The USS Olympia C-6 was built as a fast sail-capable commerce-raider. Launched in 1895, it was built by the Union Iron Works of San Francisco. No other ship of its class was ever completed. The Olympia served as the flagship of Dewey’s squadron at the Battle of Manila Bay in 1898. During WW1 the Olympia was re-designated as CA-15 and performed escort duty in the Atlantic. In 1921 it was again re-designated from CA-15 to CL-15 and carried the Unknown Soldier back to the U.S. Mothballed in 1922, in 1931 the Navy re-designated it again to Relic IX-40 in recognition of its historic value. Since 1957 Olympia has been berthed in Philadelphia. The present owner, The Independence Seaport Museum, now needs to raise $20 million to dry-dock the ship and properly repair the hull. You can read more about this here.
Month: March 2022
Coming up are on Tuesday, April 5th at 7:00 PM CDT “Gorlice & Tarnow: The Great Retreat” on Youtube and on Saturday April 9th at 10:30 AM CDT “Women & Espionage” on Zoom.
Both are free but registration is required. Click here.
Click here to read about these forgotten heroines.