Jesse's Homebase

Our Jesse is qualified as a "nuke" - what that means is that he works on ships with nuclear power plants.  In the beginning he was able to refuse travel assignments, tho truth be told, with such a small pool of nukes he could be "forced" if things were tight enough.  Nowadays Jess no longer has the "option" to refuse and must go where they want him.  Period.  That's how Yokuska happened.  He's been dodging that bullet for a long time!


This post is all about the place he works and the two yards he works out of.  In compiling the list of "Jesse's boats" I learned that he's  worked most often on subs.  But, like Dad in his missile days, there's not a lot Jess can say about what he does.  From time to time I'll read something on Military.com about a boat I know he's worked on and tell Jesse about it.  His reply is usually something like "Oh yeah, we did that a long time ago"!

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard was originally established in 1891 as a Naval Station and was designated Navy Yard Puget Sound in 1901. USS Iowa enters dry dock 1, 1900 During World War I, the Navy Yard constructed ships, including 25 subchasers, seven submarines, two minesweepers, seven sea-going tugs, and two ammunition ships, as well as 1,700 small boats. Ammunition ship ready for launch 12-16-1919 During World War II, the Shipyard’s primary effort was the repair of battle damage to ships of the U.S. Fleet and those of its Allies. Shipyard workers view damaged carrier Construction of the Hammerhead Crane was completed in 1933. Hammerhead Crane lifting a 350 ton test load consisting of four 14 inch guns,  four 6 inch guns and 2 pieces of armor plate. USS Arizona BB-39 at Bremerton 8-2-1937   Lady welders 1942    Following World War II, Navy Yard Puget Sound was designated Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. The Shipyard engaged in an extensive program of modernizing carriers, including converting conventional flight decks to angle decks. During the Korean conflict, the Shipyard was engaged in the activation of ships. In the late 1950's the Shipyard entered an era of new construction with the building of a new class of guided missile frigates. Construction of USS KING (DLG 10) and  USS COONTZ (DLG 9)  guided missile frigates in Dry Dock 3, January 1958 USS SCULPIN SSN- 590, a Skipjack class submarine, was the first nuclear powered submarine worked on at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in 1965. Skipjack class In 1990 the U.S. Navy authorized a program to recycle nuclear powered ships at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. Approximately 6%* of the Shipyard’s workload involves inactivation, reactor compartment disposal, and recycling of ships. The Shipyard has pioneered an environmentally safe method of deactivating and recycling nuclear-powered ships. This process places the U.S. Navy in the role of being the world's only organization to design, build, operate, and recycle nuclear powered ships. Bangor Naval Intermediate Maintenance Facility, Pacific Northwest, first known as TRIDENT Refit Facility (TRF), Bangor, was established on July 31,1981 as the primary maintenance facility for the West Coast TRIDENT submarine fleet. In 1998 TRF consolidated with Shore Intermediate Maintenance Activity (SIMA), at Everett and Bremerton, and became Naval Intermediate Maintenance Facility (NAVIMFAC) Pacific Northwest. Today, the Bangor site operates refit piers, repair shops and a drydock located in the homeports of submarines, ships, and aircraft carriers in the Pacific Northwest. Bangor has expertise in hull, mechanical, electrical, electronics, and weapons systems repair; continually responding to meet the fleet’s maintenance and repair needs with on-time, cost-effective and quality service. Delta Pier, Bangor The Delta Pier at Bangor, so named because of its triangular configuration, has two refit piers and a drydock on the shore side. It has one of the largest drydocks built by the Navy and is the only drydock in the world constructed parallel to the shoreline. Everett piers accommodate numerous surface ships and an aircraft carrier. On May 15, 2003, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Naval Intermediate Maintenance Facility, Pacific Northwest (located at Bangor, Bremerton and Everett, WA) consolidated into one maintenance activity - creating PSNS and IMF. The consolidation improves fleet readiness by allowing the Navy to accomplish the highest priority, real-time ship maintenance requirements while achieving the most maintenance effort possible for the tax dollar. The sharing of expertise and resources between the Bremerton and Bangor sites provides the Navy with a streamlined approach to maintenance and allows for the savings to be reinvested in the fleet. The Shipyard is proud of its history as a naval presence on the West Coast since 1891 and of its current status as a world-class maintenance facility for the U.S. Navy. The combined organization is better equipped to continue to provide superb leadership and continuous process improvement in the areas of productivity, environmental stewardship, and technical innovation. Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is the Pacific Northwest's largest Naval shore facility and one of Washington State's largest industrial installations. photos, text Puget Sound Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility, navy source archives