Monday September 24, 2012
In the past two weeks the Jacksonville Historic Naval Ship Association and the Adams Class Veterans Association had the great opportunity to meet with members of the Charles F. Adams family in Massachusetts and Florida to provide an update on the effort to save the ex-USS Charles F. Adams DDG-2 as a historic ship museum in Jacksonville, Florida.
Bob Branco, President of ACVA and a former commanding officer of the CHARLES F. ADAMS and his wife Tina, were invited by Peter Boylston Adams to a get-together of family and veterans friends in Scituate, Massachusetts. Peter Adams is a cousin of Charles F. Adams III who the Adams Class guided missile destroyers were named for, and a seventh generation descendant of President John Adams. Peter is an Army Vietnam veteran helicopter pilot and he is interested in supporting our effort. He lives near Tampa, Florida. JHNSA/ACVA board member Jim Aldrich met with LCDR Chas Adams in Tampa, Florida to discuss the museum project. Chas is the son of Peter Adams and serves as an intelligence officer and he is planning to attend the October 13 Gala in Jacksonville at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
who was also known as “Deacon”
Charles F. Adams III
Secretary of the Navy from 1929 to 1933
under President Herbert Hoover
DOWNTOWN Adams Class Museum
Recent JHNSA efforts for developing the Adams Class Museum in Downtown Jacksonville have focused on the assessment and design of the former Jacksonville Shipyards pier location on the North Bank of the St. Johns River as an interim site to place the ex-USS Charles F. Adams DDG-2. The existing piers would require less construction funding and could provide an opportunity to develop the area as a recreational and educational site for the Downtown area as well as provide an opportunity for a riverfront park and restaurants for local residents and tourists. Local architect Chris Flagg has been working with JHNSA to design the layout of the area for the ship museum and the surrounding areas on the river. Jacksonville City Council President Bill Bishop, who led the effort to get the Adams Class Ship Museum accepted in a 2010 Ordinance with the City, is supportive of this concept on the North Bank. Marine design engineer Sandy Rice and environmental scientist Gary Howalt continue to provide their valuable experience and technical support to design the pier site.