October 2, 2024 • 28 mins
Step aboard history and prepare for an unforgettable journey through Battleship Memorial Park in Mobile, Alabama! Ever wondered what it feels like to be inches away from a Pershing tank or to navigate the decks of a colossal WWII battleship? This episode promises an immersive adventure as we explore an extraordinary collection of military tanks, artillery, and aircraft from key historical conflicts. We’ll guide you through the iconic exhibits, including Army One, the President's helicopter, and a flight simulator that offers a thrilling experience to every visitor. Plus, discover the storied USS Drum, the oldest American submarine on display, with an impressive record of 12 battle stars and 15 enemy ships sunk during World War II.
But the excitement doesn't stop there. We also take you aboard the USS Alabama, a massive battleship with 12 decks brimming with history. Navigate its main deck, quarters, kitchens, and briefing rooms as we share the heroics of Bob Feller, a renowned baseball pitcher who served during World War II. Learn about his service and how it intertwined with his illustrious sports career. We’ll also touch on other captivating vessels and attractions at the park, providing essential visitor information like admission prices and discounts. To wrap up, we share indispensable travel safety tips to ensure a smooth and secure journey, especially when venturing overseas. Buckle up for this enriching historical adventure and practical travel advice!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome to the Traveling Fool.
I'm your host, bob Bales, andtoday we are going to visit some
World War II history.
Stay tuned to the end of thepodcast and I'm going to give
you some excellent travel tips,and don't forget to hit that
subscribe button.
Hi and welcome back Now.
(00:36):
A couple of episodes ago, I tookyou on a trip to two historical
forts on the Gulf of Mexico andthe importance they played in
US history.
Well, today we're going tovisit a place that's just north
of there Battleship MemorialPark in Mobile, alabama.
Now, the park actually consistsof several displays relating to
(00:58):
military history and it's bothfascinating and educational.
And it's both fascinating andeducational.
Now, I visit a lot ofmilitary-related historic
exhibits all over the world andthis one ranks right up there as
one of the best places that youcan take the family to get up
close to history.
Anyone who likes militaryhistory or just history in
(01:21):
general will love this place,and I can tell you every kid I
saw there was having a blast.
Now, when you enter the park,you'll see several tanks and
artillery pieces.
They have tanks from World WarII, korea, the Vietnam War.
All of those are included inthe collection I mean you'll
find like a Pershing tank, an M4Sherman tank, an old Patton
(01:46):
tank and an M60A1 tank.
Also included in these are aT-55 Russian Iraqi tank from
Desert Storm, and the reasonthey say Russian Iraqi is
because they bought equipmentfrom Russia, from Russia.
Now, various artillery piecesare included, like an M24 or an
(02:06):
M42 duster.
There's several 5-inch .38caliber gun mounts.
There's a 120-millimeterskysweeper.
I mean these are likeanti-aircraft weapons and armor
and artillery.
You'll have a blast justchecking this stuff out, all
kinds of field pieces out there,155 millimeter cannon.
(02:28):
You can stop there at any ofthe areas along the way before
you actually get to the mainparking lot and explore all the
various tanks and otherequipment.
So once you park you're goingto be right in front of the main
building and you'll see abattleship on the left of the
building and a submarine just tothe right of the building.
(02:48):
The main entrance buildinghouses the aircraft pavilion.
Yeah, they got aircraft too.
In fact they got over 30different aircraft, including
Army One, the President'shelicopter.
They've also got a flightsimulator in there and it is an
amazing little display.
There's some military historyfrom Alabama National Guard in
(03:13):
there.
There's placards in front ofall the aircraft that tell you
about the aircraft and some ofthe historic things that they
did there, and the entrances toboth the battleship and the
submarine are in that mainbuilding where the aircraft are
located.
So you go in the building, youbuy your ticket and you can take
(03:33):
20-30 minutes just walkingaround looking at all the
various aircraft and stuff.
And when you're ready to checkout the main attractions, I
suggest you visit the submarinefirst.
So you go out the door with asign that says a USS Drum
submarine.
The USS Drum is the oldestAmerican submarine on display in
(03:56):
the world Now.
The USS Drum was laid down on11 September 1940 in the
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard inMaine and it was launched 12 May
1941.
The drum is well, compared totoday's standards, tiny.
It's 311 feet 9 inches inlength.
(04:19):
That's not very big when youfigure out how many people it
had on board, which was up toeight officers and 75 enlisted
men.
I love old movies, world War IImovies and stuff when I was a
kid and even now I still likewatching them the old black and
white movies and you see theseblack and white submarine movies
from World War II and you seeguys running all through the
(04:42):
submarines and four or fivepeople in the ward room all
talking and everything, and itlooks like, yeah, it's kind of
small, but they've got room.
No, they do not.
I don't know how they madethose movies, but I'm telling
you it is tough just gettingfrom one compartment to the next
in this submarine and thoseward compartments that you see
(05:03):
all those officers sitting inhaving a cup of coffee
discussing battle plans.
Well, that thing's got to belike three feet by four feet
total.
So I don't know how they shovedall the people in there.
But the drum, well, while itwas on battle duty it earned 12
battle stars.
It sank 15 ships and over80,000 tons of enemy shipping.
(05:27):
This little puppy saw someaction during World War II.
As far as torpedoes, it had 1021-inch torpedo tubes, 6 forward
torpedo tubes and 4 in the aft.
24 torpedoes altogether is whatthey would carry.
Forward gun deck they had a5-inch 25-caliber gun.
(05:50):
On the Ford deck they also hadan anti-aircraft gun on the Ford
, a 40-millimeter Boforsanti-aircraft gun, and in the
rear deck they had twin 20mmguns.
