New-York tribune., 1910-08-24
IMPROVING NAVY YARD
Pier Room for Eighteen Ships
When Work Is Complete.

Plans for the Improvement Of the navy
yard in Brooklyn have been perfected, and
work is under way which, when completed.
will completely change the appearance of
the yard from the East River.
4 400-foot wide channel has been cut
through Simmons street. which connected
the Cob Dock with the ordnance dock, much
of the Whitney Basin has been dredged to
q depth Of thirty-one feet at mean low Wa
ter, and dredgers are at work removing
what has been known as the toe" Of the
Cob Dock making it possible for big ships
TO reach dry dock No. with only one turn
in their course from the river.
The complete plans involve the entire re-
moval of the Cob Dock by dredging,
depth of thirty-one feet being planned for
the space it now occupies. This will leave
the ordnance dock and recreation ground
connected with the yard proper BY only
narrow causeway, now known as THE
Horn" The old chain ferry will be a thing
of the past; the receiving ship Hancock,
formerly the Guion Line steamer Arizona,
will no longer be a landmark on the river
front, and the yard will be a great basin.
bristing with piers and open to the river.
Where the southwestern corner of the
yards abuts on Little street there will
be a pier built out TO the East River
line large enough to accommodate two
vessels. Between the present launching
ways and dry dock No. l there will be
series Of three piers, accommodating five
vessels Another pier is to be placed north
of dry dock No. s. which with the line Of
the causeway- will provide room for four
vessels, and one pier is to be built parallel
TO the present coal piers, jutting into the
river.
These. with the room at the inside line
of the ordnance dock, will take seven ves-
sells, so that there will be pier room when
the work is finished for eighteen ships CT
which sixteen may be battleships. These
piers will be about five hundred feet long
by seventy-five wide.
AS it is not at all likely that so many big
ships will be at the yard at one time, there
will be plenty Of room for the small fry of
yard tugs, lighters, launches and water
boa Is
Bids have been asked from contractors
for building pier D from the wall next to
dry dock No, l, the whole basin will be
made Of uniform depth, and the buildings at
present on the Cob Dock moved to some of
the vacant spaces in the yard, probably
back of the marine barracks.
The saluting battery viii be brought over
alongside the launching ways, and the in
teiligent whale" the old submarine mon
ster, now an object of interest to visitors TO
the Hancock, il is said, will be made an
addition TO the new trophy PATCH at the
Sands street entrance to the yard
The total cost of the work is estimated
at about s1,50O, 600. of which about $4,000
has already been spent The time involved
Is uncertain, depending upon the speed with
which Congress appropriates the money re-
qulred beyond what is at present available.
Ihe yard Will not be SO pretty to look at
as 1t now IS, but plans of the civil en-
s1neers department will make the station
OF much greater use to the department and
effect large saving over the present cost of
handling and repairing ships Most of the
vessels, even when the yard is full, will be
in close touch with the shops, effecting q
big economy in time and delivering mate
rials-