# Patriots Point

Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum is a naval museum located in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, at the mouth of the Cooper River on the Charleston Harbor, across from Charleston.

## History

The museum was born out of an idea by former naval officer Charles F. Hyatt to develop a major tourist attraction on what had once been a dump for dredged mud. Initial plans for the museum called for a large building onshore to display exhibits related to the history of small combatants ships in the U.S. Navy. On 3 January 1976, the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown was opened to the public.
The destroyer USS Laffey was added to the museum in 1978. The museum was expanded again in 1981 with the addition of the submarine USS Clamagore in May and NS Savannah in October. USCGC Comanche was acquired in 1984.
The Patriots Point Development Authority attempted to capitalize on its financial success in 1987 when it announced an plans to build a hotel and marina. However, the museum encountered controversy in 1989 when it was revealed that Comanche, which never opened to the public, had been used to conduct cruises for private tours and VIP parties. The same year, USCGC Ingham arrived at the museum, replacing Comanche. The latter was removed from the museum and sunk as a reef in 1992, but not before suffering damage during Hurricane Hugo. By that time, the development project had failed and the development authority was forced to declare bankruptcy.
A replica of a Vietnam War-era naval base was opened in 1993.
Savannah was removed from the museum and towed to the James River Merchant Marine Reserve Fleet in 1994.
On 2 September 2003, Yorktown served as the backdrop for the formal announcement of Senator John Kerry's candidacy as he sought, and ultimately won, the Democratic nomination for President of the United States for the 2004 election.
Laffey was towed to a shipyard for repairs on 19 August 2009. The following day, Ingham was removed by the Coast Guard. The destroyer returned to the museum in 2012.
Clamagore was towed away for scrapping in 2022.

## Exhibits
### Ships

* USS Yorktown, an aircraft carrier
* USS Laffey, a destroyer

### Aircraft collection

* Boeing-Stearman N2S-3
* Douglas A-4C Skyhawk
* Douglas AD-4N Skyraider
* Douglas EA-3B Skywarrior
* Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless
* General Motors TBM-3E Avenger
* Goodyear FG-1D Corsair
* Grumman A-6E Intruder
* Grumman E-1B Tracer
* Grumman F-14A Tomcat
* Grumman F4F-3A Wildcat
* Grumman F6F-5K Hellcat
* Grumman S-2E Tracker
* Grumman TF-9J Cougar
* Gyrodyne QH-50 DASH
* Lockheed S-3B Viking
* Ling-Temco-Vought A-7E Corsair II
* McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II
* McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornet
* North American B-25D Mitchell
* Sikorsky SH-3G Sea King
* Vought F-8K Crusader

### Vietnam Experience

* Bell AH-1J SeaCobra
* Bell UH-1D Iroquois
* Bell UH-1M Iroquois
* Boeing Vertol CH-46E Sea Knight
* Sikorsky UH-34D
* M35A2 cargo truck
* M42 Duster mobile anti-aircraft gun
* M101 howitzer artillery gun
* M114 armored fighting vehicle
* Dodge M43 ambulance
* Naval Support Camp
* PBR-105 river patrol boat
* Willys MB

### Other exhibits

* Medal of Honor museum, with biographies of all medal recipients