Now, the submarine was launched, like I said, in 1941.
And it arrived at Pearl Harborfrom the East Coast April 1,
(06:12):
1942, after a voyage to Midway.
Once she arrived on PearlHarbor she didn't stay there
very long.
She left there April 14, 1942,and headed out on her first war
patrol cruising off the coast ofJapan.
She sank the seaplane TenderMizuho is the name of that ship
(06:33):
and three cargo ships in themonth of May.
She was finally decommissionedon February 16, 1946, and in
1947, she began service inWashington DC to members of the
Naval Reserve and the PotomacRiver Naval Command, and the USS
Drum was still on servicethrough 1967.
(06:54):
She was in the inactive fleetat Norfolk from 67 to
69.
The USS Drum participated in 13war patrols.
The USS Drum participated in 13war patrols and most of them,
except three of them, weredesignated successful, and those
were when you go out andactually sink stuff, so it was
three of them where she didn'tsink something Received a total
(07:16):
of 12 battle stars from WorldWar II service, credited with
sinking a total of 15 ships,80,000 tons of shipping the
eighth highest of all USsubmarines and total Japanese
tonnage sunk.
In 1969, the USS Drum wasdonated to the USS Alabama
(07:37):
Battleship Commission where itfound a home on Mobile Bay, and
I got to tell you I'm a big guy,but going in and out of those
little portholes they have fromone section to the other on that
submarine, it is tough.
I don't see how guys would runthrough that thing and dive
through the little holes.
(07:57):
As far as sleeping conditionsand stuff, you're talking about
sleeping in hammocks justcrammed in like
sardines.
The eating area that you see isa little bitty table.
It looks like a picnic tablebut by today's standards you
would think it might be for achild.
Instead there were up to sixguys that sat at that table
(08:21):
being served out of a littlewindow by the cook who had
basically a grill, a coffee potand not much more in there, in a
very, very, very small section.
I mean, even the officers whohad the best quarters in the
world were small.
The commanding officer of thatship, his bedroom was probably,
(08:45):
I want to say, about four and ahalf foot wide and about six and
a half foot long.
In there he had a little bittybunk that wasn't very big and a
little fold down desk and achair, and that little desk was
probably three foot wide, abouttwo foot in depth, and then
(09:06):
cabinets and stuff where hecould put his stuff and shelves
underneath hisbunk.
You want to see how smallthings are, I mean the officer's
shower, which was real little.
There's no way in the world Icould fit that thing.
I mean we're talking probablytwo and a half foot square, very
small.
Everything on board that shiphad to be crammed in there.
(09:28):
So everywhere you look I meanwhere you're sleeping there's
pipes overhead, gauges to yourright, knobs to your left.
Even when you're sitting downeating, I mean it doesn't matter
where you are on that thing,there's a pipe, some kind of
gauge, some kind of knob orsomething sitting right there.
I would imagine that everybodybanged their head on those
(09:50):
things at least two or threetimes a
day.
But it gives you a really goodperspective of what guys went
through during World War II, allthose guys being stuck in that
little bitty boat under thewater for extended periods of
time.
You're thinking there's not alot of central heat and air
going on there, because theydidn't have that.
(10:11):
They had just some air blowingthrough some fans and they had
to be quiet on a lot ofoccasions so they weren't
detected.
It's amazing what people wentthrough back then.
I mean, even today submarinesare.
It takes a special type personto be underwater for that length
of time.
But back then I don't think Icould have done it.
(10:33):
Now, after you leave and checkout the USS Drum, you go back
through the main building and goout the other entrance, which
is the USS Alabama, and thefirst thing you notice when you
see it is oh my God, it is sobig compared to that little
bittysubmarine.
Well, it was the fourth andfinal member of the South Dakota
(10:53):
class of fast battleships builtfor the US Navy and it was
launched in 1942.
At first, the USS Alabamaoperated along the US coast and
in 1943, it was then stationedout in the North Atlantic to
guard against the threat ofraids by German heavy ships.
After that, uss Alabama wastransferred to the Pacific, and
(11:17):
that was in early well aboutmid-1943, sometime around August
.
During November of that year,the Alabama took part in the
operation to capture the GilbertIslands.
In 1944, the Alabamaparticipated in taking the
Marshalls, the Marianas andLeyte in the battles of the
(11:38):
Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulfand raids on Japanese positions
elsewhere in the Pacific.
Following an overhaul andtraining in January through
April of 45, the battleshiprejoined the fleet for
operations in the westernPacific, which included attacks
on Japanese home islands alsotook part in the occupation of
(11:59):
Japan and then the return ofveterans to the United States in
August through October of1945.
The Alabama was decommissionedat the Puget Sound Naval
Shipyard in Bremerton,washington, in January 1947, and
it remained in reserve dutyuntil struck from the Naval
(12:20):
Registry in 1962.
Two years later, it was turnedover to the state of Alabama.
Since September of 1964, theAlabama has been birthed in
Mobile, alabama, as a memorialto those who served and
sacrificed during World War II.
It is an amazing ship.
Just to walk along those decks,check out all those guns and
(12:42):
everything.
After entering service, theAlabama was briefly deployed to
strengthen the British homefleet.
Like I said, it protectedconvoys all the way to the
Soviet Union, so it worked inboth the Atlantic and the
Pacific campaigns.
In 1986, the ship was declareda National Historic Landmark and
(13:04):
now, during their careers, amuseum ship has been used for
several movies, including themovie Under Siege in 1992 and
the USS Indianapolis Men ofCourage in
2016.
Like I said, compared to theUSS Drum submarine, that
battleship is huge, but you haveto remember, during peacetime
(13:32):
it carried about 17, almost1,800 officers and enlisted men.
