Floating Classrooms- All Aboard!

 

U.S. COAST GUARD EAGLE 

The Eagle has landed! In recent weeks, Charleston area residents and visitors have had the chance to deck the halls of seafaring ships. 

Billed as America’s Tall Ship, the  USCGC Eagle was docked downtown for a few days and open to tours.

The vessel was built in Germany in 1936. Then it was called the Horst Wessel. Angela Pilson (keep reading) noted in her post that the Germans also used the ship for training- of Hitler youth! Look at the Horst Wessel link above to see an old black-and-white image of the ship from that period. It's awesome!

After World War II, the U.S. attained the ship as part of reparations, the spoils of war, you could say. It became part of the U.S. Coast Guard in 1946. 

At 295 feet, almost a football field long, the USCGC Eagle is a three-mast barque that serves as a training vessel for future Coast Guard officers. 

A barque is a sailing ship with three or more masts that are square in shape. 

Tours began last Friday, June 12, at 10 a.m. I was in line by 9:30 and was glad I arrived early when the line was short compared to the long line I walked by after about an hour on board Eagle. 

In line, I had the pleasure of chatting with fellow shutterbug Angela Pilson. She also posts her photography. Very talented and creative! Check her out on Instagram @otterchsphotos and at http://otterchsphotos.com.

Thanks to Angela for the photo below of yours truly! 

The Eagle’s Coast Guard members were ready to explain ship operations. This is a block and tackle display. 

Home port for Eagle and its working crew of 55 is New London, Conn., home to the United States Coast Guard Academy. The academy has approximately 1,100 students who are called cadets. 

The Eagle crew has a crew of 55 men and women. That's a lot of mouths to feed. So the galley stays busy.

At a little past 10 a.m. it looks like lunch preparations are underway.

Part of Eagle’s mission is public relations, a duty the friendly crew performs well. To follow are more images from my tour of “America’s Tall Ship.” 

Don’t call these ropes on a U.S. Navy ship. These are lines. 

Final U.S. Coast Guard Eagle fun fact: three American presidents have been on board. They were Presidents Truman, Kennedy, and Nixon. 

U.S. MARITIME ADMINISTRATION EMPIRE STATE

The Empire State met the Holy City in May when this 525-foot floating classroom for Merchant Marines docked for a few days, also at the old passenger terminal downtown. 

Seen in her full glory (courtesy WorkBoat). The Empire State’s home port is Fort Schuyler, Throggs Neck, The Bronx, New York City. 

The huge vessel, complete with a helicopter landing pad, is operated by the State University of New York (SUNY) Maritime College. 

enrollment is nearly 1,300. 

Five hundred of the school’s cadets participated in this at-sea summer program. From Charleston, they sailed to Spain, a 12-day trip, I was told. 

Like the Coast Guard Eagle, this was also a free tour opportunity, and there was no shortage of takers. 

 

Groups of two dozen or so were led up, down, and around multiple levels of the vast vessel. 

We were taken to the inner workings where massive systems power the ship…

…to this small engine room where cadets receive hands-on motor mechanics instruction.

They receive in-depth education in ship navigation, automation and engine room operations. Cadets are also grounded, like a regular four-year college students, in general education courses such as psychology and history. 

Our guide, a cadet himself, was great with visitors, young and old. He said how cadets also do at-sea internships aboard container ships, chemical carriers, even ice-breaker ships in the Arctic. 

The Empire State is immaculate, spic and span. It is still in mint condition being constructed just three years ago in Philadelphia at what is today called the Hanwa Philly Shipyard. Hanwa is a South Korean shipbuilder. It purchased the Philly Shipyard in 2024.

The rust spots on this plaque were the only sign of age I noticed. 

Here are more of my photographs from the Empire State tour. Thank you SUNY Maritime for the opportunity to see your impressive ship and students/cadets. 

STATE OF MAINE 

From New York’s Empire State we now go to the State of Maine. We spotted yet another floating classroom visiting Charleston on Sunday, June 7 from the sands of Sullivan’s Island. 

The ship was heading out to see as a large yacht approached the harbor. State of Maine is the primary training ship of the Maine Maritime Academy and is a state-of-the-art National Security Multi-Mission vessel (the U.S. has five of these ships). It was delivered to the maritime college in March after, like the Empire State, being built at the Hanwa Philly Shipyard. 

Enrollment at the Maine Maritime Academy is 950 "mariners,", 80-percent of whom are male. The school is located in Castine, Maine, overlooking Penobscot Bay.

I don’t know if this training ship had an “open house” as did the previous two featured in this post.

No doubt Charleston is served well by its reputation as a busy and important seaside destination! I will definitely keep an eye out for more ship visits in the future.