And so it's something that some birds eat, and also it provides habitat for some like clams and things that the birds will eat. And they have become islands. They started hosting all this wildlife. So, actually, I wrote a little story. You know, it'll look familiar from a journey to the pet store. Joining us to discuss this today are Jacob Fenston, WAMU's environment reporter. But if you look at the aerial photos of Mallows Bay, it's like, especially in the summer, it's just this matt of green. kojo@wamu.org, 4401 Connecticut Avenue NW|Washington, D.C. 20008|(202) 885-1200, Ghost Fleet: Exploring The WWI Skeleton Ships Of The Potomac, How To See — And Photograph — The Ghost Fleet Of Mallows Bay, The Pandemic Pet Adoption Craze Of 2020 (Rebroadcast), Filmmaker Merawi Gerima Talks His Film “Residue” And Gentrification In D.C. (Rebroadcast), In “The Office Of Historical Corrections,” Author Danielle Evans Sets The Record Straight. The remains of more than 230 shipwrecks litter the shallow, tidal bay. At the start of World War II, Baltimore’s Bethlehem Steel initiated the third and final shipbreaking period, lasting only two years. Tyrone Turner / WAMU, An osprey clings to its catch as it flies over the ship graveyard of Mallows Bay. So, it's become this sort of unique, natural place. Loading... Unsubscribe from PGCTVONLINE? Located on the Potomac River near Washington D.C., Mallows Bay is the site of a diverse collection of nearly 200 historic shipwrecks dating back to the Revolutionary War and the remains of the largest assemblage of World War I wooden steamships known as the famed “Ghost Fleet.” So, we saw a lot of different birds, which was really interesting. So, it's actually has sort of helped the resurgence of wildlife, in a way. Ship building during World War I brought about the formalization of merchant mariners. It's just an amazing and weird place that you kind of have to look at photos or visit to get a sense of. What does that designation mean? And the ceremony is open to the public. But it's also been found to have been associated with the return of water fowl. They are nesting all over these ships. And Richard called in to ask: is there any way to see the Ghost Fleet other than in a canoe? The Ghost Fleet has now received federal protection as a part of a new National Marine Sanctuary. It has a big, old catfish in its talons. Wooden Ships Burning at Mallows Bay… Courtesy of National Archives, Washington, DC, from Calvert Marine Museum, Fred Tilp Collection. PortandTerminal.com, July 17, 2020. 1-800-433-8850 Sammy Orlando The remains of more than 230 shipwrecks litter the shallow, tidal bay. By war’s end in 1918, only 87 were sailing. E.W., are you there? And if you just sit still there, it'll really kind of envelope you, and you can kind of pick out instead of, you know, if you're paddling around, you might not here everything that's happening. The ships were built for the U.S. They didn't happen, for various reasons. And, well 150. And I, you know, Googled it. You can go out and take a look yourself. Mallows Bay Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary protects and interprets the remnants of more than 100 World War I-era wooden steamships – known as the “Ghost Fleet” – and other maritime resources and cultural heritage dating back nearly 12,000 years. You’re looking at some of the approximately 200 shipwrecks of the Ghost Fleet of the Potomac. I mean, there's a great history there of everything. Mallows Bay, a haunting historic site, holds more than 200 shipwrecks in an 18-square-mile area of the Potomac. You might say the sanctuary compensates for a major governmental blunder in the past. FENSTONAnd, supposedly, there's some beaver living on some of the shipwrecks, which we did not see. One of the largest collections of shipwrecks in the world rests about 30 miles south of Washington in a place called Mallows Bay. Their hulls peek out of the waters of the Potomac. Please stay tuned. But it's not like, you kind of have to figure it out on your own a little bit. It is an amazing place to kayak, fish and nature watch. There's this very interesting photo, which is actually in Donald's book, but it was the photo from the Washington Star in February 1948. 218 of them were brought there at -- well, in 1920s, early 1920s. Military shipwrecks dating as far back as the Revolutionary War and including ships from the Civil War and both World War I and World War II were deliberately sunk here at Mallows Bay … The Shipwrecks of Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary Image courtesy of Library of Congress The sanctuary boasts a diverse collection of historic shipwrecks dating back to the Revolutionary War, but is most renowned for the remains of over 100 wooden steamships known as … I think you can see some of the ships on certain flight paths into D.C., as well. Most are the remains of wooden steamships that date back to the first World War 1. And the war ended, and there they sat. Tyrone Turner / WAMU, Mallows Bay is heavily infested with hydrilla, an invasive floating vegetation, which makes paddling on the inner route difficult. Like Mallows Bay, it was designated solely for the purpose of protecting a cluster of shipwrecks that had occurred there. Jacob Fenston is WAMU's environment reporter. Or, you know, buy the book, which I've got right here, that Donald wrote. But you really need to go during low tide in order to see a lot more of them. The 18=square-mile section of Mallows Bay encompasses a “ghost fleet” of more than 200 