During wartime that went up to2,500.
That's a lot of folks to be onthat battleship.
As far as armament, they hadnine 16-inch guns, 25-inch guns,
six quadruple 40 millimeteranti-aircraft guns those are the
ones with four barrels stickingout that you see in the movies
(13:55):
and they had 35 single-barrel20-millimeter anti-aircraft guns
.
So they had a lot ofanti-aircraft guns because
battleships were a big targetfor those Japanese warplanes.
Now, in addition to all theguns, she also carried two OS-2U
Kingfisher float planes thatwere used for aerial
(14:15):
reconnaissance and they werelaunched by a pair of aircraft
catapults on her fantail.
During her time in service, theUSS Alabama won nine battle
stars for meritorious serviceand was awarded the title the
Mighty A during her briefthree-year tenure.
Why the Mighty A?
Well, the USS Alabama neverlost a man to enemy fire and it
(14:39):
was also known as the Lucky A.
Now, with all that weapons onboard during the war.
On board during the war, theAlabama's nine 16-inch main guns
fired over 1,200 rounds atenemy targets.
Her secondary batteries, the20-inch or the 25-inch guns,
were part of the most effectiveanti-aircraft screening actions
(15:04):
of any Navy during the war.
Those, combined with theAlabama's 40 millimeter and 20
millimeter cannons, downed 22Japanese warplanes in the
Pacific.
Now the Alabama has 12different decks you can explore.
When you enter, you're going togo to the main deck outside
where all the big guns arepointed out to sea.
Walk along and you say, oh,this is a big old ship, watch
(15:28):
out for the anchor, you mighttrip.
Well, when you walk in thatdoor, you've got an option
downstairs or upstairs orexplore that level.
So you go downstairs.
Well, you got to come back upand they have 12 decks on that
ship.
Now I got to tell you, man, I'mold and my knees hurt.
I did not make it up 12 decks,I did do about eight of them,
(15:51):
but after that my knees decided,no, they've had enough, you've
had your fun for the day.
You squeezed in and out of thatlittle submarine.
You're not going to be going upany more decks on this ship.
So I didn't make it up the lastfour decks or five decks, but
I'm telling you it is an amazingship to explore five decks.
But I'm telling you it is anamazing ship to explore.
(16:11):
You go in and out of all thequarters where they did the
cooking and the kitchens and thegalleys and everything.
You see the storerooms andwhere they did the laundry and
where these guys slept and thegun batteries.
You can crawl in and out of theturrets of those things.
I mean you can wander allaround there.
You see the briefing rooms andthe captain's quarters and all
(16:34):
this variousstuff.
It is an amazing ship to tourand as big as it is, like I said
, you've got to remember howmany folks were on board that
thing.
You've got a ship with 12 decksa little over 300 foot long.
Oh, did I say 300?
No, it's like 690 foot long.
But you got 690 foot long ship.
You got 12 decks.
(16:54):
Now, the higher you get, thosedecks get a little smaller.
I mean we're talking justtowers and stuff where not a lot
of people can fit in thosethings.
So the majority of decks arebelow and the first one or two
decks above, and you've got2,500 people on board that ship.
So I would imagine it gotextremely crowded.
(17:17):
In other words, you better likethe guys you work with because
you're going to be up close andpersonal all the
time.
Now, one of the many men whoserved aboard the USS Alabama
was Bob Feller and I mention himbecause I love baseball too,
and Bob Feller was an Americanbaseball pitcher.
He played 18 seasons in theMajor League for the Cleveland
(17:41):
Indians between 1936 and 1956.
In fact, he was so good that hebypassed the minor leagues.
He made his debut with theIndians at the ripe old age of
17 and became the first pitcherto win 24 games in a season
before he even made it to 21years old.
During his career, he threw nohitters in 1940, 46, and 51, and
(18:06):
a bunch of one hitters.
Both records were the time heretired.
Now to show you a differenttime, the United States entered
World War II with the attack onPearl Harbor on December 7, 1941
.
Bob Feller heard about thebombing while returning from a
visit to his father who wasterminally ill and he was
getting ready to sign a newcontract with the Indians.
(18:27):
Well, two days later hevolunteered for the Navy,
becoming the first Americanprofessional athlete to enlist.
He attended basic training, didall this stuff and they put him
in as a physical fitnessinstructor when he finished
naval basic training and all ofthat.
He also pitched in baseballgames hosted by the military.
I mean, we got this famousbaseball star, so we're going to
(18:48):
try to mountthere.
Although he received anexemption owing to his father's
failing health, he wanted toserve in combat missions.
He would later go on to say youknow, I told him I wanted to
get into combat, I wanted to dosomething besides standing
around handing out baseballs andbats and making ball fields out
of coral reefs.
(19:08):
So he gets assigned to the USSAlabama where he served as a gun
captain and when the war endedhe was discharged as a chief
petty officer.
That was in 1945.
He was decorated with sixcampaign ribbons, eight battle
stars, while serving on missionsin both the Pacific and North
Atlantic.
What did he do after the war?
(19:29):
Well, he signed on back withthe Cleveland Indians and then
wound up doing a whole bunch ofgreat stuff in baseball, finally
retiring in 1956.
Just one of the many men whointerrupted, whatever their
day-to-day lives were, and wenton to serve in the military.
Now, although the park featuresthe USS Alabama and the
(19:51):
submarine Drum, both NationalHistoric Landmarks, there are
three other vessels included inthe park.
Outside, at the Coast GuardMemorial, is a 26-foot motor
surf launch and a 41-footutility boat, and inside the
aircraft pavilion there's aVietnam-era river patrol boat.
(20:11):
That's a cool littleboat.
Battleship Memorial Park islocated on Mobile Bay, just off
of Highway 98.
It's open every single day ofthe year except Christmas, and
it's open from 8 am to 5 pm.
Admission well, if you got kidsup to the age of five they get
in for free, and then a littleolder, between six and 11, six
(20:33):
dollars, and if you're betweenthe ages of 12 to 55, it costs
18 dollars, 55 and older 15dollars.
But they also have discountsfor active duty military and
their dependents, veterans, andif you're a member of AAA you
also get adiscount.
If you're anywhere near Mobile,alabama, I highly suggest
(20:55):
visiting Battleship MemorialPark.
You will not be disappointed.
This is a fantastic experience.
I had a blast there, even withmy bad knees.
Now, I appreciate you listeningand don't forget to hit that
likebutton.
But as I promised when westarted, I'm going to give you a
few travel tips to make yourtravels just a little bit easier
(21:18):
.
Now this first one.
I use all the time Mainly.
I traveled overseas a lot yearsago.
I mean a whole bunch.
I was always traveling overseasand it really comes in handy
there.
But it comes in handy anywhere,and that is if you're going to
a destination and going to spenda week or two just exploring
(21:39):
the destination, book a hotelfor two nights.
That's it, because no matterwhat you see on the internet,
you will not know what it's likethere until you're there.
Two nights gives you time torelax, decide if you want to
stay there or move to adifferent location.
I mean, most of the time,unless you're going to an
(22:02):
all-inclusive resort, you're notgoing to spend a lot of time in
the room anyway or at the hotel.
But what you want is a securelocation that's close to all the
attractions, that's in a safearea and has things that you
need and is a nice, comfortableroom, well clean and someplace
you can sleep Well clean andsomeplace you can sleep.
(22:22):
You'll find that out in thefirst two nights and, if you
want to, you can just up andmove to a different location
rather than being locked inbecause you reserved the place
for 10 days.
So that's tip numberone.
Number two and this one worksoverseas as well as locally,
(22:44):
especially overseas Get awayfrom the main tourist areas.
You can save a lot of moneywhen it comes to dining or
shopping just by going a fewblocks from where those main
tourist areas are at, instead ofpaying the inflated tourist
prices, whichever place has it,even in the States, you can go a
couple of blocks away and thatbeer that you want to have to
(23:05):
relax will be probably half theprice it would in a tourist
location.
You'll find the prices justdrop dramatically.
Overseas, especially, they havesome amazing street food
vendors and you can find streetfood where the locals eat.
Sometimes it's some of the bestfood you'll eat and the prices
are local prices instead oftourist prices.
(23:27):
So get away from those maintourist areas and explore a
littlebit.
The third one talk to everyone.
Talk to the people at the hotel.
Talk to cab drivers and stuff.
If you're asking for an opinion, you don't ask the opinion of
someone who's getting paid toprovide it.
You want to know where the bestmeal is near the hotel.
(23:49):
Well, the person cleaning therooms isn't getting a kickback
from the dining area, but theconcierge is.
So talk to those folks, askthem hey, you know, I was
wanting to just go check out areally nice bar, someplace I
could relax.
Where do you suggest?
Well, the concierge is going tosend you to the hot nightclub
(24:10):
and if you want to go there,that's fine.
But the guy that's maybecleaning your room or working
security outside, he's going totell you oh well, there's a
really cool little bar rightdown the street there Taxicab
drivers.
They'll give you goodinformation about where you can
go for shopping or dining orwhatever.
Just talk to everybody.
(24:32):
You will find places that arenot listed in these travel
guides.
Next one you want to capturethe perfect photo on your beach
destination or that old historictown you're staying in?
You've got to get up early, andby early I'm talking sunrise.
You want to get the absolutebest photos in the world.
Do it at sunrise, because thestreets are basically abandoned.
(24:55):
You're not going to find carsjamming the streets.
You're not going to find crowdsof people walking around.
You can get a beach photo ofmaybe one or two people standing
out there instead of theseveral thousand that'll show up
at 10 o'clock in the morning,and those are the best times to
get your photos.
Next one I learned this one inthe military Whenever you're
(25:19):
packing, just roll your clothesnice and tight instead of
foldingthem.
First of all, you can pack awhole lot more in there and it
makes packing a lot easier.
And once you get in the habitof rolling those clothes, you'll
find out whoa, I've got so muchextra room in this suitcase.
Well, now I can bring asouvenir back.
I'm going to give you two orthree real quick ones, and then
(25:40):
we're going to be done here.
Keep your wallet in your frontpocket.
Traveling abroad and even a lotof places here in the States,
you go to a tourist locationthere's going to be pickpockets.
They won't bother trying to getthat thing out of your front
pocket.
But out of your back pocketyou'll never even know it's
missing.
Keep your cash, your wallet, inyour front pocket.
(26:01):
You won't have to worry aboutit.
Next, always give a relative ora close friend your travel
itinerary before you leave.
Why, in case they need to getin touch with you, they'll know
where to find you.
You can just tell them hey, I'mgoing to be going to this place
for the next two weeks I'll bestaying at this hotel.
If I change hotels, I'll dropyou a text.
(26:22):
You never know what's going tohappen.
Someone needs to get in touchwith you and that way they can
find you and to go along withthat.
If you're traveling abroad,register with the US State
Department's Safe Travel Program.
What you do is you sign up withthem, tell them where you're
(26:42):
going to be, tell them how longyou're going to be there and
they will give you updates andemails regarding any situation
in the country that you need tobe aware of, such as a national
disaster or a natural disasteror any kind of hostilities
breaking out or anything likethis.
Let's say you're traveling tosomewhere in Asia and a tsunami
hits.
