Watching a Brand New Submarine Go to Sea

Not a bad way to spend a day at the office I tell ya! One day recently I left my building at the shipyard and walked about five blocks or so to a tiny little city park on the waterfront, I was the only person there. I knew just when to get there, so as soon as I settled down on the old stone wall w/my coffee, sure enough from the right . . . there she is, floating into view, crew members still securing rigging and hatches. They did their thing, took in the view for a few minutes, then disappeared one by one into the hull. And they were going so slow, they were still only just directly in front of me. Silently she floated another several minutes out of sight... no pomp and circumstance, no media, no band, no politicians... just TEXAS and her crew - it was an awesome morning.

USS TEXAS's very first underway was at some unspecified and ridiculous hour of the day. My account and the picture are of a following builder's trial, the unclass pictures were widely distributed in the office.