Dry Dock #1, Brooklyn Navy Yard

Dry Dock 1 is the oldest dry dock

in the Brooklyn Navy Yard

, and the third oldest in the country, completed in 1851.

It was a huge innovation for its time, and had a price tag to match... $2 million in 1851 dollars!

The granite

materials seem incredibly solid, but under the landfill that makes up the Navy Yard,
the construction kept bobbing up out of the ground.

Eventually, over 1,000 oaken piles we used to secure the dry dock in the ground—perhaps the
first time a steam powered pile driver

was ever used.

The dry dock is still working, over 158 years later. Its caisson

door, basically a water filled closure,
holds back the East River so that ships can be worked on. It takes 90 minutes to empty the space,
but only 45 minutes to fill it.

The blocks that occupy the bottom of the dry dock hold up the ships. Their placement is a very accurate
affair, as they have to accommodate every angle of ship to hold it—thus the numbers on the sides of the
chamber. They are made of wood, but with cement within. They are placed using the cranes on the sides
of the dock, which run on rails.

Today, the ship is a repair facility, one of the three dry docks operated by GMD Shipyard

for the
Brooklyn Navy Yard

. Together, they are the last functioning graving docks (in the ground) operating
in NYC, since the demise of Todd Shipyard

under the Red Hook Ikea

parking lot. There are also a small
number of floating dry docks operating in Staten Island. They serve vital role in repairing and
servicing tugboats and barges, the work horses of the harbor upon which so much traffic depends.

During the 19th century, ships were also built in Dry Dock 1. The historical list is pretty illustrious, including:

* the Niagara (1867): the ship that laid the first successful transatlantic cable

* The Monitor (1862): After being built at the Continental Iron Works

in Greenpoint, it was commissioned (armed and launched) in Dry Dock 1
* Halstead’s Folly or The Intelligent Whale (1872) the prototype of the first submarines ever built
* The Maine (1897) which had a very short sailing life before it exploded in Havana Harbor

, setting off the Spanish American War

in 1898.

Dry Dock 1 has a long history, but its job is not done. With continuing maintenance, it will be working for decades more to serve the city...

elly: 21st Apr 2009 - 07:42 GMT

love the sky and skyline in the 3rd photo. looks like a painting.

S & D: 21st Apr 2009 - 14:02 GMT

WOW.... What a crazy place! Thanks for all the info, too. Truly educational, as well as entertaining.

Kirsten Larson: 21st Apr 2009 - 16:40 GMT

Wow is right. What a weird almost foreboding looking place. I can't believe they still use it to work on boats after so looooong.

St. Seurs: 21st Apr 2009 - 17:01 GMT

Awesome, very cool. I never knew a hole in the ground could have so much history ;-)

Andy: 21st Apr 2009 - 18:43 GMT

part of what has made America great and is going away all the time

Gothicimage: 21st Apr 2009 - 19:40 GMT

That's a mere youngster - the oldest dry dock in Portsmouth Dockyard dates back to 1495! :-)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMNB_Portsmouth

NWhyC: 21st Apr 2009 - 22:51 GMT

Linda Wharton: 15th May 2009 - 14:26 GMT

I have a photograph taken at the Brooklyn Navy Yard of my great-grandfather in the early 20th century with a sailing ship at No. 2 Dry Dock TEVO? PEWG? (illegible) Plant. The ship is white and 3 masted. Any ideas?

JWT: 3rd Jul 2009 - 04:05 GMT

My father worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and told me stories of the dry docks. Thanks for the images to go with the stories.

Bob Morgan: 19th Jul 2009 - 16:34 GMT

I spent most of 1984 on US Navy destoyer that was in dry dock for
overhaul. It gave me a chance to explore this historic ship yard.
Viewing these dry dock pictures bring back a lot of memories of my
time spent there.

Clocker: 15th Sep 2009 - 03:46 GMT

WOW, what an awesome post! This place looks amazing!

Doug Lawson: 19th Oct 2009 - 20:03 GMT

Hi , love your photos, brings back memories of working down a dry dock here in Leith the port of Edinburgh Scotland. Our docks here were smaller maybe handling 20,00 tons but across the forth at the navy yard there is a dry dock that was built to service the dreadnaughts and upwards, they had to build a notch in one end for the mighty Hood 42,000 tons and developing 151,000hp for 32 knots. There is nothing like being down a dry dock beside a big ship out of her element...kinda spooky.

Frank Gunja: 28th Oct 2009 - 18:42 GMT

Great pictures! I was part of the crew that recommisioned the USS Pocono (AGC-16) that sat in mothballs at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Brought back many memories.

william t. bernal: 7th Nov 2009 - 05:51 GMT

This is a great resource,my son and I are building a diarama based on the book "Iron Thunder" seeing
the dry dock is a wonderfull insperation.Thank You!!