Well, they can give you updatessaying hey, there's a tsunami
(27:03):
coming, hey, it's affecting thisarea, and if you do happen to
be in that area and do need tobe evacuated, the State
Department will know whereyou're at and they can help get
you out of thecountry.
It's important, but you justregister with them.
Hey, I'm here, this is whereI'm going to be.
Anything happens, let me know.
You'll get little updatesthroughout your stay of anything
(27:26):
that you need to be made awareof.
So those are just a few traveltips that'll keep you safe, make
your travels a little easier.
I really appreciate youlistening.
Like I said, hit that subscribebutton or like button and until
next time, safe travels, thankyou.
Hello and welcome to the Traveling Fool.
I'm your host, bob Bales, andtoday we are going to visit some
World War II history.
Stay tuned to the end of thepodcast and I'm going to give
you some excellent travel tips,and don't forget to hit that
subscribe button.
Hi and welcome back Now.
(00:36):
A couple of episodes ago, I tookyou on a trip to two historical
forts on the Gulf of Mexico andthe importance they played in
US history.
Well, today we're going tovisit a place that's just north
of there Battleship MemorialPark in Mobile, alabama.
Now, the park actually consistsof several displays relating to
(00:58):
military history and it's bothfascinating and educational.
And it's both fascinating andeducational.
Now, I visit a lot ofmilitary-related historic
exhibits all over the world andthis one ranks right up there as
one of the best places that youcan take the family to get up
close to history.
Anyone who likes militaryhistory or just history in
(01:21):
general will love this place,and I can tell you every kid I
saw there was having a blast.
Now, when you enter the park,you'll see several tanks and
artillery pieces.
They have tanks from World WarII, korea, the Vietnam War.
All of those are included inthe collection I mean you'll
find like a Pershing tank, an M4Sherman tank, an old Patton
(01:46):
tank and an M60A1 tank.
Also included in these are aT-55 Russian Iraqi tank from
Desert Storm, and the reasonthey say Russian Iraqi is
because they bought equipmentfrom Russia, from Russia.
Now, various artillery piecesare included, like an M24 or an
(02:06):
M42 duster.
There's several 5-inch .38caliber gun mounts.
There's a 120-millimeterskysweeper.
I mean these are likeanti-aircraft weapons and armor
and artillery.
You'll have a blast justchecking this stuff out, all
kinds of field pieces out there,155 millimeter cannon.
(02:28):
You can stop there at any ofthe areas along the way before
you actually get to the mainparking lot and explore all the
various tanks and otherequipment.
So once you park you're goingto be right in front of the main
building and you'll see abattleship on the left of the
building and a submarine just tothe right of the building.
(02:48):
The main entrance buildinghouses the aircraft pavilion.
Yeah, they got aircraft too.
In fact they got over 30different aircraft, including
Army One, the President'shelicopter.
They've also got a flightsimulator in there and it is an
amazing little display.
There's some military historyfrom Alabama National Guard in
(03:13):
there.
There's placards in front ofall the aircraft that tell you
about the aircraft and some ofthe historic things that they
did there, and the entrances toboth the battleship and the
submarine are in that mainbuilding where the aircraft are
located.
So you go in the building, youbuy your ticket and you can take
(03:33):
20-30 minutes just walkingaround looking at all the
various aircraft and stuff.
And when you're ready to checkout the main attractions, I
suggest you visit the submarinefirst.
So you go out the door with asign that says a USS Drum
submarine.
The USS Drum is the oldestAmerican submarine on display in
(03:56):
the world Now.
The USS Drum was laid down on11 September 1940 in the
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard inMaine and it was launched 12 May
1941.
The drum is well, compared totoday's standards, tiny.
It's 311 feet 9 inches inlength.
(04:19):
That's not very big when youfigure out how many people it
had on board, which was up toeight officers and 75 enlisted
men.
I love old movies, world War IImovies and stuff when I was a
kid and even now I still likewatching them the old black and
white movies and you see theseblack and white submarine movies
from World War II and you seeguys running all through the
(04:42):
submarines and four or fivepeople in the ward room all
talking and everything, and itlooks like, yeah, it's kind of
small, but they've got room.
No, they do not.
I don't know how they madethose movies, but I'm telling
you it is tough just gettingfrom one compartment to the next
in this submarine and thoseward compartments that you see
(05:03):
all those officers sitting inhaving a cup of coffee
discussing battle plans.
Well, that thing's got to belike three feet by four feet
total.
So I don't know how they shovedall the people in there.
But the drum, well, while itwas on battle duty it earned 12
battle stars.
It sank 15 ships and over80,000 tons of enemy shipping.
(05:27):
This little puppy saw someaction during World War II.
As far as torpedoes, it had 1021-inch torpedo tubes, 6 forward
torpedo tubes and 4 in the aft.
24 torpedoes altogether is whatthey would carry.
Forward gun deck they had a5-inch 25-caliber gun.
(05:50):
On the Ford deck they also hadan anti-aircraft gun on the Ford
, a 40-millimeter Boforsanti-aircraft gun, and in the
rear deck they had twin 20mmguns.
Now, the submarine was launched, like I said, in 1941.
And it arrived at Pearl Harborfrom the East Coast April 1,
(06:12):
1942, after a voyage to Midway.
Once she arrived on PearlHarbor she didn't stay there
very long.
She left there April 14, 1942,and headed out on her first war
patrol cruising off the coast ofJapan.
She sank the seaplane TenderMizuho is the name of that ship
(06:33):
and three cargo ships in themonth of May.
She was finally decommissionedon February 16, 1946, and in
1947, she began service inWashington DC to members of the
Naval Reserve and the PotomacRiver Naval Command, and the USS
Drum was still on servicethrough 1967.
