Title:
Floating tombstones built to help during WWI
Author:
Carol W. Kimball
Subjects:
floating tombstones
concrete ships used during WWI and WWII
concrete ships used during WWI and WWII
Object ID:
Kim08-091
Object Name:
Scrapbook
Category:
8: Communication Artifact
Subcategory:
Documentary Artifact
Publisher:
The Day
Publication Place:
New London, CT
Pubication Date:
08/08/2002
Collection:
Carol W. Kimball
Summary:
A postcard entitled CONCRETE SHIP… informed Carol Kimball that such ships really existed. They were developed by the Federal Government during World War I. Concrete ships would float just as the ironclads would float. Twelve concrete ships were eventually put into service and the crew called them floating tombstones. When the war ended there was enough steel and wood for vessels and the need for the experimental ships was over. However, some concrete vessels were also constructed during World War II. The ruins of the concrete ship Atlantus can be seen at Cape May Point, N.J. at the foot of Sunset Boulevard and the concrete ship Selma survives, scuttled off Galveston, Texas.
People:
Nilson, Arthur H.
Search Terms:
floating tombstones
concrete ships
WWI and WWII
postcard
ironclads
Galena
shipbuilders
the Atlantus
tourist attraction at foot of Sunset Boulevard
The Selma
Galveston
concrete ships
WWI and WWII
postcard
ironclads
Galena
shipbuilders
the Atlantus
tourist attraction at foot of Sunset Boulevard
The Selma
Galveston