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56-574: The Long Beach Naval Shipyard (Long Beach NSY or LBNSY), which closed in 1997, was located on Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles, approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles International Airport . The primary role of NSY Long Beach at the time of its closure was overhaul and maintenance of conventionally-powered US Navy surface ships, but it also had served as

112-589: A civilian facility, Allen Field, was established on Terminal Island. The Naval Reserve established a training center at the field and later took complete control, designating the field Naval Air Base San Pedro (also called Reeves Field). In 1941, the Long Beach Naval Station was located adjacent to the airfield. In 1942, the Naval Reserve Training Facility was transferred, and a year later NAB San Pedro's status

168-535: A coal-handling facility. Preservation of vacant buildings earned the island a spot on the top 11 sites on the National Trust for Historic Preservation 's 2012 Most Endangered Historic Places List. In mid-2013, the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners approved a preservation plan. The trust cited the site as one of ten historic sites saved in 2013. The west half of the island is part of

224-517: A new group called the Terminal Islanders. It was established in an effort to preserve the essence of their beloved community.  In 2002, a memorial was established on Terminal Island by surviving second generation citizens to honor their Issei parents and preserve the memory of their Furusato, which means hometown. Terminal Island is now protected under a perseveration plan established by the Los Angeles Board of Harbor Commissioners, so

280-652: A single passage in late July 1943, transporting a staggering 765,429 military personnel during the war. Large numbers of troopships were employed during World War II, including 220 "Limited Capacity" Liberty ship conversions, 30 Type C4 ship -based General G. O. Squier -class , a class of 84 Victory ship conversions, and a small number of Type- C3-S-A2 ship-based dedicated transports, and 15 classes of attack transports , of which some 400 alone were built. The designation HMT (Her/His Majesty's Transport) would normally replace RMS (Royal Mail Ship), MV (Motor Vessel) or SS (Steamship) for ships converted to troopship duty with

336-802: A total of 1,095 acres (443 ha) on Terminal Island and 319 acres (129 ha) of off-base housing. Half to two-thirds of the area of the finished NSY was built on new fill, so structures were supported on piles. Navy presence on Terminal Island started in 1938. The Terminal Island Naval Dry Docks were authorized in June 1940, and construction began in August 1940 on one large drydock and two smaller docks. Recreation facilities, personnel and shop buildings were ordered in February 1942, and work began on Drydocks 2 and 3 and several piers in April 1942. On 9 February 1943,

392-457: The City of Los Angeles , and leased out to the respective canning companies, who in turn, built workers housing. The workers’ houses were often small wooden abodes of the same make & model, that were very cramped/close-quartered. The main thoroughfare was Tuna Street, which was where many local businesses were housed. The businesses themselves were so communally driven that they would look out for

448-794: The San Pedro area of the city of Los Angeles , while the rest is part of the city of Long Beach . The island has a land area of 11.56 km (4.46 sq mi), or 2,854 acres (11.55 km ), and had a population of 1,467 at the 2000 census . The Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach are the major landowners on the island, who in turn lease much of their land for container terminals and bulk terminals. The island also hosts canneries , shipyards , and United States Coast Guard facilities. The Federal Correctional Institution, Terminal Island , which began operating in 1938, hosts more than 900 low security federal prisoners. The Long Beach Naval Shipyard , decommissioned in 1997, occupied roughly half of

504-616: The Secretary of the Navy established the facilities as the US Naval Dry Docks , Roosevelt Base , California. Also in 1943, a barrack for Marines was built, work began on another approach pier, a 50 short tons (45 t) drydock crane was erected, and several shop buildings were started. In 1944, work started on the pontoons destined to be used in a "temporary" bridge to Terminal Island. The pontoon bridge would not be removed until

560-519: The navis lusoria , a small vessel powered by rowers and sail, to move soldiers on the Rhine and Danube. The modern troopship has as long a history as passenger ships do, as most maritime nations enlisted their support in military operations (either by leasing the vessels or by impressing them into service) when their normal naval forces were deemed insufficient for the task. In the 19th century, navies frequently chartered civilian ocean liners , and from

616-492: The BRAC Commission chairman's tiebreaking vote. However, two years later, the naval shipyard was recommended for closure in the 1995 round of BRAC evaluations (BRAC IV) by then-Defense Secretary William Perry . Although the commission toured Long Beach NSY in April 1995, the BRAC Commission elected not to override the recommendation to close Long Beach NSY, and closure was completed on 30 September 1997. By 2004, 72% of

