ARTIST: Fred Cozzens
PUBLISHER: Published by National Military Publishing Co. 1919 Broadway, NY.
MEDIUM: Chromolithograph,
DATE: 1893.
EDITION SIZE: Image size 7 3/4 x 12 1/4" (19.8 x 31.2 cm).
DESCRIPTION: Plate No. 8 from "Old Naval Prints by Fred S. Cozzens" presents a chromolithograph featuring three distinguished warships: the USS Machias (Gunboat No. 5), the USS Massachusetts (Battleship No. 2), and the USS Castine (Gunboat).<br><br> USS Machias (Gunboat No. 5) was a schooner-rigged gunboat and the first ship to carry the name. She was laid down in February 1891 by Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, launched on December 8, 1891, and commissioned on July 20, 1893, under the command of Comdr. C. J. Train. Initially serving on the North Atlantic Station, Machias later sailed to the Asiatic Station in 1894, where she protected American interests in Korea and Japan during the Sino-Japanese War. After returning to the United States, Machias joined the North Atlantic Fleet during the Spanish-American War, participating in the blockade of Cuba and the engagement at Cardenas in May 1898. Following the war, she continued to serve in the Caribbean and Central America until decommissioning in 1899. Machias recommissioned in 1901, with service spanning the Caribbean, Europe, and the Pacific, including operations during the Panamanian Revolution. After World War I, she was decommissioned in 1919, sold to the Mexican Navy in 1920, and served as a transport and coast guard ship until her disposal in 1935.<br><br> USS Massachusetts (Battleship No. 2) was one of the most formidable battleships of her time. Underway for her shakedown on August 4, 1896, she conducted trials and maneuvers off the middle Atlantic coast until entering New York Navy Yard for overhaul in late 1896. After participating in the blockade of Cuba during the Spanish-American War, Massachusetts bombarded the forts at the entrance to Santiago de Cuba and engaged the Spanish cruiser Cristobal Colon. Though she missed the Battle of Santiago due to coaling, she arrived in time to help force the cruiser Reina Mercedes to beach and surrender. Massachusetts served on the Atlantic coast and in the Caribbean with the North Atlantic Squadron for the next several years. She was decommissioned in 1906, then recommissioned in 1917 for use as a gunnery training ship during World War I. Massachusetts was redesignated as Coast Battleship No. 2 in 1919, and after being used as a target ship, she was scuttled off Pensacola Bar, Florida, in 1921.<br><br> USS Castine (Gunboat No. 6), named after a town in Maine, was launched on May 11, 1892, by Bath Iron Works and commissioned on October 22, 1894, under the command of Commander T. Perry. Assigned to the South Atlantic, Castine embarked on a global journey that took her through the Suez Canal and around the Cape of Good Hope before arriving on station in Brazil in October 1895. She served in South American and West Indian waters until the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in 1898, when she joined the blockade of Cuba. After the war, Castine sailed to the Far East, where she played a role in quelling the Philippine insurrection and evacuated Spanish forces from Zamboanga. Castine continued to serve in various capacities, including as a submarine tender and in the Mediterranean, until she was decommissioned in 1919 and sold in 1921.
ADDITIONAL INFO: This piece is in an 18 x 14" mat for handling.
CONDITION: Good condition with original color.
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