Eric Williams Plaza and US Brig Niagara (museum ship): Difference between pages

Revision as of 01:05, 10 December 2006

Revision as of 04:24, 21 May 2007

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[[Image:USBrigNiagaraInPort.JPG|thumb|U.S. Brig ''Niagara'' in port]]

[[Image:PoSHarbour.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The '''Eric Williams Plaza''', viewed from [[Port of Spain]] harbour, December 2002. The [[Nicolas Tower]], now the tallest building in Trinidad and Tobago, is under construction to the right of the image.]]

The replica '''U.S. Brig''' '''''Niagara''''' is a [[museum ship]] and [[sail training]] vessel located in [[Erie, Pennsylvania]] at the [[Erie Maritime Museum]]. She is a replica of the original [[USS Niagara (1813)|USS ''Niagara'']], a [[brig]] which played a pivotal role in the [[Battle of Lake Erie]] and the victory of [[Commodore (USN|Commodore)]] [[Oliver Hazard Perry]] during the [[War of 1812]].

'''Eric Williams Plaza''', also known as the ''Eric Williams Financial Complex'', located on [[Independence Square (Port of Spain)|Independence Square]], [[Port of Spain]], is the second tallest [[building]] in [[Trinidad and Tobago]] . It consists of a pair of skyscrapers 22 stories high and 302 ft (92 m) tall, locally known as the Twin Towers. The Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago surrounds the Eric Williams Financial Complex. Construction on the complex started in [[1979]] and ended in [[1986]]. The architect was Anthony C. Lewis Partnership.

The original ''Niagara'' was sunk in 1820 in Misery Bay on [[Presque Isle State Park|Presque Isle, PA]] for preservation. Owned successively by [[Benjamin H. Brown]] of [[Rochester, New York]], and Captain [[George Miles]] of Erie, ''Niagara'' was raised but found to need such extensive restoration that she was again allowed to sink. She was raised again on March 6, 1913 and restored by the Perry Centennial Commission, which towed her from [[Buffalo, New York]] to [[Chicago, Illinois]] for exhibition at all the larger towns of Lakes [[Lake Huron|Huron]] and [[Lake Michigan|Michigan]] during the commemoration of the [[Battle of Lake Erie]]. Returning to Erie on September 21, 1913, she was cribbed up just out of the water, deteriorating until 1929, when restoration was begun by the ''Niagara'' Association of Erie, aided by the [[Pennsylvania Historical Commission]] and the [[Pennsylvania|Commonwealth of Pennsylvania]]. The project halted for lack of funds in 1934, but was finally completed in 1963 for the [[sesquicentennial]] of her great victories.

The building is on the [[Brian Lara Promenade]], which forms a portion of [[Independence Square (Port of Spain)|Independence Square]] (formerly [[Marine Square]]) in downtown Port of Spain. It was the tallest building in Trinidad and Tobago until the [[Nicholas Tower]] was constructed by businessman [[Issa Nicholas]].

[[Image:Melbourne-Mayor-Tullio.jpg|left|Melbourne Smith and Erie Mayor Tullio]]In 1988, the original replica having fallen into disrepair, a second replica was constructed. The [[National Park Service]] erroneously calls the vessel a reconstruction, not a replica. [http://www.nps.gov/archive/pevi/HTML/Niagara.html] She is, however, a fully-modern ship built in 1988 by Melbourne Smith using period ship-building techniques. The present (fourth) replica/reconstruction ''Niagara'' incorporates a limited amount of original USS ''Niagara'' wood only in non-structural areas. Although she is a fully rigged square-rigged [[brig]], and is usually maneuvered under sail, she does have twin diesel engines.

From [[1993]] to January of [[1999]], the office of the [[List of Prime Ministers of Trinidad and Tobago|Prime Minister]] was housed here; in 1999 it was returned to [[Whitehall, Trinidad and Tobago|Whitehall]].

[[Image:decking.niagara.jpg|right|Decking the U.S. Niagara]]Today, the ''Niagara'' is used to educate the public on the [[War of 1812]] and the [[Battle of Lake Erie]]. She serves as the [[flagship]] of the "''Niagara'' Fleet", with a half-professional and half-volunteer crew joining her on many of her voyages to exotic ports.

She typically flies a War of 1812-era [[United States flag]], the state flag of Pennsylvania, and Perry's famous "Dont [sic] Give Up the Ship" flag.

[[Image:Brig Niagara 1913 LOC 3c27683u.jpg|thumb|Brig Niagara in 1913]]

==Specifications==

{| border="1" style="border-collapse:collapse"

|-

| Length at water line || 110 feet, 8 inches (33.7 m)

|-

| [[Beam (nautical)|Beam]] || 30 feet, 6 inches (9.3 m)

|-

| [[draft (hull)|Draft]] || 9 feet (3 m)

|-

| [[mast (sailing)|Foremast]] || 113 feet, 4 inches (34.5 m) above water line:

|-

| Mainmast || 118 feet, 4 inches (36.1 m) above water line:

|-

| Armament ||

*eighteen 32-pdr. (15 kg) [[carronades]]

*two 12-pdr. (5 kg) [[long guns]]

|}

==External links==

*[http://www.emporisbrigniagara.comorg/en/wm/bu/?id=124680niagara.htm EricU.S. WilliamsBrig PlazaNiagara], at''Erie skyscrapers.com]Maritime Museum''

*[http://www.nps.gov/pevi/HTML/Niagara.html The Brig Niagara], ''[[National Park Service]]''

*[http://www.meppublishers.com/online/discover/trinidad/index.php?topic=touring Touring Trinidad at meppublishers.com]

*[http://usbrigniagara.com/ Reconstruction and Launch Photographs], ''[[Steven M. Hetrick]]''

The US Brig Niagara is inspected by the US Coast Guard as a Sailing School Vessel. There are several ways for the general public to sail onboard. For more information on the ship, her history, or sailing school opportunities, contact the Erie Maritime Museum at (814)454-BRIG or visit *[http://www.brigniagara.org]

{{Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission}}

[[Category:Skyscrapers in Trinidad and Tobago]]

[[Category:Port of Spain]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Niagara}}

{{Trinidad-stub}}

[[Category:Erie, Pennsylvania]]

[[Category:Museum ships in the United States]]

[[Category:PortGreat ofLakes Spainships]]

[[Category:Museums in Pennsylvania]]