced Member
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of rickas   Send Email To rickas Posted on: Jan 28, 2016 - 2:58pm
Isn't it great to have Dick Tracy as a member Unbelievably thorough workup.

Rick Schaefer
Splinter PT 63

TM2c John E Mirus
Solomon Islands
Dec 43 - Jan 45

Total Posts: 82 | Joined: Dec 26, 2013 - 5:16pm | IP Logged

Lew Zee

Advanced Member
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Lew Zee   Send Email To Lew Zee Posted on: Feb 4, 2016 - 1:23pm
I need your help.

As I build my PT-61 gunboat I have been searching and saving a lot of information. It all came from a lot of sources as no one site or book seemed to have it all.

Rather than just keep it to myself I decided to make organized pages on PT-59, 60, & 61 and post it on my web site. This is everything I found plus info about my model.

I am no expert on PT Boats and I want to get this site correct. So I am asking for anyone to:

1. Check my data and send my any corrections
2. Add any info that is missing.
3. Add any photos.
4. Make comments.

Also, feel free to pass this on to any others that know about these three boats. The more input I get the more confident I feel I am on the right track.

Site: http://lewsmodelboats.org/PT-Index.htm

Email: info@lewsmodelboats.org

Thank you for your time.

Lew


Lew Zee

Total Posts: 141 | Joined: Dec 12, 2013 - 12:04pm | IP Logged

TED WALTHER

TOP BOSS
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of TED WALTHER   Send Email To TED WALTHER Posted on: Feb 4, 2016 - 3:12pm
Lew;
It was not the PT 48 Class, the PT 20 sub class was the PT 45 Class.
TED


Total Posts: 3058 | Joined: Oct 16, 2006 - 7:42am | IP Logged

David Buck

TOP BOSS
  

    
Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of David Buck   Send Email To David Buck Posted on: Feb 5, 2016 - 3:00pm
Lew,

Per PT 59,

The saying on your web site,

"There are two types of war Boats in the water : PT Boats and Targets- (unknown)

I had to have a good laugh at this as the PT 59 proved that beyond what anyone could expect!

And in doing so proved that the idea of the PT Boat as a torpedo delivery system, not a gun boat as many became was sound!

Dave.

Total Posts: 332 | Joined: May 4, 2008 - 2:59am | IP Logged

« Prev Page | Next Page »

Pages: 1 2 3 [4] 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17


Lock Topic

 

Forum Legend

New Member

Reply to topic

More than 25 posts | Full Member

Reply to topic with quoted message

More than 50 posts | Advanced Member

Edit Message

More than 150 posts | MASTER

View profile

More than 300 posts | TOP BOSS

Email member