HomeBoat GraveyardsKiptopeke’s Concrete Ships; A Long Journey to Obscurity

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Kiptopeke’s Concrete Ships; A Long Journey to Obscurity — 16 Comments

  1. Hi I am a descendent of The McCloskeys and was so grateful to have stumbled upon your research! I knew of the ships but not this location.

  2. Interesting to read the relatively recent comments. My new bride and I transited from New London to my new ship in Norfolk via the Kiptopeke ferry in 1956. They were just an interesting passing scene – nice to read the full story about them.

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  4. I have recently come into posession of a helm wheel of one of these ships and would like to know more about it. If you have any info olease contact me.

    • I just ran across and read an article this week from an old newspaper article on the ships. It said they were designed w/ a “1 pin wheel” if that is of any help. I’m the great-granddaughter of Leonard Chase Wason, ship 07.

  5. Excellent history on these ships. I discovered these by accident while using Google maps just before a trip we were taking to the Virginia Beach area and I had to go see them. Here is a video tour of them I created using my quadcopter. https://youtu.be/QjssbXnfu58

  6. I am the great granddaughter of the concrete ship named Leonard Chase Wason. He was a pioneer in developing the formula for reinforced concrete for these ships and many other structures. In the Wason history that I have at home I see no mention anywhere of McClouskey building these ships. The VA Pilot did an article a few years ago. I also have an article from 1937 for the Am. Society of Civil Engineers, with a Memoir (755) of my grt. grandfathers death.

    • This is so cool, i would love to see the formula for this, I had know idea that they even had these ships in wwi or wwii so this is very interesting to me.

  7. I just left there yesterday, and like you wondered about the men who served on the ships, and if any were still alive. If you get to interview any, please let me know what they had to say. I kayaked out, and fished around the ships. It is a bit tricky, and rough, the currents runs fast and if to close you have to be careful not to be slammed into the ships. It is an eerie feeling to look inside the ships and out the other side. Wondering, how did they sink the ships.

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