USS Texas Hard Hat Tour (original) (raw)

SpecialFeature:

SanJacinto BattlegroundState Park

BattleshipTexas HardHat Tour

La Porte (Houston), Texas

January 18, 2003

Steering

Steering Room (and Emergency Steering Station), Steering Gear Room

One of the real highlights of the Hard Hat Tours is a visit to the steering room. Containing both the steering engine and the emergency steering station, the room is dominated by four old-style ship's wheels. Requiring 16 men to use them, they provided control of the ship's rudder if the other controls systems were inoperative. The station contained a set of instruments like those found in Central Station, the conning tower and pilothouse. The next compartment aft - the steering gear room - housed the gigantic hydraulic rams that actually pivoted the rudder, extending to the rudder pintle at the rear of the compartment. Never letting an opportunity to get more use out of a compartment pass, bunk hooks were still visible in the steering gear room where sailors slept between watches.

The Photos

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SteeringRoom (& EmergencySteering)