A barge bearing a heavy-lift crane appeared on the Charlestown waterfront this past weekend. It appears that a new watertight gate/door/caisson is being installed in the dry dock that will be used for the restoration of the U.S.S Constitution. These images show the caisson being put into place.
The caisson was fabricated in Norfolk, VA and barged to Boston for Dry Dock 1 in Charlestown Navy Yard. This will be the third caisson ever used for the dry dock, which began operation in 1833 and will house U.S.S. Constitution for its 3-year planned restoration period scheduled to commence in Spring 2015. Dry Dock One is one of the first two dry docks in the United States with an overall dimension of 341ft x 100ft and serves as a safe haven for the USS Constitution. For more history, visit the USS Constitution website.
Photos by Brendan O’Brien.
