In 1901, the Moran Brothers shipyard of Seattle won the bid to build one of three battleships for the US Navy. Construction of the ship, named Nebraska, began with a keel laying ceremony on July 4, 1902, at the shipyard located at the foot of South Charles Street south of Pioneer Square. Over 1,000 workers helped build the ship, which was 441 feet long with a beam of 76 feet. On launch day, most businesses in Seattle closed and school let out early so everyone could get to the waterfront to see the Nebraska hit the water. Over 40,000 people showed up at the launch site, with another 15,000 watching from boats.
This program from the launching of the Nebraska on October 7, 1904, includes the schedule of events for the day, as well as the specifications of the ship itself.
Caption information source: "Moran shipyard in Seattle launches battleship Nebraska on October 7, 1904" by Alan J. Stein, historylink.org Essay5401.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant. Metadata updated as part of a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the Library Services and Technology Act, through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
