USS CAVALLA SS-244

PRESERVATION OVERVIEW

Texas is a place of many interesting and contrasting features. The Lone Star State enjoys a mythical reputation around the world as the home of the cowboy and the Alamo. Texas is also renown as the operational center of the National Aeronautical Space Administration, NASA, the pioneers of man’s first lunar landings. We have Judge Roy Bean and the mighty battleship Texas; the Dallas Cowboys and Dwight Eisenhower. And Texas is the resting place of the USS Cavalla. Many residents of the Galveston-Houston area are only vaguely aware that one of the U.S. Navy’s most storied fighting ships is on public display in their backyard. Cavalla achieved more in her first war patrol than the battleship Texas did in 40 years of service. Yet, in comparison to the Texas, Cavalla is unrecognized and overlooked.

This document includes ideas and suggestions to promote and sustain the USS Cavalla as a memorial and tourist attraction.

 

Initiatives

We want more people to come to the park and tour the Cavalla, more money to cover the costs of the park, and more children to know what Cavalla represents.

Awareness

Seawolf Park is isolated and distant from the heart of the city. Yet, it is also tranquil and serene, a conducive atmosphere for a war memorial. Increased awareness of Seawolf Park and Cavalla is essential to increased attendance and sufficient funds to keep up the memorials and park.

Preservation

Cavalla is much more than a war memorial—she’s a time machine, an artifact, a concrete piece of history. Although it may never be desirable or feasible to restore her in every detail, careful attention to key areas will allow for the preservation of this 1944 submarine for future generations.

 

 

In conclusion, I would like to express my eagerness and enthusiasm for this valuable project. As a young boy, my father took me to Seawolf Park and on board the Cavalla. The power and history Cavalla exuded left a deep impression on me. I can trace my love of history and learning directly back to the submarine in Seawolf Park.

It is no cliché to say we owe our prosperity and freedom to great thinkers and brave soldiers. The men of the USS Cavalla played a significant role in winning World War II at great sacrifice and peril to themselves. We have been charged with honoring and promoting their deeds. The measure of honor we reserve for ourselves can be directly related to the success of our efforts.

Thank you for allowing me to present my concerns and suggestions on the status of the USS CAVALLA, Texas’ only memorial submarine.

Neal Stevens
cavalla@houston.rr.com
October 1997

 


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