(06:54):
She was in the inactive fleetat Norfolk from 67 to
69.
The USS Drum participated in 13war patrols.
The USS Drum participated in 13war patrols and most of them,
except three of them, weredesignated successful, and those
were when you go out andactually sink stuff, so it was
three of them where she didn'tsink something Received a total
(07:16):
of 12 battle stars from WorldWar II service, credited with
sinking a total of 15 ships,80,000 tons of shipping the
eighth highest of all USsubmarines and total Japanese
tonnage sunk.
In 1969, the USS Drum wasdonated to the USS Alabama
(07:37):
Battleship Commission where itfound a home on Mobile Bay, and
I got to tell you I'm a big guy,but going in and out of those
little portholes they have fromone section to the other on that
submarine, it is tough.
I don't see how guys would runthrough that thing and dive
through the little holes.
(07:57):
As far as sleeping conditionsand stuff, you're talking about
sleeping in hammocks justcrammed in like
sardines.
The eating area that you see isa little bitty table.
It looks like a picnic tablebut by today's standards you
would think it might be for achild.
Instead there were up to sixguys that sat at that table
(08:21):
being served out of a littlewindow by the cook who had
basically a grill, a coffee potand not much more in there, in a
very, very, very small section.
I mean, even the officers whohad the best quarters in the
world were small.
The commanding officer of thatship, his bedroom was probably,
(08:45):
I want to say, about four and ahalf foot wide and about six and
a half foot long.
In there he had a little bittybunk that wasn't very big and a
little fold down desk and achair, and that little desk was
probably three foot wide, abouttwo foot in depth, and then
(09:06):
cabinets and stuff where hecould put his stuff and shelves
underneath hisbunk.
You want to see how smallthings are, I mean the officer's
shower, which was real little.
There's no way in the world Icould fit that thing.
I mean we're talking probablytwo and a half foot square, very
small.
Everything on board that shiphad to be crammed in there.
(09:28):
So everywhere you look I meanwhere you're sleeping there's
pipes overhead, gauges to yourright, knobs to your left.
Even when you're sitting downeating, I mean it doesn't matter
where you are on that thing,there's a pipe, some kind of
gauge, some kind of knob orsomething sitting right there.
I would imagine that everybodybanged their head on those
(09:50):
things at least two or threetimes a
day.
But it gives you a really goodperspective of what guys went
through during World War II, allthose guys being stuck in that
little bitty boat under thewater for extended periods of
time.
You're thinking there's not alot of central heat and air
going on there, because theydidn't have that.
(10:11):
They had just some air blowingthrough some fans and they had
to be quiet on a lot ofoccasions so they weren't
detected.
It's amazing what people wentthrough back then.
I mean, even today submarinesare.
It takes a special type personto be underwater for that length
of time.
But back then I don't think Icould have done it.
(10:33):
Now, after you leave and checkout the USS Drum, you go back
through the main building and goout the other entrance, which
is the USS Alabama, and thefirst thing you notice when you
see it is oh my God, it is sobig compared to that little
bittysubmarine.
Well, it was the fourth andfinal member of the South Dakota
(10:53):
class of fast battleships builtfor the US Navy and it was
launched in 1942.
At first, the USS Alabamaoperated along the US coast and
in 1943, it was then stationedout in the North Atlantic to
guard against the threat ofraids by German heavy ships.
After that, uss Alabama wastransferred to the Pacific, and
(11:17):
that was in early well aboutmid-1943, sometime around August
.
During November of that year,the Alabama took part in the
operation to capture the GilbertIslands.
In 1944, the Alabamaparticipated in taking the
Marshalls, the Marianas andLeyte in the battles of the
(11:38):
Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulfand raids on Japanese positions
elsewhere in the Pacific.
Following an overhaul andtraining in January through
April of 45, the battleshiprejoined the fleet for
operations in the westernPacific, which included attacks
on Japanese home islands alsotook part in the occupation of
(11:59):
Japan and then the return ofveterans to the United States in
August through October of1945.
The Alabama was decommissionedat the Puget Sound Naval
Shipyard in Bremerton,washington, in January 1947, and
it remained in reserve dutyuntil struck from the Naval
(12:20):
Registry in 1962.
Two years later, it was turnedover to the state of Alabama.
Since September of 1964, theAlabama has been birthed in
Mobile, alabama, as a memorialto those who served and
sacrificed during World War II.
It is an amazing ship.
Just to walk along those decks,check out all those guns and
(12:42):
everything.
After entering service, theAlabama was briefly deployed to
strengthen the British homefleet.
Like I said, it protectedconvoys all the way to the
Soviet Union, so it worked inboth the Atlantic and the
Pacific campaigns.
In 1986, the ship was declareda National Historic Landmark and
(13:04):
now, during their careers, amuseum ship has been used for
several movies, including themovie Under Siege in 1992 and
the USS Indianapolis Men ofCourage in
2016.
Like I said, compared to theUSS Drum submarine, that
battleship is huge, but you haveto remember, during peacetime
(13:32):
it carried about 17, almost1,800 officers and enlisted men.
During wartime that went up to2,500.
That's a lot of folks to be onthat battleship.
As far as armament, they hadnine 16-inch guns, 25-inch guns,
six quadruple 40 millimeteranti-aircraft guns those are the
ones with four barrels stickingout that you see in the movies
(13:55):
and they had 35 single-barrel20-millimeter anti-aircraft guns
.
So they had a lot ofanti-aircraft guns because
battleships were a big targetfor those Japanese warplanes.
Now, in addition to all theguns, she also carried two OS-2U
Kingfisher float planes thatwere used for aerial
(14:15):
reconnaissance and they werelaunched by a pair of aircraft
catapults on her fantail.
