USS Iowa, San Pedro, CA - 25 JAN 2013


This battleship was the lead ship of her class of battleships and became San Pedro’s second floating museum in 2012.
Built in 1940 and serving through WWII, it was placed out of commission in March of 1949.
Reactivated and decommissioned several times. 
She served the Korean Conflict and was modernized in 1982 for the Cold War.
Off the coast of Puerto Rico in April of 1989, she had an explosion within Turret Two, killing 47 crewmen.  
She was decommissioned for the last time in 1990.
Firepower Demonstration - 15 AUG 1984
She was host to more US Presidents than any other battleship in our nation’s history: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1943), Ronald Reagan (1986), George W Bush (1989).
It was a dark and rainy day, so unless I wanted to use flash, the best photos were outside.
Tinky Winky stayed home but my sister and her husband (who have always been willing to pose when I point a camera at them and give directions) acted as my models:
This was the first time I got to see a large tanker being pushed up to the loading dock. The Iowa provided the best seat in the house.
Also the best view I've seen of Fire Boat No 2:
Fire Boat No 2
Fire Boat No 2 was built in 1925. It is in the process of being restored and will eventually be housed in a multi-million dollar facility. It is listed as a historic artifact and is on the U.S. Register of Historic Places. 
The guns are pointed toward our historic Municipal Ferry Terminal, built in 1941. It transported people to the canneries, shipyards and military bases on Terminal Island. It ceased operation in 1963 due to the building of the Vincent Thomas Bridge:

1984 SP Slip - 03 JAN 2013

Officially named for the Southern Pacific Railroad, many people, incorrectly, think the SP stand for San Pedro. 
I found some old negatives from 1984 and thought it would be fun to take the same images today.
1984 East View
2013 East View
Back in the 70's the fishing boats were docked three lanes deep, now they barely cover one lane. 
1984 West View
The background looks different because the Signal Street viaduct was remove in late 1985 and part of the fishing boat dock has recently be remodeled, so I had to stand to the right:
2013 West View
1984
2013
Some additional images I took today:
Terminal Island Prison
Great Blue Heron

Huntington Library, San Marino, CA - 02 JAN 2013

The Huntington Library is 120 acres of botanical gardens, containing a library and several buildings with art collections. This San Marion, CA estate was once the home to Henry E. Huntington and his wife, Arabella
Today we went to see an exhibit of over 200 authentic Civil War photographs.
Corporals of First Troop Philadelphia City Calvary, 1861
Field Hospital
We also stopped at a few galleries. This statue reminds me of my cemetery photos:
I also played with the images of a few flowers I shot:
Below are some images created after a 2004 visit to the Huntington:
Check out my Flickr Albums to see more of my flower and cementery art: EnfocusGallery.com

SP Slip, San Pedro, CA - 01 JAN 2013

Southern Pacific Slip has always been one of my favorite places to visit for photography.
The fishing boats used to be three layers on each side of the slip...then the cannery closed; now there are only a few fishing boats.
A shadow of it's former past...but it is still a good place to see nature:
One boat was cleaning out its bait tank, attracting pelicans and sea lions.
There were three large and noisy sea lions.
Their barks echoed down the channel. 
To hear their bark, check out my YouTube post: