The Cellar - Feb 5th, 2018 : Great Lakes Carriers

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Feb 5th, 2018 : Great Lakes Carriers

Before the Big One, WW II, there were two steam powered, coal fired, side wheeled excursion ships on the Great Lakes,
the See&Bee and the Greater Buffalo.
When the war came to us, the Navy grabbed them both, to become the USS Wolverine and USS Sable.
Both were stripped of everything above the hull, and flight decks added to become aircraft carriers. Of course these were
not warships, they stayed on the Great Lakes training Naval aviators landings and takeoffs from a flight deck.
Every pilot had to complete eight landings and eight takeoffs... successfully, to qualify.

http://cellar.org/2017/carrier2.jpg

Quote:

The first aircraft landing on the USS Wolverine occurred during September 1942. From 1943 until the end of the war in 1945 the USS Wolverine along with her sister ship the USS Sable were used for the training of 17,000 pilots, landing signal officers and other navy personnel with minimal losses Following the end of World War II the Navy decommissioned the Wolverine on 7 November 1945 and she was sold for scrap in December 1947.

http://cellar.org/2017/carrier1.jpg

Quote:

On her first day of service fifty-nine pilots became qualified within nine hours of operations, with each making eight takeoffs and landings. Pilot training was conducted seven days a week in all types of weather conditions.[One aviator who trained upon the Sable was future president George H. W. Bush.
Following World War II, Sable was decommissioned on 7 November 1945. She was sold for scrapping on 7 July 1948 to the H.H. Buncher Company.
Sable and her sister ship, USS Wolverine, hold the distinction of being the only freshwater, coal-fired, side paddle-wheel aircraft carriers used by the United States Navy.

link

link

See&Bee = Cleveland and Buffalo
400 bathrooms before conversion.
Neat story and pics.

Becoming a Youtube junkie
Hokey, soundless before vid:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRKR6S70ywY

Much better after one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyryolVVlAw

Quote:

The Greatest Four-Funneled Side wheeler on the Great Lakes

I wonder if there were any other four-funneled ships on the lakes? :haha:

Doesn't look like it.

http://grandlinerlounge.com/products...-30s-brochure/

There it says "the great lakes only 4 funnel passenger ship" without the side-wheel designation.
Also found that the 3-funnel Greater Buffalo was bigger that the See&Bee;
Funny that both apparently lost their funnels on conversion.
Also funny that the See&Bee doesn't make the Wikipedia list of four-funnelers:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/C...with_4_funnels

The Wolverine still has four just moved to the side. The Sable looks like they converted the three to two bigger ones, also at the side.