Patriotic Rust Bucket  by lesip

Patriotic Rust Bucket

The American Mariner started construction in mid-1941 at Maryland’s Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyard as a cargo ship but before completion she was converted from a cargo ship to a training ship for merchant marines. The American Mariner is said to be the only ship to have been commissioned in all three major branches of the U.S. armed forces after starting service for the Merchant Marine.
In October 1966 she was taken to a spot in the Chesapeake Bay between Lookout Point and Smith Island. A Navy Underwater Demolition Team from Norfolk used explosives to punch holes in her side and flood her. She is sitting in about 20 feet of water although it looks like she is floating. Her last role would be to serve as a target ship for pilots from the US Naval Air Station at Patuxent River, Maryland.
It was a site to see sitting all by itself in the bay. WOW !!!! A big bonus on our Lighthouse Adventure. Who Knew ???
Oh my, so rusty!
April 30th, 2022  
Great shot, great story!
April 30th, 2022  
Such an amazing capture and story, what a great day you must have had.
April 30th, 2022  
What an interesting background to this
April 30th, 2022  
How fascinating 🤨 very interesting
Wonderful shot
April 30th, 2022  
Amazing detail and color in your photo. Hard to believe it’s sitting in 20 feet of water. What a distinguished career it has had.
April 30th, 2022  
That is a great surprise. Great story/history and a fantastic shot.
April 30th, 2022  
That's amazing! And just the type of photo I love to shoot.
April 30th, 2022  
wow
April 30th, 2022  
Wow, it's fabulous.
April 30th, 2022  
Wow.
April 30th, 2022  
Wonderful photo of this ghost ship. Thanks for the history.
April 30th, 2022  
What a great shot. A giant sculpture of the sea. Interesting history.
May 1st, 2022  
So many stories it could tell
May 1st, 2022  
Great story. I hope it’s not harming the environment
May 1st, 2022  
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