Milford chronicle., 1926-06-25
CONCRETE SHIP,
WAR FAILURE, TO
SERVE PEACE END
Ccontinued from first page)

crete pier, SuITOuuuSu W Ss'HN W.
in and without. 1t will be more sub
stantial than a regular concrete
pier"
On the Atlantus the stern is built
up of concrete seventeen feet above
the regular hull line, or the moldlng
depth. This is also true Of the bow
and the central part of the ship on
which is the bridge. This height Will
be the level of the pier. Floors VIII
he laid across the lower portions so T.
automobiles and passengers can go |
across the higher level.
At the stern of the boat, which will |
be the end of the pier, there will be
a float to take care of the seven ana
one-half feet rise and fall Oh the
tides. From it passengers Will step
directly on to the ferryboats.
Another innovation will be made
in tbe construction of the ferry slip
itself Two wooden hulls, each two
hundred and fifty feet long, have
been bought, according to Mr.. Ros-
enfield. After the Atlantus IS sunk,
the sterns of the wooden boats VIII
be anchored to the sterns OF the con-
crete hull, and the boats will extend
out diagonally to form the shears
(sides) of the ferry slip.
These boats also will be filled with
sand and sunk into the floor of the
bay. in the same manner as the con-
crete ship.
concrete boats are not new to the
history of naval architecture. caesar
used concrete boats, one of which Is
now in the British Museum, accord
ing TO a naval officer stationed at
cane Nav. Another officer said they
We're used by the English in the six
teenth century. Concrete barges nave
been used on inland waters Tor a
number of years.
"But concrete hulls are the worst
thing ever designed for the mgh
seas :" declared Captain P. F. Dorsey,
General manager of the. National
Navigation Company. They are TOO
stiff and unwieldy. Steel and Woou
will give while concrete VIII only
crack. The Government would never
bavn built them if it had not been
for the scarcity of steel and lumber
during the war. Concrete absorbs a
certain amount of water and con-
crete sbips displace thirty per cent
more water than other ships Oh ike
size"
.eThe Atlantus was built by the
Liberty Shipbuilding Company OF
Rrnnswick. Georgia." said Mr.. Ros-
enfield. 1T was commissioned on
June l, 1919.
"It is 25O feet long and has beam
of AZ feet 6 inches. The boat weighs
1000 tons. Because of its size ana
PROPORTIONS unusual care IN lts con
strnction was necessary to keep the
contour symmetrical. Virtually a
mold of the entire ship had to DC
made first.
"First a steel framework forming
A sheating was made, around WhIcn
the concrete was poured. RlDs o.
steel are used to give extra support
Also there are large iron posts
which run from the keel up 10 In'
main deck. At the deck the concrete
walls are eight inches thick anC
these increase as you go down unit
the thickness at the keel is twenty
four inches" -,
.oThe boat was built as an oil
burner" he continued. 1t has SIX
teen oil bunkers with capacity Q
100000 gallons. These are 6ncased Il
the hull on top of the keelson' 1
concrete. None of her machinery !
left except the two boilers, Whlc
weigh seventy tons each. The super
structure is nearly intact, but tha
will all be removed.
Captain Dorsey said the boats 10
shows it made several trips to FL
rope before it was laid up. The por'
of entry have been obliterated b
dampness, he said.
"The Atlantus was tied up IN Ii
James River in 1920 by the Shll
ming Board" Mr.. ROsenfeld SAID. !
1925 it was bought by firm OF Jun
dealers. who removed everything
nroft and then placed it on the Or;
new Island Flats off Newport New
1 bought it April 3O."
"Only four of those concrete boa
were made" he added "One is no
being used at Miami as a hotel al
floating amusement pier. Another
in commission at Boston. The thll
was lost at sea.
He told how he decided to use Il
Atlantus for a pier.
"My original idea was to build
concrete pier for the ferry" he sal
..Engineers and people familiar wi
local conditions doubted Wheth
ANYTHING could Withstand the strol
northwest and northeast win
which sweep the bay unless 1t Iii
all the stability of REINFORCED co
crete. The cost of such pier wou
be around S15O,OO0. This was prohl
tive So 1 asked ]. Harry PHILIP
Gales manager of the Emergen
Fleet Corporation, whether any
+be concrete boats built during t
war could be obtained. He direct
me to the Atlantus. By using it
cost is cut more than 60 per cent
"The engineers first said t
scheme was impractical. But s1T
the matter has been investigated
have assurances it will meet the
o,,irements. Captain Dorsey has
ed this scheme in small way
Rock Hall, Maryland, where he su
a 11O-foot boat for landing stage
"I submitted my plan to Colo
F. c. Boggs, Corps of Engineers,
6 A. who is stationed gSt Philad
phia, and he said he saw no rea'
whv the plan would not work oui
Many people are not so optimis
Naval officers here have pointed
that the problem of shifting sand
a serious one. "No matter how DC
l. boat is imbedded in the So