During her time in service, theUSS Alabama won nine battle
stars for meritorious serviceand was awarded the title the
Mighty A during her briefthree-year tenure.
Why the Mighty A?
Well, the USS Alabama neverlost a man to enemy fire and it
(14:39):
was also known as the Lucky A.
Now, with all that weapons onboard during the war.
On board during the war, theAlabama's nine 16-inch main guns
fired over 1,200 rounds atenemy targets.
Her secondary batteries, the20-inch or the 25-inch guns,
were part of the most effectiveanti-aircraft screening actions
(15:04):
of any Navy during the war.
Those, combined with theAlabama's 40 millimeter and 20
millimeter cannons, downed 22Japanese warplanes in the
Pacific.
Now the Alabama has 12different decks you can explore.
When you enter, you're going togo to the main deck outside
where all the big guns arepointed out to sea.
Walk along and you say, oh,this is a big old ship, watch
(15:28):
out for the anchor, you mighttrip.
Well, when you walk in thatdoor, you've got an option
downstairs or upstairs orexplore that level.
So you go downstairs.
Well, you got to come back upand they have 12 decks on that
ship.
Now I got to tell you, man, I'mold and my knees hurt.
I did not make it up 12 decks,I did do about eight of them,
(15:51):
but after that my knees decided,no, they've had enough, you've
had your fun for the day.
You squeezed in and out of thatlittle submarine.
You're not going to be going upany more decks on this ship.
So I didn't make it up the lastfour decks or five decks, but
I'm telling you it is an amazingship to explore five decks.
But I'm telling you it is anamazing ship to explore.
(16:11):
You go in and out of all thequarters where they did the
cooking and the kitchens and thegalleys and everything.
You see the storerooms andwhere they did the laundry and
where these guys slept and thegun batteries.
You can crawl in and out of theturrets of those things.
I mean you can wander allaround there.
You see the briefing rooms andthe captain's quarters and all
(16:34):
this variousstuff.
It is an amazing ship to tourand as big as it is, like I said
, you've got to remember howmany folks were on board that
thing.
You've got a ship with 12 decksa little over 300 foot long.
Oh, did I say 300?
No, it's like 690 foot long.
But you got 690 foot long ship.
You got 12 decks.
(16:54):
Now, the higher you get, thosedecks get a little smaller.
I mean we're talking justtowers and stuff where not a lot
of people can fit in thosethings.
So the majority of decks arebelow and the first one or two
decks above, and you've got2,500 people on board that ship.
So I would imagine it gotextremely crowded.
(17:17):
In other words, you better likethe guys you work with because
you're going to be up close andpersonal all the
time.
Now, one of the many men whoserved aboard the USS Alabama
was Bob Feller and I mention himbecause I love baseball too,
and Bob Feller was an Americanbaseball pitcher.
He played 18 seasons in theMajor League for the Cleveland
(17:41):
Indians between 1936 and 1956.
In fact, he was so good that hebypassed the minor leagues.
He made his debut with theIndians at the ripe old age of
17 and became the first pitcherto win 24 games in a season
before he even made it to 21years old.
During his career, he threw nohitters in 1940, 46, and 51, and
(18:06):
a bunch of one hitters.
Both records were the time heretired.
Now to show you a differenttime, the United States entered
World War II with the attack onPearl Harbor on December 7, 1941
.
Bob Feller heard about thebombing while returning from a
visit to his father who wasterminally ill and he was
getting ready to sign a newcontract with the Indians.
(18:27):
Well, two days later hevolunteered for the Navy,
becoming the first Americanprofessional athlete to enlist.
He attended basic training, didall this stuff and they put him
in as a physical fitnessinstructor when he finished
naval basic training and all ofthat.
He also pitched in baseballgames hosted by the military.
I mean, we got this famousbaseball star, so we're going to
(18:48):
try to mountthere.
Although he received anexemption owing to his father's
failing health, he wanted toserve in combat missions.
He would later go on to say youknow, I told him I wanted to
get into combat, I wanted to dosomething besides standing
around handing out baseballs andbats and making ball fields out
of coral reefs.
(19:08):
So he gets assigned to the USSAlabama where he served as a gun
captain and when the war endedhe was discharged as a chief
petty officer.
That was in 1945.
He was decorated with sixcampaign ribbons, eight battle
stars, while serving on missionsin both the Pacific and North
Atlantic.
What did he do after the war?
(19:29):
Well, he signed on back withthe Cleveland Indians and then
wound up doing a whole bunch ofgreat stuff in baseball, finally
retiring in 1956.
Just one of the many men whointerrupted, whatever their
day-to-day lives were, and wenton to serve in the military.
Now, although the park featuresthe USS Alabama and the
(19:51):
submarine Drum, both NationalHistoric Landmarks, there are
three other vessels included inthe park.
Outside, at the Coast GuardMemorial, is a 26-foot motor
surf launch and a 41-footutility boat, and inside the
aircraft pavilion there's aVietnam-era river patrol boat.
(20:11):
That's a cool littleboat.
Battleship Memorial Park islocated on Mobile Bay, just off
of Highway 98.
It's open every single day ofthe year except Christmas, and
it's open from 8 am to 5 pm.
Admission well, if you got kidsup to the age of five they get
in for free, and then a littleolder, between six and 11, six
(20:33):
dollars, and if you're betweenthe ages of 12 to 55, it costs
18 dollars, 55 and older 15dollars.
But they also have discountsfor active duty military and
their dependents, veterans, andif you're a member of AAA you
also get adiscount.
If you're anywhere near Mobile,alabama, I highly suggest
(20:55):
visiting Battleship MemorialPark.
You will not be disappointed.
