About That U.S. Navy White Oak Forest in Indiana-- Part 2: Welcome to Constitution Grove

The USS Constitution , called "Old Ironsides" is a museum ship docked in Boston, but she has an active duty crew and commander.  She has even sailed under her own power as recently as twenty years ago.

So, one of the Navy's unusual jobs is there at a civilian forester maintained.  They call the group of trees Constitution Grove in Indiana.

From the USS Constitution Museum "The Wooden Walls" of USS Constitution.

The USS Constitution received, according to Secretary  of War Knox, "the best white oak."  However, with each restoration of the ship, white oak of the size needed became increasingly difficult to obtain.  Nearly two generations and three restorations ago, white oak trees at the Naval Facilities Engineering  Command in Crane, Indiana,  were designated for the USS Constitution.

At the time, as the 1973 work began on the ship, the U.S. Navy noted:  "Seasoned white oak, ... needed in the ... overhaul of ... Constitution, was difficult to ... procure."  Over 150 white oak trees spread over the  64,000 acre base were designated for the ship.

In April 2012,  70 of these trees were examined and 35 selected that will be used to replace  the 30-40-foot long rotted hull planks on the ship.

--Brock-Perry

Trees for the USS Constitution-- Part 4

Essentially, the USS Constitution had 24-inches of extremely strong wood.  This caused the smaller British cannons to fire cannon balls that seemed just to bounce off the sides of the Constitution earning her the name "Old Ironsides."

For the upcoming repairs, most of the planks will be 30-40 feet long and six inches thick and must have no defects.

Even after being afloat for most of 200 years, some 12% of the wood in the Constitution is original.  Most all of the keel, bottom frames and probably the bottom 13 planks have never had to be replaced.

A grove of trees at Crane was officially named "Constitution Grove" on May 8, 1776, during the nation's Bicentennial.

--Brock-Perry

Trees for the USS Constitution-- Part 3: Revolutionary Construction

Continued from January 15, 2016.

The strength of the USS Constitution's sides came from a revolutionary design by shipbuilder Joshua Humphreys called "frame and space."

The outer layer was of white oak planking up to seven inches thick on top of 12 inches of live oak frames, followed by an inner layer of white oak planking up to five inches thick.

There was only a gap of two inches between the pairs of white oak frame.

--Brock-Perry

Trees for the USS Constitution-- Part 2

Much work is involved with these white oak trees before they can be placed on the Constitution.  They must be harvested, milled, shaped and then transported to Boston.  The final step is installation.

In addition, there is only a limited time slot for harvesting the trees because the NSA Crane forest is home for the endangered Indiana bat.

The forest now has 150 GPS-located mature white oaks set aside for future use on the USS Constitution.

The white oak lumber will be used to replace deteriorated hull planking and support structures called knees.  White oak is the same king of wood used originally.

--Brock-Perry

Naval Support Activity Crane

The trees for the USS Constitution repairs were selected from the Naval Support Activity Crane, about 25 miles southwest of Bloomington, Indiana.

This is a huge base, with 64,000 acres, 109 miles of roadway, over 3,000 buildings spread over the 98 square miles.

It is manned by 5,000 Department of Defense civilian and contractor personnel and just 50 military.

--Brock-Perry

Trees for the USS Constitution-- Part 1

From the April 19, 2012 America's Navy  "Select NSA Crane Trees to help Repair 'Old Ironsides'"  by Bill  Counch.

Representatives of the Boston Navy Yard assessed specially designated trees at Naval Support Activity (NSA) Crane (Indiana) April 17 and 18 for preparations to restore the USS Constitution in drydock.  The USS Constitution is the world's oldest commissioned warship.

Foreman Dwight DeMilt, ship restorer, and Robert Murphy, production manager, Naval History and Heritage Command, Boston detachment, hiked to see several dozen white oak trees located around the 63,000 acre base to determine suitable trees for the ship.

DeMilt was also involved in the Constitution's last drydocking 1991-1995.

The new drydocking is scheduled for 2014-2018, but much work remains to be done before then.

--Brock-Perry