This is an attraction for any fan of naval history. Unfortunately, the USS Salem is closed for the winter.
A little hard to find, but such a cool spot just a few minutes ride from Boston. The Ship itself is wide open and visitors are allowed to explore nearly the whole ship. Much to the surprise of most visitors, when you start to go down into the depths of the ship, you soon discover a full museum with tons of Naval artifacts and history. Fun place to explore with the family for sure.
Great museum at new location. Open seasonally (February/March to November/December) check website for latest. Many compartments open and exhibits about. Saw main battery and learned about it's rapid fire automatic 8" guns. Most impressive. Last surviving all-gun heavy cruiser in U.S. Navy fleet. A must see ship if you're an enthusiast.
Having been to Battleship Cove in Fall River, MA many times we decided to go see a ship we hadn't seen before. The first thing we went to see was the aft main battery. I was actually surprised that they let you inside the turret and have a partial hands on experience with some of the instruments used to aim the guns. We then took a walk around the deck of the ship. Sadly we quickly found that the ship was covered in rust. I even walked up to a container on the wall that had the paint chipping off and took a small piece off that had already been stripped almost completely off the container. While examining the chip of paint I realized that the container had a couple of layers of rust and paint alternating. This piece of a previously metal container was completely rusted and brittle. However, once below deck the rusting was obviously much better. The museum on the ship was amazing, and a good surprise to see. On the other decks there were a few spots that broke the immersion of being on a WWII navy ship. The local Boy Scouts apparently visit the ship fairly often and in some areas of the ship there are signs and messages for the scouts that stopped the flow of walking around and figuring out what area of the ship you're in. I really wish the great veterans and crew, who try so hard to keep the ship in the best shape they can with what little funds they have good luck and hope they get more help to do this ship justice. I hope they can gather more money to really restore this ship to the condition it deserves to be in. With just a few grants or generous donations, maybe it can be sent to dry dock in Boston to get the restoration it needs.
The USS Salem is a vessel that blurs the line between cruiser and battleship. Once on board, you have a bewildering amount of space to explore in a self-guided tour, from the bridge down to the galley. It's amazing to see all of the facilities they had on this ship, including a tiny microbiology lab. Although it's not as clean as the similar-aged USS Cassing Young up north, this ship is maintained by many veterans, including some who served onboard. You're quite likely to run into one of these gentlemen while wandering about. I had a great conversation with a former marine about some of the personal effects he found while cleaning out lockers in the forward sleeping quarters. This is definitely worth a few hours of your time. Be aware that backpacks are not allowed on board.
The United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum U S S Salem is a US Museum based in Quincy, Massachusetts. The United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum U S S Salem is located at 551 South St, Quincy, MA 02169, USA.
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