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672-604: The Heim Bridge is a rail bridge called the Henry Ford Bridge , or the Badger Avenue Bridge. Troopship Attack transports , a variant of ocean-going troopship adapted to transporting invasion forces ashore, carry their own fleet of landing craft. Landing ships beach themselves and bring their troops directly ashore. Ships to transport troops were used in antiquity. Ancient Rome used

728-614: The Japanese army through the use of depth meters and fishing equipment, prior to the attack. The Justice Department and the Office of Naval Intelligence claimed that the fishermen had the ability to contact enemy vessels with their boats, radios, and equipment. The FBI raided the homes of the Japanese Americans and searched for contraband which included, radios, flashlights, cameras, and morse code telegraph machines. Out of

784-650: The Kibei Nisei (roughly translating to returning Nisei)—who were sent away for education in Japan, returned with the most opportunities. Cultural infusions were becoming very popular, with the Skippers (the local baseball team) and Kendo (a martial art) being the most popular aspects of life for the youth. Finally, interethnic relationships were quite strong among the Japanese and other ethnicities, particularly local white cannery owners. One such person, Wilbur F. Wood,

840-552: The Korean War were three minesweepers on March 1, 1952 the: USS Competent (AM-316) , USS Gladiator (AM-319) and USS Devastator (AM-318) . USS Bucyrus Victory (AK-234) was placed in the fleet in August 1969 and sold for scrapping the same year. The USS Isle Royale (AD-29) was laid in the fleet and used as the headquarters of the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Long Beach, in June 1962 she was put back in service for

896-859: The Long Beach Harbor Department ( Port of Long Beach ), was leased to Hanjin Shipping , a South Korean firm. Hanjin was the majority partner in Total Terminals International (TTI), which was the primary tenant at Pier T until the financial collapse of Hanjin in August 2016. Hanjin entered talks to sell its stake in the Long Beach Terminal to its minority partner in TTI, Mediterranean Shipping Company in October 2016. Pacific Reserve Fleet, Long Beach

952-755: The Port of Los Angeles (but not on the Island) was the Wilmington yard of Consolidated Steel . In 1946, Howard Hughes moved his monstrous Spruce Goose airplane from his plant in Culver City to Terminal Island in preparation for its test flight. In its first and only flight, it took off from the island on November 2, 1947. Brotherhood Raceway Park , a 1 ⁄ 4 mile drag racing strip, opened in 1974 on former US Navy land. It operated, with many interruptions, until finally closing in 1995 to be replaced by

1008-485: The Port of Los Angeles was dynamited and dredged away, and the resulting rubble was used to add 62 acres (0.097 sq mi) to Terminal Island's southern tip. In 1930, the Ford Motor Company built a facility called Long Beach Assembly , having moved earlier operations from Downtown Los Angeles. The factory remained until 1958 when manufacturing operations were moved inland to Pico Rivera . In 1927,

1064-629: The United Kingdom's Royal Navy. The United States used two designations: WSA for troopships operated by the War Shipping Administration using Merchant Marine crews, and USS (United States Ship) for vessels accepted into and operated by the United States Navy. Initially, troopships adapted as attack transports were designated AP; starting in 1942 keel-up attack transports received the designation APA. "HMT"

1120-546: The Vietnam War. Terminal Island Terminal Island , historically known as Isla Raza de Buena Gente , is a largely artificial island located in Los Angeles County, California , between the neighborhoods of Wilmington and San Pedro in the city of Los Angeles , and the city of Long Beach . Terminal Island is roughly split between the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach . Land use on

1176-405: The built environment had vanished almost completely. They were given $ 25 and a ticket home, but they returned to nothing and were forced to relocate.  The Navy was responsible for razing the homes and structures of the Japanese Americans of Terminal Island.            In 1971, twenty-three Japanese Americans who were former residents of Terminal Island established

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1232-510: The canning industry. The first major sign of the community's forming came in the form of the Southern California Japanese Fishermen's Association (SCJFA), a political and social body. On January 26, 1918, their efforts were rewarded with a completed assembly hall for the community. The Hall's grand opening saw lots of local coverage, and even a sumo mound! The community saw some major political activism at

