[This article contains background info on the CCC field trip to Mare Island on April 10, 2010. Learn more here.]
Mare Island, adjacent to Vallejo, is 933 acres bounded by fresh and salt water. During its time as a naval base, from 1854-1996, it built 513 ships and restored and upgraded many others. Much of the old equipment and buildings are still there providing countless photo ops for photographers.
In 1775, Don Felix Ayala sailed into San Francisco Bay, found the island, and claimed it for the king of Spain. The area passed through many hands until the US Navy bought it in 1852 for $83,000to have a place to dock and prepare ships sailing into the Pacific Ocean. Because of the Gold Rush, many ships were sailing in and out of the area. In 1854, David Farragut was appointed naval commander and began construction of the facilities. He remained in charge until sent to the Civil War to command Union ships. For his success in defeating the Confederate troops, he was promoted to be our country’s first admiral.
Marines were sent to Mare Island during the Civil War to quell any problems that Confederates would cause in the war effort. For some reason, Calistoga was considered to be a hotbed for Confederate sympathizers. The Marines continued to have a presence at Mare Island until the base closed.
Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 drew Mare Island into the forefront for naval battles in the Pacific. Two of the ships destroyed at Pearl Harbor were towed here for repairs. During WWII, 41,052 men and women worked in the facility. Military contracts brought a surge in California’s population which changed the state forever.
During the 1950s, submarines were built and repaired. Work on nuclear missile subs of the Polaris class continued until the base closed in 1996.
Presently Mare Island hosts many small businesses, a university, a Navy reserve unit, civilian housing, and a small museum of its history. For the photographer, the important sites are St. Peters Church with its stained glass windows, the cemetery which is open only once per month, Commanders Row, and the dry docks along the waterfront. Some areas are off limits and discretion is advised.
(Thanks to Carlyle Johnson of the Photo Irregulars for much of this info.)