USS Texas Hard Hat Tour (original) (raw)

SpecialFeature:

SanJacinto BattlegroundState Park

BattleshipTexas HardHat Tour

La Porte (Houston), Texas

January 18, 2003

USS Texas (BB-35) DANFS

Have you ever visited a ship and wondered what's behind those locked doors? Peered through a grate at the spaces beyond, wishing you could explore them? Wished you could get past the Plexiglas for a really close look?

Well, you can.

The Battleship Texas instituted in 2002 a program called the Hard Hat Tour. Held periodically throughout the year, the Hard Hat Tours offer visitors the chance to see spaces not open to the general public. Led by members of the First Texas Volunteers (the volunteer restoration association), groups of 10 move throughout the ship on a planned 3-hour tour. There are generally four time slots each day with two groups each, starting at opposite ends of the battleship.

No joke in the name; participants are required to wear hard hats issued by the park, and you should be wearing rubber soled soles and be prepared for some serious laundry after you're done. You will bear rust, grease and cosmoline stains with honor. You'll climb ladders, squeeze through hatches, and crouch down in spaces not large enough to stand in. You'll find yourself in compartments where the only light comes from your flashlight (you must bring one as a requirement) and the occasional camera flash. In short, you'll have the time of your life.

The Hard Hat Tour has a minimum donation of $30, which goes into a fund reserved specifically for the ship's restoration and preservation, unlike the standard public access fee (waived for this tour) which goes into the general fund of Texas Parks & Wildlife. Tour dates are routinely posted both on the officialTPWD site and a site organized by the First Texas Volunteers (links at the bottom of this page). Write or call early; tours fill up fast. Contact Barbara Graf (218)479-2431 ext. 234 or email barbara.graf@tpwd.state.tx.us.

I took part in the January 18, 2003 Hard Hat Tour and was allowed the privilege of attending not one but two tours, at 11:00 and 3:00. Bringing back an embarrassing amount of digital photos, I've sifted through them to present here a glimpse of USS Texas behind the scenes. As a special addition to the tour, through the kindness and consideration of Barry Ward, Dennis Mitchell, Charles Moore and Tom Scott, I was also allowed to see the armored conning tower after the last tour. I'd like to thank them and all of the volunteers for a day that I won't soon forget. Take a Hard Hat Tour and you'll be hooked, too.

This page acts as a "home page" for the tour photos and each photo below will open a new page focusing on one or more compartments. Return here to continue your tour.

The Pages

(click on thumbnails to access the specific page)

Foremast Pilothouse, Captain's Sea Cabin, Bridge Radio/Radar Room, Charthouse	Turret #1 Gun House, Gun Pit
3rd (Ammunition) Deck Ammunition Deck, Radio Station	ElectricalSpaces Forward Distribution, Forward Dynamo
CentralStation	MainPlot
EngineeringSpaces 1 Lower Drying Room, Blower Room	EngineeringSpaces 2 Boiler Room, Forward Condenser Room
Turret#5 Lower Handling Room, Powder Magazines, Shell Magazines, Upper Handling Room	Steering Steering Room (Emergency Steering), Steering Gear Room
ConningTower Armored Conning Tower, Conning Tower Fire Control Booth	TheLast Word