1288-460: The city of Wilmington. During this time the "Father of the Harbor" Phineas Banning , held deed to roughly 18 acres of land on Rattlesnake Island. Phineas Banning was instrumental in bringing innovative changes to San Pedro Bay and made the first steps towards expansion. Once annexed with the city of Los Angeles the expansion was completed. In the late 1920s, Deadman's Island in the main channel of

1344-711: The company's launch area in Florida or Texas by sea, via the Panama Canal . The 19 acres (7.7 ha) site was used for shipbuilding from 1918, and was formerly operated by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation and then the Southwest Marine Shipyard. The location has been disused since 2005. Terminal Island is connected to the mainland via four bridges. To the west, the distinctive green Vincent Thomas Bridge ,

1400-469: The detention centers. Everyone was ordered to leave Terminal Island, even if they were not Japanese, because the United States military took control of the land. Terminal Island was a fishing village, located next to a United States Navy facility, which ultimately resulted in the Japanese Americans becoming fishermen. As a result of their occupation and location, they were accused of being spies for

1456-474: The entire Edison system and to enable Edison to shut down some of its small, obsolete steam plants. The site chosen for the new plant was on a barren mudflat known as Rattlesnake Island, today's Terminal Island in the San Pedro Bay . Construction of Plant No. 1 began in 1910. The land area of Terminal Island has been supplemented considerably from its original size. In 1909 the city of Los Angeles annexed

1512-436: The fishermen, are driving out American fishermen, but do not only not drive out the other foreign fishermen but are actually outnumbered two to one by them? The statement of Senator Phelan seems so illogical that it should fall of its own weight. While the report was not delivered in person to Congress , it reveals the challenges the community faced and their persistence in fighting back. The lands of Fish Harbor were owned by

1568-519: The fourth-longest suspension bridge in California, connects it with the Los Angeles neighborhood of San Pedro . The Long Beach International Gateway , the longest cable-stayed bridge in California, connects the island with downtown Long Beach to the east. The Commodore Schuyler F. Heim Bridge joins Terminal Island with the Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington to the north. Adjacent to

1624-725: The homeport for several auxiliary ships during its operating history. The Long Beach NSY industrial area encompassed 119 acres (48 ha) of the total 214 acres (87 ha) owned. There were 120 permanent, 39 semi-permanent, and 6 temporary buildings, for a total of 165 buildings. There were 17 different shop work areas and 2,400,000 square feet (220,000 m) of covered building space. The shipyard had three graving docks , and five industrial piers. There were 12,307 feet (3.751 km) (measured linearly) of ship berthing space. Crane capacity ranged from 25 short tons (23 t) to 67 short tons (61 t) (portal) and from 25 short tons (23 t) to 112 short tons (102 t) (floating). One of

1680-652: The initial settlers who came to America were Dekasegi , immigrants who intended to work short time in the U.S. and then return to Japan with their built-up coffers. Many of these immigrants first arrived in Santa Monica with the hopes of creating a community there, but after their town was burned to the ground in 1916, they found their home at Terminal Island. Growing fishing interests in San Pedro's White Point and Terminal Island led many Japanese to become sought after due to their skill as fishermen, and connections to

1736-436: The interests of the community before seeking profit/competition. As noted above, fishing was integral to local ways of life, with the men being absent from family life for weeks or even months at a time. Women and young children often worked in the canneries , which was often grueling work, needing to be done as soon as the fishermen arrived with their catch. For the children, schooling was the most important aspect of life, with

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1792-411: The island is entirely industrial and port-related except for Federal Correctional Institution, Terminal Island . The island was originally called Isla Raza de Buena Gente and later Rattlesnake Island. It was renamed Terminal Island in 1891. In 1909, the newly reincorporated Southern California Edison Company decided to build a new steam station to provide reserve capacity and emergency power for

1848-415: The island's relative geographical isolation, its inhabitants developed their own culture and even their own dialect. The dialect, known as "kii-shu ben" (or "Terminal Island lingo"), was a mix of English and the dialect of Kii Province , where many residents hailed from. Prior to World War II, the island was home to about 3,500 first- and second-generation Japanese Americans. Like many Japanese immigrants,

1904-659: The island. Sea Launch maintains docking facilities on the mole that was part of the naval station. Aerospace company SpaceX is initially leasing 12.4 acres (5.0 ha) from the Port of Los Angeles on the island at Berth 240. They will refurbish five buildings and raise a tent-like structure for research, design, and manufacturing. SpaceX has been building and testing its planned Starship crewed space transportation system intended for suborbital, orbital and interplanetary flight in Texas. The new SpaceX rocket, too large to be transported for long distances overland, will be shipped to

