USS Maine
GENERAL:
The USS MAINE was one of the first United States battleships to be constructed. The vessel's destruction in the Cuba Harbor of Havana was a catalyst in bringing war between the United States and Spain. The loss of the ship was tremendous shock to the United States since it represented virtually the state of the art of naval shipbuilding in the United States, only recently eclipsed by newer vessels. "Remember the Maine" became the battlelecry of the United States Military Forces in 1898.
BACKGROUND:
The USS MAINE was the second "second-class battleship" constructed for the U.S. Navy. The construction of the vessel was authorized by the U.S. Congress on August 3, 1886. MAINE took nearly nine years to complete. Three years had been spent waiting for her armor plating alone.
The USS MAINE was unique at the time in that she was purely the product of American naval design, and was built at a U.S. Naval Yard. By contrast, her contemporary, the USS TEXAS, was the product of a design competition, based on an English design, and constructed by a naval contractor. In fact, the USS MAINE is the largest vessel to be actually built in a U.S. Navy Yard.
The new battleship MAINE was a showpiece for the United States Navy and was given many ceremonial tasks. For instance, it took part in the 1897 Mardi Gras ceremony in New Orleans, Louisiana along with the USS TEXAS. Between June and December 1897, the vessel could be found cruising off the coast of the United States between Virginia and Connecticut. On December 15, 1897, she got underway, heading south toward Florida and her final destiny.
The USS MAINE arrived in Cuba's Havana harbor on January 24, 1898. Because of propaganda from the U.S. newspapers and the Cuban Insurgents, the situation in Cuba was not fully understood in Washington DC. The U.S. Consul in Havana, Fitzhugh Lee, was also somewhat out of touch with the country in which he was living. In response to a small protest by Spanish officers, not affecting the United States, Washington sent the USS MAINE to Cuba on a "friendly" visit. At about 9:30 PM on February 15, the MAINE was shattered by two separate explosions and rapidly sank. Two hundred and fifty-two men were killed. Ammunition continued to explode for hours after the blast.
After the disaster, U.S. newspapers were quick to place responsibility for the loss on Spain. In spite of the newspaper propaganda, an official court of inquiry was held by the U.S. Navy to determine the cause of the blasts. The Navy concluded that the ship was sunk by a mine which ignited the forward magazines, but stated that it could not fix responsibility upon any person or persons, including the government or military forces of Spain. Regardless of the reality of the situation, the loss of the USS MAINE had turned American popular opinion strongly in favor of war with Spain. Despite of his efforts to avoid war, President McKinley finally decided to militarily intervene in Cuba to end the ongoing unrest and "liberate" Cuba from Spanish rule. Later studies have indicated a strong possibility that the USS MAINE sunk as a result of a coal bunker fire adjacent to one of its ammunition magazines, and not a result of a Spanish mine.
The USS MAINE rested on the floor of Havana Harbor until 1911. In that year, a cofferdam was built around the wreck. The hull was patched enough to enable it to float. Based on what was found, a second inconclusive court of inquiry was held, one of many to come. The wreck was then towed out of the harbor and sunk in sea. It now lies at a depth of thirty-six hundred feet.
Many momentos of the USS MAINE still exist. The mainmast is in Arlington National Cemetery, just outside of Washinton DC, and her foremast is near the seawall at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. One of her bow anchors is located in a cemetery in Reading, Pennsylvania. Her capstan rests in the Battery in Charleston, South Carolina, and her bow scroll is at the Maine Capital, Bangor. Many pieces of the USS MAINE were made into small collectibles such as ashtrays, plaques, models, etc.
ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES:
One major problem with this type of vessel, and a common problem aboard warships of the time period, was that the coal bunkers were used as additional "armor" to protect the magazines. The bunkers were placed around the perimeter of the ship, and magazines were placed inboard of this extra layer of protection. Spontaneous combustion fires in coal bunkers were somewhat common. A burning coal bunker on the opposite side of a bulkhead from a magazine full of ammunition presented a real and great danger.
Also, the USS MAINE's forward turret was located off center to the starboard side of the vessel, making it impossible to fire to port. The aft turret was located on the port side of the vessel, and therefore could not fire to starboard. This created great limitations in battle maneuverability and deployment of firepower.
Interestingly, when the USS MAINE was finally launched and loaded with supplies, it was found that the bow had a draft three feet greater than the stern. This imbalance was the result of a mistake in the loading plan. Forty-eight tons of ballast had to be installed near the stern to put the ship back on an even keel. The USS MAINE therefore had a greater draft than planned as well as valueless additional weight.
The USS MAINE was the United States' first armored ship to be authorized and the second to be completed. The USS MAINE and the USS TEXAS represented a great step forward in American naval technology and were first two true American battleships.
TECHNOTES:
| Classification: |
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Second Class Battleship
(formerly Armored Cruiser, ACR-1) |
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| Keel Laid: |
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October 11, 1888 |
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| Comissioned: |
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September 17, 1895 |
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| Rig: |
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Two military masts, planned sails never provided. |
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| Armament: |
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Four 10" guns in two turrets |
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Six 6" guns |
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Seven 6-pounders |
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Eight 1-pounders |
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Several Colt Gatling Guns (for landing parties) |
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Four 14" surface torpedo tubes |
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| Contractor: |
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Designed by the U.S. Navy Bureau of Construction, and built |
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at the New York Navy Yard in Brooklyn, New York. |
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| Length: |
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319 feet |
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| Beam: |
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57 feet |
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| Mean draft: |
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22 feet |
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| Displacement: |
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6,682 tons |
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| Complement: |
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Under the command of Captain Charles Sigsbee |
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| Engine type: |
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Twin screw vertical inverted triple expansion engines, |
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manufactured by Quintard Iron Works, and generating 9,000 hp. |
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The two propellers were 15 feet in diameter. |
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| Speed: |
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15 knots |
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| Coal bunker capacity: |
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896 tons |
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Sources used for this information (see Bibliography for full source list)
Blow, Michael, "A Ship to Remember", New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1992.
Clerk of Joint Comittee on Printing, "The Abridgement of Message from the President of the United States to the Two Houses of Congress", Washington: Government Printing Office, 1899. 4 vols. (all are documents relating to the war).
Harris, Lt. Cmdr. Brayton, "The Age of the Battleship", New York: Franklin Watts, Inc., 1965.
Jeffers, H. Paul, "Colonel Roosevelt", New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1996.
Millis, Walter, "The Martial Spirit", Cambridge: The Riverside Press, 1931.
Naval History Department, Navy Department, "Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships", Washington DC: Government Printing Office, 1959.
