Quote:
Originally Posted by sporticus
The first picture below appearst to be an actual photo of the PH when it was the Yorktown. This photo is very similar to the second image and I think maybe the second image of the ship with guns is based on the first.
However there are two things I have noticed that are in the first and not the second. The front of the ship has a raised piece and there is clearly superstructure in front of the paddle wheel boxes almost up to the masts.
Could this have been removed when it was taken over by the navy, or is just missing from sketches?
The third picture is of the model in the Hampton Roads museum. I would have liked to have thought this is accurate, but who knows?
|
I just checked out the original photos you posted previously, and the first one is actually a photograph of a painting of the Yorktown, which is, of course, the merchant ship version before changed to a warship. There are different considerations in ship design between the two roles, one of which is probably protection of the crew, so the bulwarks would have been reinforced and/or increased in height. It would appear they added the bulwark in the after section as sell, to replace the open railings. Then there is the need to have the forward gun clear the bulwark when firing, so they probably lowered or did away with the forecastle (foc'sle) flare from her earlier day to accommodate the forward gun. By the way, the forward upper deck part of a ship is normally called a "foc'sle", derived from forecastle, referring to a raised deck area of the old sailing ships (forward castle), but the term has been used even when the forward deck is not raised above the main weather deck, like in this ship, to indicate the forward deck area.
I gather looking at the model picture it seems fairly accurate compared to the second picture you have posted, but I am sure others more familiar with this ship can tell you better.
Keep at it, mate, she is looking great!
Cheers!
Jim