1960-522: The land had been turned over to the City of Long Beach by the military. The shipyard appears in a 1995 episode of Visiting... with Huell Howser . In 1997, COSCO (The China Ocean Shipping Company) wanted to lease the space from the City, including building a $ 400 million cargo terminal. It was opposed by Rush Limbaugh , as the company was owned by the Communist run People's Republic of China, and

2016-512: The large cranes at Long Beach NSY, YD-171 , was nicknamed "Herman the German" based on its origin as a floating crane for the Kriegsmarine (one of four ships in the class). It is a large self-propelled crane standing 374 feet (114 m) tall with a lifting capacity of 385 short tons (349 t), and was claimed to be the largest floating crane in operation as of 1957. "Herman the German"

2072-537: The late 1930s and early 1940s, nativist organizations raised new questions about the loyalty of Japanese Americans living in the country. On February 19, 1942, two months after the attack, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 .  The order authorized the removal of all people deemed a threat to national security from the West Coast to one of the ten relocation camps across

2128-463: The late 19th and early 20th centuries provided their domestic shipping lines with subsidies to build fast ocean liners capable of conversions to auxiliary cruisers during wartime. The British government, for example, aided both Cunard and the White Star Line in constructing the liners RMS  Mauretania , RMS  Aquitania , RMS  Olympic and RMS Britannic . However, when

2184-459: The nation. Immediately after Executive Order 9066 was authorized, Japanese Americans of Terminal Island were among the first groups to be forcibly removed from their homes.  Japanese men were the first taken into custody. They were put on trains and could not see where they were being taken, because the blinds were drawn. Residents were only given 48 hours to evacuate their homes and forced to leave everything they owned behind and relocate to

2240-645: The opening of the Gerald Desmond Bridge in 1968. The name of this facility was changed to Terminal Island Naval Shipyard on 30 November 1945. On 15 November 1946, the adjoining Naval Station Long Beach was established. The shipyard was renamed Long Beach Naval Shipyard (NSY) in March 1948. During World War II , the naval dry docks provided routine and battle damage repairs to a parade of tankers , cargo ships , troop transports , destroyers , and cruisers . Peak employment of 16,091 civilian employees

2296-519: The start of the 20th century painted them gray and added a degree of armament; their speed, originally intended to minimize passage time for civilian user, proved valuable for outrunning submarines and enemy cruisers in war. HMT  Olympic even rammed and sank a U-boat during one of its wartime crossings. Individual liners capable of exceptionally high speed transited without escorts; smaller or older liners with poorer performance were protected by operating in convoys . Most major naval powers in

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2352-440: The struggle and history are not forgotten. During World War II, Terminal Island was an important center for defense industries, especially shipbuilding; the first California Shipbuilding Corporation shipyard was established there in 1941. It was also, therefore, one of the first places where African Americans tried to effect their integration into defense-related work on the West Coast. The San Pedro yard of Bethlehem Steel

2408-468: The ten relocation camps, Manzanar in the Owens Valley was where most Terminal Island residents were incarcerated.            In 1945, many of the Japanese Americans who were interned began getting released.  They thought that they were going back to the homes and the community they had built, however, they were completely destroyed. It was the only community where

2464-465: The time as well, particularly combatting anti-Japanese racism. One such example was the actions of Kihei Nasu (a bilingual intellectual) that was hired by the SCJFA to write a report refuting recent attempts by Senator James D. Phelan of California that the Japanese were driving out American fishermen. According to Nasu, if the Japanese were cornering the market: If the Japanese, who are only one-third of

2520-407: The vulnerability of these ships to return fire was realized during World War I most were used instead as troopships or hospital ships . RMS  Queen Mary and RMS  Queen Elizabeth were two of the most famous converted liners of World War II . When they were fully converted, each could carry well over 10,000 troops per trip. Queen Mary holds the all-time record, with 15,740 troops on

2576-764: Was also located on the Island. 26 destroyers were built there following the mobilization of the warship industry by the Two-Ocean Navy Act of July 1940. The yard was the third largest of the kind on the West Coast, behind the Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation ( Todd Pacific ) in Puget Sound and Bethlehem's own San Francisco yards ( Union Iron Works ). In 1943, Los Angeles Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company became Todd Pacific Shipyards, Los Angeles Division . Also in

