Seawolf Park - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Seawolf Park is a memorial to , a United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

Sargo-class

Sargo class submarine

The Sargo-class submarines were the first US submarines to be sent into action after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, starting war patrols the day after the attack...

submarine

Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...

mistakenly sunk by U.S. Navy forces in 1944 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. It is located on Pelican Island

Pelican Island (Texas)

Pelican Island is an island located in Galveston County, Texas. It is part of the city of Galveston and is linked to Galveston Island by a causeway. The island is home to the Texas A&M University at Galveston as well as USS Stewart , USS Cavalla and Seawolf Park...

(29°20′03"N 94°46′45"W), just north of Galveston

Galveston, Texas

Galveston is a coastal city located on Galveston Island in the U.S. state of Texas. , the city had a total population of 47,743 within an area of...

, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Seawolf park is unique in that it has a submarine

Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...

, and the remains of a merchant ship, and a destroyer escort

Destroyer escort

A destroyer escort is the classification for a smaller, lightly armed warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II. It is employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also provides some protection...

designed to conduct antisubmarine warfare -- the hunter, hunted, and the protector -- all in one museum area. It is the home of two preserved U.S. Navy ships, the Gato-class

Gato class submarine

The United States Navy Gato class submarine formed the core of the submarine service that was largely responsible for the destruction of the Japanese merchant marine and a large portion of the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II...

submarine and the Edsall-class

Edsall class destroyer escort

The Edsall class destroyer escorts were built primarily for ocean anti-submarine escort service during World War II. The lead ship, USS Edsall was commissioned on 10 April 1943 at Orange, Texas. The class was also known as the FMR type from their Fairbanks-Morse Reduction-geared diesel drive...

destroyer escort

Destroyer escort

, and the remains of the World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

tanker

Tanker (ship)

A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...

S.S. Selma, the largest concrete ship

Concrete ship

Concrete ships are ships built of steel and ferrocement instead of more traditional materials, such as steel or wood. The advantage of ferrocement construction is that materials are cheap and readily available, while the disadvantages are that construction labor costs are high, as are operating...

constructed, can be seen northwest of the parks fishing pier at 29°20′40"N 94°47′10"W . Also preserved at the park is the conning tower

Conning tower

A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer can con the vessel; i.e., give directions to the helmsman. It is usually located as high on the ship as practical, to give the conning team good visibility....

of the Balao-class

Balao class submarine

The Balao class was a successful design of United States Navy submarine used during World War II, and with 122 units built, the largest class of submarines in the United States Navy. An improvement on the earlier Gato class, the boats had slight internal differences...

submarine and the sail

Sail (submarine)

In naval parlance, the sail or fin of a submarine is the tower-like structure found on the dorsal surface of submarines...

of the Sturgeon-class

Sturgeon class submarine

The Sturgeon class were a class of nuclear-powered fast attack submarines in service with the United States Navy from the 1960s until 2004. They were the "work horses" of the submarine attack fleet throughout much of the Cold War...

nuclear attack submarine .

At one point in time, the park also had an M113

M113 armored personnel carrier

The M113 is a fully tracked armored personnel carrier that has formed the backbone of the United States Army's mechanized infantry units from the time of its first fielding in Vietnam in April 1962. The M113 was the most widely used armored vehicle of the U.S...

armored personnel carrier on display.

The park has a picnic

Picnic

In contemporary usage, a picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a meal is eaten outdoors , ideally taking place in a beautiful landscape such as a park, beside a lake or with an interesting view and possibly at a public event such as before an open air theatre performance,...

and fishing

Fishing

Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....

is allowed on the well-maintained pier for a small fee. There is also pedestrian

Pedestrian

A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In some communities, those traveling using roller skates or skateboards are also considered to be pedestrians. In modern times, the term mostly refers to someone walking on a road or footpath, but this was not the case...

access to the shoreline on either side of the park where anglers can fish for free. Fish that can be caught in the park area include sand seatrout, speckled trout

Speckled Trout

Speckled trout may refer to:* Brook trout , a freshwater fish in the Salmonidae family* Spotted seatrout , a coastal saltwater or brackish water fish in the Sciaenidae family...

, gafftopsail catfish

Gafftopsail catfish

The gafftopsail catfish, Bagre marinus, is found in the waters of the western central Atlantic Ocean, as well as the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. It has long venomous spines which can cause painful wounds. It feeds on crustaceans and other fish. The male of the species fertilizes the eggs...

, drum, and flounder

Flounder

The flounder is an ocean-dwelling flatfish species that is found in coastal lagoons and estuaries of the Northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.-Taxonomy:There are a number of geographical and taxonomical species to which flounder belong.*Western Atlantic...

, among others.

See also