Drydock #3, MINSy active again!

Arrivng to a happy throng of workers, residents, tenants, and onlookers, the first of the ships from the "Mothball Fleet" to be dismantled, the SS Solon Turman is nudged into Drydock #3 at Mare Island on February 3, 2011.

Watch the progress thru the Webcam of Western Dovetail, a commercial tenant located on Nimitz Avenue.

(Above image by Tim Baskerville)

USS Mariano G. Vallejo SSBN 658  - night view

Just a year-end reminder -all donations to our sail project are completely tax deductible as the MIHPF is a 501 (c) 3 approved charitable organization.

Above Night Photo of the USS Mariano G. Vallejo SSBN 658 sail by Tim Baskerville of The Nocturnes at a recent semi-annual AlumNight.

A Great Day on Mare Island

On the nine-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the Save Our Sail Advisory group held a"Cruise-in" and Car Club Gathering, benefitting the Mare Island Historic Park Foundation. By all accounts, it was a very successful event! This was our First Annual "Hot Rods Unite" fundraiser, and in addition to the funds raised for the Foundation, a number of valuable lessons were learned, making the prospect of next year's event even more promising.

 















Thanks to all who came out on a beautiful Bay Area Saturday in September!



We've included a couple of images here, courtesy of Tim Baskerville of Mare Island's The Nocturnes Night Photography Group, along with a link to more in an online Gallery - here.

1st Annual Hot Rods Unite!
 

A benefit for the Mare Island Historic Park Foundation - a 501(c)(3) publicly
supported organization dedicated to preserving our nation’s history.

Admission:
$15 per adult
$5 ages 6-12
Free under age 6

* Street Rods, Cruisers & Drag Cars on display
* Tours of Mare Island Historic Landmarks ($14 value)
* Hot dog lunch included w/admission ($5 value)
* Raffle prizes to win
* Mare Island souvenirs for sale
* Public welcome - Fun for the entire family !

Saturday, September 11, 2010; 11:00 - 4:00
Mare Island - Railroad Ave & Eighth St, Vallejo

A Benefit Cruise-In Car Club Gathering for the Mare Island Historic Park Foundation
See Max Loffgren’s Nationally Toured POW MIA ‘55 Chevy !

For more information:
http://www.mareislandhpf.org/
707-226-3564

Considering a National Park

We were pleased to see that U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-Martinez)  and representatives of the NPS (National Park Service) recently toured Mare Island, visiting some of the National Historic Landmark's most notable assets - Dry Dock 1, the Mare Island Museum, Officer's  Row, and St. Peter's Chapel.

Save Our Sail applauds the group for the speedy response to Miller's initial request (a little over a month ago) to study the island's rich architectural and natural history and consider Natinal Park designation.

It's a "long process" as Miller points out on his Blog, ultimately (if all moves forward from the feasibility study) requiring approval by Congress to fund the Park.

Well, it's a tiny step forward . . .

Mare Island National Park

We here at Save Our Sail support recent efforts, initiated by Representative George Miller (D-Martinez), to designate portions of Mare Island a National Park. Miller has asked the National Park Service (NPS) to study the island's rich architectural and natural history for consideration.

Pending the survey's outcome, a feasibility study would be scheduled and then forwarded to Congress for approval.

Miller was instrumental in obtaining national park status for such local historic landmarks as Port Chicago, and the Rosie the Riveter/ WWII Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond, both of which have historic ties to Mare Island.

In his press release, Miller states: "By making these places national parks, we're helping preserve them for the next generation so they can better understand our past. Mare Island in particular has a fascinating history, of both local and national significance."

Save Our Sail - Welcome!

When the nuclear ballistic missile submarine USS Mariano G. Vallejo SSBN 658 was decommissioned in 1995, parts of the boat were saved with the idea that someday they would be put on public display on Mare Island. Those parts include the boat's control room, her periscopes, and her 65-ton sail & dive planes. The periscopes and control room displays are now in the Mare Island Museum, literally across the street from where the ship was built  & launched thirty years earlier, in 1965.

The Mare Island Historic Park Foundation, the sail's caretaker, is working on a plan to place the 658's sail in a dramatic, accessible site for permanent display.