United States Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about this place, and friend, it is quite a story. Now, most tall tales in Texas are about things that grew big and bold. This one is about something that grew the biggest of all, and then had to figure out what to do with itself.

We are talking about the United States Navy at the end of World War II, when the country found itself holding the largest naval force of any country in history. The largest. Ever.

In all of history. So what do you do with all those ships? You could scrap them.

But prudent military leaders, and the marker uses that word, prudent, decided against it. Better to preserve those vessels, keep them ready, so they could be activated quickly if an emergency called. In August of 1945, the Department of the Navy looked out across this country and pointed to Orange, Texas, right here on the Sabine River, as one of the locations for storing that reserved fleet.

Now why Orange? The Sabine River. That abundant fresh water supply was ideal for minimizing marine growth and corrosion on the hulls of those waiting ships.

And there was already a shipyard right next to the site, ready for repair and maintenance of what folks came to call the mothballed fleet. Still, twelve new piers had to be built, and a permit for their construction was obtained. By November of 1945, the place had a name: the U.S.

Naval Station, Orange, Texas. And on November 5th of that same year, the first vessel arrived to report for inactivation. She was the USS Matagorda.

The first ship to come in from the war and settle into that long, quiet berth on the Sabine. Then 1950 came along, and the Korean War said, not so fast. The facility reactivated over thirty ships.

Thirty vessels that had been sitting still suddenly had somewhere to be. After the Korean War wound down, many of those ships came back to Orange for storage again. The years passed quietly after that, until 1961, when the Department of Defense chose fifty-two facilities across the country to be closed or phased down.

Orange was one of them. But the facility didn't close outright, not then. It stayed operable.

The military presence shrank down to twenty-five officers and enlisted men, and large numbers of civilians were hired to keep operations going. It held on like that for years, until December 28, 1975, when the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility at Orange was closed for good. By 1980, every remaining vessel had been moved out, transferred to other locations, sold to foreign nations, or sold for scrap.

The mothballed fleet, that careful hedge against the unknown, was gone. The Sabine River kept running, same as always, not caring much either way. But for thirty years, right here in Orange, Texas, some of the mightiest ships in the history of the world sat still and waited, just in case the world needed them again.

What the marker says

At the termination of World War II, the United States had the largest naval force of any country in history. Prudent military leaders decided against scrapping surplus vessels, in favor of preserving them so they could be activiated quickly in case of emergency. In August of 1945, the Department of the Navy announced that Orange would be one of the locations for the storage of reserved vessels. The abundant fresh water supply of the Sabine River made Orange an ideal location for such a facility, because of the necessity to minimize marine growth and corrosion. Also, the existing shipyard adjacent to the site could be used for repair and maintenance of the "mothballed" fleet. However, it was still necessary to construct a berthing area for the inactive ships, and a permit for the construction of twelve piers was obtained.The facility was named the U.S. Naval Station, Orange, Texas, in November of 1945. The first vessel to report for inactivation was the USS Matagorda, which arrived on November 5. When the Korean War began in 1950, the facility reactivited over thirty ships, after which many were returned for storage. The facility at Orange was one of fifty-two to be chosen in 1961 by the Department of Defense to be closed or phased down. The facility remained operable, but the military presense was reduced to twenty-five officers and enlisted men, and large numbers of civilians were hired to continue operations. On December 28, 1975, the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility at Orange was closed. By 1980 all remaining vessels were transferred to other locations, sold to foreign nations or sold for scrap. (2008)