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The granite materials seem incredibly solid, but under the landfill that makes up the Navy Yard, the construction kept bobbing up out of the ground. Eventually, over 1,000 oaken piles we used to secure the dry dock in the ground—perhaps the first time a steam powered pile driver was ever used. The dry dock is still working, over 158 years later. Its caisson door, basically a water filled closure, holds back the East River so that ships can be worked on. It takes 90 minutes to empty the space, but only 45 minutes to fill it. The blocks that occupy the bottom of the dry dock hold up the ships. Their placement is a very accurate affair, as they have to accommodate every angle of ship to hold it—thus the numbers on the sides of the chamber. They are made of wood, but with cement within. They are placed using the cranes on the sides of the dock, which run on rails. Today, the ship is a repair facility, one of the three dry docks operated by GMD Shipyard for the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Together, they are the last functioning graving docks (in the ground) operating in NYC, since the demise of Todd Shipyard under the Red Hook Ikea parking lot. There are also a small number of floating dry docks operating in Staten Island. They serve vital role in repairing and servicing tugboats and barges, the work horses of the harbor upon which so much traffic depends. During the 19th century, ships were also built in Dry Dock 1. The historical list is pretty illustrious, including: * the Niagara (1867): the ship that laid the first successful transatlantic cable * The Monitor (1862): After being built at the Continental Iron Works in Greenpoint, it was commissioned (armed and launched) in Dry Dock 1 * Halstead’s Folly or The Intelligent Whale (1872) the prototype of the first submarines ever built * The Maine (1897) which had a very short sailing life before it exploded in Havana Harbor, setting off the Spanish American War in 1898. Dry Dock 1 has a long history, but its job is not done. With continuing maintenance, it will be working for decades more to serve the city... Brooklyn, NYC... This article has been viewed 4677 times in the last 18 months volare: AMAZING pics. Thanks very much! elly: 21st Apr 2009 - 07:42 GMT love the sky and skyline in the 3rd photo. looks like a painting. S & D: 21st Apr 2009 - 14:02 GMT WOW.... What a crazy place! Thanks for all the info, too. Truly educational, as well as entertaining. Kirsten Larson: 21st Apr 2009 - 16:40 GMT Wow is right. What a weird almost foreboding looking place. I can't believe they still use it to work on boats after so looooong. St. Seurs: 21st Apr 2009 - 17:01 GMT Awesome, very cool. I never knew a hole in the ground could have so much history ;-) Andy: 21st Apr 2009 - 18:43 GMT part of what has made America great and is going away all the time Gothicimage: 21st Apr 2009 - 19:40 GMT That's a mere youngster - the oldest dry dock in Portsmouth Dockyard dates back to 1495! :-) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMNB_Portsmouth NWhyC: 21st Apr 2009 - 22:51 GMT Linda Wharton: 15th May 2009 - 14:26 GMT I have a photograph taken at the Brooklyn Navy Yard of my great-grandfather in the early 20th century with a sailing ship at No. 2 Dry Dock TEVO? PEWG? (illegible) Plant. The ship is white and 3 masted. Any ideas? Peter: Can we see that photo?? JWT: 3rd Jul 2009 - 04:05 GMT My father worked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and told me stories of the dry docks. Thanks for the images to go with the stories. Bob Morgan: 19th Jul 2009 - 16:34 GMT I spent most of 1984 on US Navy destoyer that was in dry dock for overhaul. It gave me a chance to explore this historic ship yard. Viewing these dry dock pictures bring back a lot of memories of my time spent there. Clocker: 15th Sep 2009 - 03:46 GMT WOW, what an awesome post! This place looks amazing! Doug Lawson: 19th Oct 2009 - 20:03 GMT Hi , love your photos, brings back memories of working down a dry dock here in Leith the port of Edinburgh Scotland. Our docks here were smaller maybe handling 20,00 tons but across the forth at the navy yard there is a dry dock that was built to service the dreadnaughts and upwards, they had to build a notch in one end for the mighty Hood 42,000 tons and developing 151,000hp for 32 knots. There is nothing like being down a dry dock beside a big ship out of her element...kinda spooky. Frank Gunja: 28th Oct 2009 - 18:42 GMT Great pictures! I was part of the crew that recommisioned the USS Pocono (AGC-16) that sat in mothballs at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Brought back many memories. william t. bernal: 7th Nov 2009 - 05:51 GMT This is a great resource,my son and I are building a diarama based on the book "Iron Thunder" seeing the dry dock is a wonderfull insperation.Thank You!! Comment on this article.. 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