National Park Service
The National Park Service is indebted to all those persons who made the production of this book possible. The text greatly benefited from suggestions by naval architect and historian John G. Arrison and historian Frederick R. Black. The primary source for the yard history was the National Park Service report, The Charlestown Navy Yard 1800-1973 (1800-1842 by Edwin C. Bearss; 1842-1890 by Edwin C. Bearss and Frederick R. Black; 1890-1973 by Frederick R. Black). Other important sources were Kenneth J. Hagan’s This People’s Navy: The Making of American Sea Power, 1991; Howard I. Chapelle’s The History of the American Sailing Navy, 1949; and Donald L. Canney’s The Old Steam Navy, 1990. The handbook was produced by the staff of the Division of Publications, National Park Service: Susan Barkus, designer; William Gordon, editor; Nancy Morbeck Haack, cartographer, assisted by the staff of Boston National Historical Park.
All photos not credited are from the files of Boston National Historical Park. Mary Altier [84] (bottom left) John Batchelor [24-25], [26-27], [40-41], [42-43], [58-59], [60], [74-75] Battles and Leaders of the Civil War [43] (top) Boston Athenaeum [4-5], [30], [32-33] The Bostonian Society/Old State House [10-11], [46] George Eastman House [23] Louis Glanzman [19] Greg Harlin [21] (right) James Higgins [66] (top), [78-79], [82-83], [84] (bottom right), [85], [86] (top, bottom) The Kedge-Anchor, by William N. Brady [14] (bottom) Mariner’s Museum [back cover] James McFalls cover, [2-3] National Archives [14] (top; painting by Rear Admiral J.W. Schmidt), [35] (top), [69] (bottom) Jack Pare [84] (top) The Paul Revere Life Insurance Co. [6-7] (painting by A. Lassell Ripley) Robert Tope [8-9] U.S. Marine Corps Museum [28-29] U.S. Naval Academy [44-45] (painting by Frank Christian Muller) USS Constitution Museum [86] (center; photo by Jerry Margolycz)
U.S. Department of the Interior
As the nation’s principal conservation agency, the department of the Interior has responsibility for most of our nationally-owned public lands and natural resources. This includes fostering the wisest use of our land and water resources, protecting our fish and wildlife, preserving the environmental and cultural values of our national parks and historical places, and providing for the enjoyment of life through outdoor recreation. The Department assesses our energy and mineral resources to ensure that their development is in the best interest of all our people. The Department also has a major responsibility for American Indian reservation communities and for people who live in island territories under U.S. administration.
National Park Handbooks are published to promote understanding and enjoyment of more than 360 National Park System sites representing our natural and cultural heritage. The handbooks are sold at parks and can be purchased by mail from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Charlestown Navy Yard: Boston National Historical Park, Massachusetts. p. cm.—(Official National Park handbook; 152) Includes index. Supt. of Docs. no.: I29.9/5:152 ISBN 0-912627-60-3 1. Boston Naval Shipyard (Boston, Mass.)—History. 2. Charlestown Navy Yard (Mass.)—History. I. United States. National Park Service. Division of Publications. II. Series: Handbook (United States. National Park Service. Division of Publications); 152. VA70.B68C48 1995 359.7’09744’61—dc20 95-12868 CIP
1840 view of Charlestown Navy Yard by George Curtis depicts the shiphouses that covered four of the yard’s shipbuilding ways during the 19th century.
For 174 years, the U.S. Naval Shipyard at Boston, now called Charlestown Navy Yard, played a significant role in the creation and growth of the U.S. Navy. By the time it closed in 1974, it had built more than 200 warships and repaired thousands. Historic black and white photographs, color photos and illustrations, and detailed diagrams tell the story of evolving technology and naval policy and how they affected the fortunes of the yard and its workers.