shipwrecks, half of which were wooden steamships built during World War I. And it's really striking. Which is good, because this is an evolving place. This map contains 3 paddling itineraries that allow visitors to virtually explore this one of a kind site. One is one of the barges that was used to salvage them. Tremendous wildlife viewing areas, single ramp small boating (shallow water) access to the Potomac River, kayak launch, fishing and hiking. SHOMETTEAnd she sits very close to a Four-Masted Schooner, which you can only see in extremely low water, which was one of the last four-masted schooners built in Maine. And, five minutes later, we bumped right into the very distinct protrusion above the water, which was the stern of one of the ships. Mallows Bay Shipwrecks PGCTVONLINE. Mallows Bay offers the only public motor boat ramp between Smallwood State Park and Friendship Landing and also has a soft launch access area for paddlers. So, we set out to build a thousand ships in 18 months, wooden steamships, and also hundreds and hundreds of steel ships, as well, to get our troops and to get supplies to Europe. Emergency Fleet during World War I, an effort that propelled America to the forefront of shipbuilding, as well as many other wrecks from Revolutionary times through the 1900s. Elizabeth says: the Woodrow Wilson House here in D.C. has an awesome exhibit on the Ghost Fleet at Mallows Bay. And we had stripped Great Britain -- which owned 46 percent of all of the ships in the world. And there's a boat ramp there, as well. NANJEMOY, MD – Mallows Bay is a small bay on the Maryland side of the Potomac River that is home to what is considered to be the “largest shipwreck fleet in the Western Hemisphere”.. FENSTONI mean, it's sort of like -- or people say it's like a national park, underwater. And the visuals that go along with this project are just absolutely stunning. One of her names was Virginia, Lady Virginia. The Ghost Fleet of Mallows Bay Scattered throughout this section of the Potomac River are the remains of historic shipwrecks covering centuries of American history, including over 90 wooden steamships built for America's entry into WWI. The steamships were not practical, however, and many ended up parked at Mallows Bay. But you can take the walking tour, and it takes you down by the Burning Basin, and it takes you down to Liverpool Cove. WAMU’s Jacob Fenston and Tyrone Turner visited Mallows Bay, by canoe and kayak, to document the unusual waterscape the shipwrecks have created. And, one August night, we camped on a decaying wharf and told ghost stories, of course. Plus, a small boat launch ramp there. The most visible of the vessels is the S.S. Accomac, a steel-hulled ferry used to transport cars and people across the Chesapeake Bay to Virginia before being replaced by the Bay-Bridge Tunnel. Matt McIntosh/NOAA. How does that story begin? The historic shipwrecks of Mallows Bay-Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary provide habitat for birds and other wildlife. Mallows Bay is a small bay on the Maryland side of the Potomac River in Charles County, Maryland. The overgrown wrecks now form a series of distinctive islands, intertidal habitat, and underwater structure critical to fish, beavers, and birds such as ospreys, blue herons, and bald eagles. The hulls of the shipwrecks are most visible at low tide. But there are close to a hundred shipwrecks there. Beaver River Rotter, sometimes deer living on board, some of them are rookeries. Mallows Bay Park is located at 1440 Wilson Landing Road, Nanjemoy. I'm wondering if you could tell us about your next book. This shallow embayment and the waters nearby are home to nearly 200 historic shipwrecks dating from the Revolutionary War through the present, known as the “Ghost Fleet” of Mallows Bay. Tyrone has the best photograph, the best shot of an osprey I think I've ever seen. The “bones” of the ships are often visible above the water line, making it a popular place to explore by paddlecraft. And seeing what these ships looks like, like, you know, we have some of those archival photos on our story. I was taking a program in cinematography. Jacob Fenston, you took a canoe out to Mallows Bay for your reporting for WAMU. Although nearly 300 ships were built, the war ended before the fleet was complete. The wooden steamship fleet was created by the U.S. government as an effort to preserve precious steel during World War I. And there's going to be some kayaks there that are not being charged to use. Mallows Bay Park Mallows Bay is situated south of Washington, D.C., along the tidal Lower Potomac River off the Nanjemoy Peninsula of Charles County, Maryland. So, that's kind of the first thing you see when you drive up. At low tide, they emerge eerily from the water - a "ghost fleet" of wooden steamships dating back to World War I. You see other things. I'm Dan Reed, in for Kojo Nnamdi. And what role does it play? And what are the options for those of us who can't navigate the trip on our own? Mallows Bay Park offers excellent outdoor recreation opportunities. Jerry Jackson for WAMU, As the tide recedes, metal bolts embedded in the wooden hulls emerge from the water. Thanks for being here. So, people around the country will hear about it and know about it, and come to visit. And you see fish jumping. If you like birds, this would be a great place to go. The Ghost Fleet has now received federal protection as a part of a new National Marine Sanctuary. 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