December 19, 2016 – Monday
Heavy rain was forecast for last night and we were delighted that Mother Nature would wash the salt off Andiamo for us, and she did just that. She also continued to give us rain until 7:00 am this morning. Today was below 55 degrees, foggy, with winds up to 35 mph. Mind you, I’m not complaining, and I know that most of you are in terrible weather conditions, but the wind-chill index made me want to stay on Andiamo and read the day away.
Docking a boat isn’t as easy as parking a car, but Rick and I work well together and usually do very well. As we prepared to pull into our slip at Bay Point Marina I realized, that this time, I was not prepared.. We had never backed in and had never had to tie-up to poles, suddenly I realized that I needed lines at all four corners of the boat and Rick was already backing up. Fortunately, the marina had sent someone down to help with the lines and he patiently led me through the new process. Next time, I will be ready.
As we passed the military installations along the GIWW I wondered if any of them were in operation during the Civil War. Of the six installations, three Navy and three Air Force, the Naval Air Station at Pensacola has the longest and most colorful historical background. Dating back to the 16th century, the Pensacola area has served as a military base for several countries and was significant to the Civil War, some claim the first shots of the Civil War were fired here.
Brief History of the Naval Air Station at Pensacola
1559 –Spanish founded the first European settlement in the area
1697 – Spanish built Fort San Carlos de Austria on this site
1719 – French captured Pensacola and destroyed Fort San Carlos de Austria
1763 – Great Britain took over the site after defeating the French in the Seven Years’ War
1781 – Great Britain ceded West Florida to Spain after the American Revolutionary War
1797 – Spain built Fort San Carlos de Barrancas on this site
1814 – Pensacola was taken by General Andrew Jackson during the War of 1812
1821- Spain ceded this territory to the US
1825 – At the request of President John Quincy Adams and Secretary of the Navy Samuel Southard, the US designated this area for the Pensacola Navy Yard, which became the Warrington Navy Yard
1826 – Warrington Navy Yard, became one of the best equipped naval stations in the country
1861- Warrington Navy Yard surrendered to secessionists, just prior to the commencement of the Civil War
1862 – Fearing attack from the Union after they captured New Orleans, Confederate troops reduced the Navy Yard to rubble and then retreated. After the Civil War, the base was rebuilt for use as a Navy Yard
1913 – Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola was established as an aviation training station in Pensacola
1917 – As we entered WW I, Naval Air Station Pensacola, the United States’ only naval air station, had 38 naval aviators, 163 enlisted men trained in aviation, and 54 airplanes.
1935 – Aviation Cadet Training Program began on Chevalier Field, Naval Air Station Pensacola
1944 – During World War II, the number of pilots trained by NAS Pensacola reached an all-time high of 12,010 men
Today, NAS Pensacola provides support to 94 Department of Defense (DoD) and 31 non-DoD tenant commands, most of which are primarily dedicated to the training of Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard personnel in naval aviation.