USS Olympia, Independence Seaport Museum

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Visit our “Tour Destination: Philadelphia” page to see the entire walking tour of the first Philadelphia cluster of Save America’s Treasures sites.

The Independence Seaport Museum as seen from the Delaware River.
Photo courtesy of Independence Seaport Museum.

The USS Olympia at Independence Seaport Museum.
Photo courtesy of Independence Seaport Museum.

USS Olympia, Independence Seaport Museum

Penn’s Landing

Philadelphia, PA

Website:  Explore the Historic Ship Zone

The Treasure:  Launched in San Francisco in 1892, the Olympia is the oldest surviving steel warship still afloat. It famously served as Commodore George Dewey’s flagship at the Battle of Manila Bay in 1898 during the Spanish-American War.

Accessibility:  Check their website for up-to-date information on available tours of the Olympia. This winter, tours are limited to Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, with regular daily tours scheduled to resume in April.

The Independence Seaport Museum is open daily from 10 to 5.

The fantail of the USS Olympia.
Photo courtesy of Independence Seaport Museum.

Notes:  The Olympia is a large ship, 344 feet in length, built to carry a crew of 400-450 men. The ship features two-ton piston heads and exquisitely crafted gears, rods, tubes and levers. The three-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines relied upon three coal-fired cylindrical boilers that consumed up to 20 tons of coal per hour when the ship was moving at full speed of 22 knots (about 25 miles per hour).

On May 1, 1898, Commodore George Dewey stood on the Olympia’s bridge and issued his famous order, “You may fire when you are ready, Gridley.” Dewey’s Asiatic Squadron of four cruisers and two gunboats engaged with Spanish forces in the Philippines, decisively winning the battle. It was the first major engagement of the Spanish-American War, which would end just three and a half months later. The U.S. emerged from the war as a force to be reckoned with in international affairs.

The Olympia subsequently served in World War I. Her last official naval mission was to carry the body of the Unknown Soldier from France to the United States in 1921. Shortly afterward, the Olympia was decommissioned for the last time.

Notes from the Editor:  The future of the USS Olympia remains uncertain. The Independence Seaport Museum is engaged in a carefully-planned strategy to determine an appropriate home and caretakers for the grand old ship. In the meantime, the Olympia is still open for tours—so see it now!

Other Recommended Sites:  Visitors to the Seaport Museum’s historic ships may also enjoy visiting the Battleship New Jersey Museum, located right across the Delaware River on the Camden Waterfront. Touring the Olympia, a state-of-the-art warship when she was built in 1895, and then touring the New Jersey, which was launched in 1942, can offer visitors an amazing opportunity to experience the progression of ship design. The New Jersey is open for tours March through December (closed January and February).

During the summer, RiverLink Ferry System offers scenic transportation across the Delaware River to the Camden Waterfront

The USS Olympia, next to the Submarine Becuna, at Independence
Seaport Museum.  Photo courtesy of Independence Seaport Museum.

Tour America's History Itinerary

Thursday’s destination:  Submarine Becuna (Independence Seaport Museum)
Friday’s destination:  American Philosophical Society

© 2012 Lee Price