09-06-2026 Sunday Red Oak Victory Ship, Richmond, California

- September 06, 2026

Up at 6:30 AM to try to get the sites we want for our trip to Death Valley next year with Ken & Jan. Same as yesterday morning, no luck. We have other reservations nearby for the same time frame if we don't get Furnace Creek in Death Valley. Now we have to decide which one to cancel: the campground with full hookups but an hour's drive into Death Valley, or the one with no hookups but only a half-hour drive. Tough decisions to make when you RV...HaHaHa

Barry drove me to the Red Oak Victory Ship again, and I'm excited because they are open today. My grandfather came home from WWII on the USAT Lake Charles, a Victory ship, so it meant a lot to tour a similar ship. USAT=United States Army Transport.

We bought the full-tour tickets, met our tour guide, Ron, and were off. All the work done is by volunteers, painters, welders, chippers, etc. The ship is the last remaining Victory ship built in Richmond during WWII, which I find very sad.

The Red Oak is managed by the Richmond Library of History and was originally a Victory-class cargo ship used during WWII. It was then a Merchant Marine ship, owned by a few private groups, then sat with the Mothball Fleet in Benicia for years, and finally came home to Richmond. A Merchant Marine ship is a privately or publicly owned commercial vessel that transports cargo, goods, and passengers during peacetime.

We started our tour at the stern (back) of the ship and got to handle one of the machine-gun units. No worries; it is old and missing parts. Then we walked to the "big gun" at the very back. The one they have was donated and needs a lot of work. Ron talked about all the different items on the deck and where the doors led to. We could not go down in this part of the ship. There are five different areas from which the ship can be steered. A backup of a backup and then another.

We moved to the middle and observed the large cargo areas that are currently covered. We will see them later in the tour from downstairs. Ron pointed out the areas they are getting ready to paint. Everything is painted grey or primed. They never stop painting. The paint only holds up about four or five years. Ron is one of the painters and chippers, so he is very familiar with that part of the restoration.

One of the interesting things was the voice-activated phones that are throughout the ship. You pick up the handset, turn the dial to the area you want to talk to, and start talking. I didn't realize there was such a thing as "voice-activated."

We got to see all the different cabins throughout the ship; your rank determined what kind of cabin, if any, you had, with different comfort levels for the officers, chiefs, firemen, cooks, and the captain. The captain had a two-room cabin. One was a bedroom area, and the other room was half a galley and half his office. For example, if you had a sink in your cabin, you were a high-ranking officer. It could also mean whether you had one porthole or two.

The engine room was fascinating. Gauges, pipes, knobs everywhere. How in the world could you keep up with them all? The ship is checked by the Coast Guard about every six months. This is a great tour. If you decide to visit the Red Oak Victory ship, pay the extra for the longer tour. You get to see the engine room, and it's worth it.

We walked into the very large cargo holds, two decks high. When it used to haul wheat and grain as part of the Merchant Marine, it was filled to the ceiling. During WWII, the area was used to store ammunition. That is why the floor and walls are wood. You don't want any sparks due to the ammunition. All these little notes Ron gave us were captivating.

We ended our tour, three hours later, in the other cargo hold. This room has been converted for movie nights and also has a small gift shop. They held a wedding last night, so the dance floor was still there. Lisa found a piano and was playing it. There was a case displaying Rosie welding outerwear, but the glare was so bad I couldn't get a decent photo.

We both purchased the book Build 'Em by the Mile Cut 'Em off by the Yard by Steve Gilford. There was a Christmas ornament for sale, so I had to buy that and a pair of Rosie the Riveter socks. What a great day and I'm happy I got to pay homage to my Grandpa.

We were starving and drove over to the Point Richmond area for lunch. We ate at a Mexican restaurant called Masa. The food was delicious.

From here, our next stop was the Golden Gate Model Railroad Museum. Lisa is a member of another club in Contra Costa County and has not been to this one. It was only five minutes away. The building was a lot larger than I imagined. This was a fun side trip. They had huge setups for different areas of Northern California: Livermore, Truckee, Richmond, Sacramento, Oakland, and more. They also had different modeling scales: O, HO, and N. I had no idea there was such a difference. I really enjoyed seeing all the work gone into each setup. This is a great outing for kids too. Go if you get a chance.

Very busy and fun day. Thank you, Lisa, for driving.