This is a fantastic experience.
I had a blast there, even withmy bad knees.
Now, I appreciate you listeningand don't forget to hit that
likebutton.
But as I promised when westarted, I'm going to give you a
few travel tips to make yourtravels just a little bit easier
(21:18):
.
Now this first one.
I use all the time Mainly.
I traveled overseas a lot yearsago.
I mean a whole bunch.
I was always traveling overseasand it really comes in handy
there.
But it comes in handy anywhere,and that is if you're going to
a destination and going to spenda week or two just exploring
(21:39):
the destination, book a hotelfor two nights.
That's it, because no matterwhat you see on the internet,
you will not know what it's likethere until you're there.
Two nights gives you time torelax, decide if you want to
stay there or move to adifferent location.
I mean, most of the time,unless you're going to an
(22:02):
all-inclusive resort, you're notgoing to spend a lot of time in
the room anyway or at the hotel.
But what you want is a securelocation that's close to all the
attractions, that's in a safearea and has things that you
need and is a nice, comfortableroom, well clean and someplace
you can sleep Well clean andsomeplace you can sleep.
(22:22):
You'll find that out in thefirst two nights and, if you
want to, you can just up andmove to a different location
rather than being locked inbecause you reserved the place
for 10 days.
So that's tip numberone.
Number two and this one worksoverseas as well as locally,
(22:44):
especially overseas Get awayfrom the main tourist areas.
You can save a lot of moneywhen it comes to dining or
shopping just by going a fewblocks from where those main
tourist areas are at, instead ofpaying the inflated tourist
prices, whichever place has it,even in the States, you can go a
couple of blocks away and thatbeer that you want to have to
(23:05):
relax will be probably half theprice it would in a tourist
location.
You'll find the prices justdrop dramatically.
Overseas, especially, they havesome amazing street food
vendors and you can find streetfood where the locals eat.
Sometimes it's some of the bestfood you'll eat and the prices
are local prices instead oftourist prices.
(23:27):
So get away from those maintourist areas and explore a
littlebit.
The third one talk to everyone.
Talk to the people at the hotel.
Talk to cab drivers and stuff.
If you're asking for an opinion, you don't ask the opinion of
someone who's getting paid toprovide it.
You want to know where the bestmeal is near the hotel.
(23:49):
Well, the person cleaning therooms isn't getting a kickback
from the dining area, but theconcierge is.
So talk to those folks, askthem hey, you know, I was
wanting to just go check out areally nice bar, someplace I
could relax.
Where do you suggest?
Well, the concierge is going tosend you to the hot nightclub
(24:10):
and if you want to go there,that's fine.
But the guy that's maybecleaning your room or working
security outside, he's going totell you oh well, there's a
really cool little bar rightdown the street there Taxicab
drivers.
They'll give you goodinformation about where you can
go for shopping or dining orwhatever.
Just talk to everybody.
(24:32):
You will find places that arenot listed in these travel
guides.
Next one you want to capturethe perfect photo on your beach
destination or that old historictown you're staying in?
You've got to get up early, andby early I'm talking sunrise.
You want to get the absolutebest photos in the world.
Do it at sunrise, because thestreets are basically abandoned.
(24:55):
You're not going to find carsjamming the streets.
You're not going to find crowdsof people walking around.
You can get a beach photo ofmaybe one or two people standing
out there instead of theseveral thousand that'll show up
at 10 o'clock in the morning,and those are the best times to
get your photos.
Next one I learned this one inthe military Whenever you're
(25:19):
packing, just roll your clothesnice and tight instead of
foldingthem.
First of all, you can pack awhole lot more in there and it
makes packing a lot easier.
And once you get in the habitof rolling those clothes, you'll
find out whoa, I've got so muchextra room in this suitcase.
Well, now I can bring asouvenir back.
I'm going to give you two orthree real quick ones, and then
(25:40):
we're going to be done here.
Keep your wallet in your frontpocket.
Traveling abroad and even a lotof places here in the States,
you go to a tourist locationthere's going to be pickpockets.
They won't bother trying to getthat thing out of your front
pocket.
But out of your back pocketyou'll never even know it's
missing.
Keep your cash, your wallet, inyour front pocket.
(26:01):
You won't have to worry aboutit.
Next, always give a relative ora close friend your travel
itinerary before you leave.
Why, in case they need to getin touch with you, they'll know
where to find you.
You can just tell them hey, I'mgoing to be going to this place
for the next two weeks I'll bestaying at this hotel.
If I change hotels, I'll dropyou a text.
(26:22):
You never know what's going tohappen.
Someone needs to get in touchwith you and that way they can
find you and to go along withthat.
If you're traveling abroad,register with the US State
Department's Safe Travel Program.
What you do is you sign up withthem, tell them where you're
(26:42):
going to be, tell them how longyou're going to be there and
they will give you updates andemails regarding any situation
in the country that you need tobe aware of, such as a national
disaster or a natural disasteror any kind of hostilities
breaking out or anything likethis.
Let's say you're traveling tosomewhere in Asia and a tsunami
hits.
Well, they can give you updatessaying hey, there's a tsunami
(27:03):
coming, hey, it's affecting thisarea, and if you do happen to
be in that area and do need tobe evacuated, the State
Department will know whereyou're at and they can help get
you out of thecountry.
It's important, but you justregister with them.
Hey, I'm here, this is whereI'm going to be.
Anything happens, let me know.
You'll get little updatesthroughout your stay of anything
(27:26):
that you need to be made awareof.
So those are just a few traveltips that'll keep you safe, make
your travels a little easier.
I really appreciate youlistening.
Like I said, hit that subscribebutton or like button and until
next time, safe travels, thankyou.
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