2632-699: Was also used, for a while, to designate "Hired Military Transport." In the era of the Cold War , the United States designed the United States ship so that she could easily be converted from a liner to a troopship, in case of war. More recently, Queen Elizabeth 2 and Canberra were requisitioned by the Royal Navy to carry British soldiers to the Falklands War . By the end of the twentieth century, nearly all long-distance personnel transfer

2688-567: Was being reviewed for national security by the Department of Defense . After review by the DoD and CIA, the lease went through, at an agreed-upon payment of $ 14.5 million per year from the Chinese, with renewal scheduled after ten years. However, continued controversy and opposition by Republican lawmakers caused cancellation of the lease, and the new cargo terminal, which was in fact built by

2744-561: Was designated the West Coast nuclear powered aircraft carrier (CVN) emergency dry dock. Long Beach NSY was placed in an inactive status on 1 June 1950. The Korean War began less than one month later, and the shipyard was reactivated on 4 January 1951. Through the years the shipyard accomplished several special projects in addition to its primary mission. These included support or scientific projects in conjunction with programs like POLARIS , POSEIDON , and SEALAB . Long Beach NSY

2800-500: Was downgraded to a Naval Air Station (NAS Terminal Island). Reeves Field as a Naval Air Station was disestablished in 1947, although the adjacent Long Beach Naval Station continued to use Reeves Field as an auxiliary airfield until the late 1990s. A large industrial facility now covers the site of the former Naval Air Station. Starting in 1906, a thriving Japanese American fishing community became established on Terminal Island in an area known as East San Pedro or Fish Island. Because of

2856-461: Was evaluated under every round of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) for possible closure since the inception of the BRAC process in 1988. In 1993, California congressmen Horn and Rohrabacher cited the military value of the shipyard in a successful attempt to keep it open. Mare Island NSY was closed following the 1993 evaluations, and the vote in favor of keeping LBNSY open was narrowly decided by

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2912-625: Was opened at Long Beach Naval Shipyard for use as part of the United States Navy reserve fleets , also called a mothball fleet . The Pacific Reserve Fleet, Long Beach was used to store the now many surplus ships after World War II . Some ships in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Long Beach were reactivated for the Korean War and Vietnam War . At its closing the ships stored at Pacific Reserve Fleet, Long Beach were either scrapped or moved to other reserve fleets . Three ships reactivated for

2968-535: Was reached in August 1945. Long Beach NSY was equipped with facilities and skills to perform all non-nuclear structural, sheet metal , boiler , rigging, electronics, electrical, insulating, lagging, ordnance, sandblasting, welding , machining , woodworking , painting, pipe fitting, and other work pertaining to the overhaul and repair of surface ships. The shipyard possessed complete design, engineering, combat systems, quality assurance, planning and public works capabilities to support its industrial work. Dry dock No. 1

3024-907: Was relocated to its geodesic dome from 1980 to 1982 for tourist display by the Wrather Corporation . Following the closure of the shipyard, the crane was sold to the Panama Canal Commission and was transported on the semi-submersible ship "Sea Swan" (IMO 8001000) to the Panama Canal Zone , where it currently serves as the floating crane "Titan". Dry Dock 1 had plan dimensions of 143 by 1,092 feet (44 by 333 m), and Dry Docks 2 and 3 had plan dimensions of 92 by 693 feet (28 by 211 m). The total naval presence on Terminal Island included two installations (Long Beach Naval Shipyard, 563 acres (228 ha) and Long Beach Naval Station, 928 acres (376 ha)), for

3080-774: Was seized as a war prize following the end of World War II. "Herman" was dismantled and transported across the Atlantic through the Panama Canal to Long Beach, where it was reassembled and subsequently served at the Long Beach NSY from 1946 to 1996. While serving at Long Beach, it participated in the refurbishment of the battleships USS Missouri and New Jersey in the 1980s and lifted the Hughes H-4 ("Spruce Goose") from its original hangar in Long Beach when it

3136-753: Was very often seen as very kind towards the Japanese Americans, especially realizing their strength as fishermen. Tensions did brew however between local unions, but this was nothing new in American history. On December 7, 1941, the Pearl Harbor naval base in Hawaii was attacked in a surprise air raid by the Japanese Navy, which affected the United States’ relationships with Japan and its citizens.  As U.S.-Japanese relations frayed further in

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