Abandoned Military Base/ Decommissioned Mare Island Naval Shipyard

[@flyguy4211]

I was a Mare Island police officer in 80's-90's. This brought back a lot of fond memories. Thanks for sharing!

[@mandas6451]

Sure you were

[@flyguy4211]

@@mandas6451 YES sir I was

[@jpfitzm]

When I was stationed there, in the 1980's that "High School" was the Movie theater in one side, the Library on the other side and there was a bowling alley right in the middle. The old building you encountered on your way to the houses was part of CSTSC, Combat Systems Technical Schools Command. That's where I spent almost two years (1980-1982) in Data Systems Technician Schoo, learning how to fix computers. I spent Four years on the Nuclear Powered Aircraft Carrier, USS Enterprise (CVN-65), Then I came back here 1986 to spend another two years teaching fresh faced young sailors how to fix computers. BTW, although it's often referred to as the "North Bay", Mare Island is actually located in the San Pablo Bay. The water you crossed on the Causeway, was the Mare Island Straights. A little history. The name of the island came from a Spanish General (can't recall his name) who was taking some boats down the straights, His horse, a mare, fell overboard and swam ashore on the island. Thus "Mare's Island". Eventually the possessive form of the noun was dropped, and it just became "Mare Island".

[@TheWizOfKeyz]

heyy...im pretty sure the general youre thinking of who owned the mare that the island was named after would probably have to be general vallejo, no? the spanish general the city of vallejo was named after. (im from vallejo. 😉 lived here all my life & still do even till today.) i dont see that changing anytime soon either...i could never afford to rent in any of the other citys in the surrounding area. id prob have better luck just moving out of state lol. just like the lady said in the video, it may be a little ghetto in certain areas of town but its home to me....and its the only affordable place to live around here! and by here, i mean the whole entire freakin bay area lol. rent is crazy expensive out here. dosent matter which part of the bay you go to look either... u can look wherever you want for as long as you want & its not gonna do you any good . everything's outragously over priced around here. we're just kinda "used to it" its crazy...)

[@RideLiebRide]

i was there too for training at the CSTSC.... i was coast guard, most of the students were navy radiomen. interesting place

[@ajpisharodi]

@@TheWizOfKeyz Hahah you beat me to it. Yes, the general was General Vallejo. Fascinating how so much history is in that little area, going back to the 1830s, setting it apart from the rest of the Bay.

[@ham98226]

Back in the late 60's I went to Navy electronics school on Treasure Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. My 1st duty station was at Skaggs Island Naval Security Group Activity located on highway 37 west of Valejo and I had to bring electronic equipment to the Naval Calibration Lab on Mare Island. Skaggs Island was closed down a few years ago as was Mare Island. Sad to see all the place falling apart now. Brings back a lot of memories. Thanks for the tour Sarah Jane.

[@charlesmaroon8819]

I know about Skaggs Island. Obscure to sat the least.

[@jonathanhansen3709]

It’s sad for me to look at those ruins. My dad was career Navy and my earliest memories in the late 50’s and early 60’s was of Alameda Naval Air Station and Mare Island. Today there is not a single Naval facility in the Bay Area. Treasure Island and Moffett Field Naval Air Station are also gone (Hanger 1 is still there). Same down in Long Beach, where there use to be the huge Terminal Island Naval base. The USS Arizona use to drop anchor there before 1940. I can’t tell the base was even there anymore. All I know is 200 yards west of where the Queen Mary now sits use to be Carrier Row. I can remember in 1963 seeing 4 Essex class Carriers parked stern to bow there! (CV-45 USS Valley Forge, CV-37 USS Princeton, CV-12 USS Hornet, CV-10 USS Yorktown ).

[@AutoHoax]

I was stationed in Long Beach in 89 to 91. Sad to see all these Naval bases fallen to this shape.

[@rinaticson390]

They also closed the Concord Naval Weapons Station. My father was also stationed there in the late 80s , we were at Mare Island in the early 70s . My sisters were born at Camp Pendleton and at the Fairfield Air Base

[@robertwilcox5670]

I was stationed there for 4 years, on 2 different submarines. Lots of memories. Book - "Blind Mans Bluff". Lots of cold war adventures ran out of Mare Island!!!

[@cassandralewis9345]

This was very interesting as I went through a school on this base in 1964. At that time there were several classified schools on the base including the Basic Nuclear Power school and an Electronic countermeasures school about others. This is also when many of the "NEW'" nuclear submarine were being built. The building 503 that you mentioned was was of those schools and the abandoned house was the the home of the Rear Admiral that was the base commander. I remember the comissioning of the USS Kamahama (now decommissioned) that was done on a Saturday morning while I was there. Quite a trip for an old Viet Nam vet like myself

[@nickcabana8715]

Cassandra Lewis I’m writing a novel where the main character has similar experiences. I’d love to interview you and hear about it if you’re open to that!

[@MadMaxBeyondThunderBone]

Glad I could read that. Semper fortis and Semper fi👍

[@lorenzolopez7434]

There were also some of the navy's Crypto Schools located there. I was stationed there for 6 weeks going through one of those schools. Sad to see it like that.

[@davetherogue]

I attended dsa school in 1992 at navtechscholcom. Command at mare island. Being a young kid new in the navy I took every opportunity to visit vessels in the area. I wondered up to the gang plank to the Kamehameha while they were undergoing refit for special projects showed my I'd and requested to board. Needless to say I did not belong there and was quickly turned away. This was just down from H1 at the schools command at the docs behind what was the mess hall at the time.

[@jackieallen3344]

This naval base has quite a history. It was one of the major refitting bases for some of the ships that was at Pearl Harbor during World War II. I was stationed there for a short time in the 70s. At that time they had submarines and the brown water navy there.

[@Peter_S_]

Great tour! In the Star Trek universe, the Starship Enterprise was built at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard. At 2:45 you're crossing over the Napa River. At 6:20 Building 503 was a paint and varnish factory through the 1940s and 50s (very toxic, lots of lead and chlorinated VOCs). 12:27 the metal caps are to prevent decay. The sides of the pilings are very strong but water, bacteria, and fungus can easily get into the end grain of the wood. A capped piling will last four times longer or more in service. 12:50 that place used to have all kinds of top secret and above stuff including nuclear submarines where the propellers are super secret. They actually cover them with tarps while they're still in the water before drydocking the sub. My company is just about to open a factory there. I wish I could have shown you the 900+ foot long building by the drydocks that we didn't get. The inside was amazing for its scale and the view from the roof is outstanding.

[@logpile1318]

Peter S Pete, you da man!👍

[@chromabotia]

The Starship USS Enterprise was built in Earth orbit. The TNG Enterprise was built on Mars.

[@Peter_S_]

Gully Foyle... _"Located on San Francisco's Mare Island, with additional starship assembly facilities located in Earth orbit, Starfleet's San Francisco Navy Yards is the site where the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 was built in 2245. Captain Robert April, the Enterprise's first commanding officer, was present at the San Francisco Navy Yards when the vessel's major components were built and prepared for assembly in Starfleet's orbital drydock facilities."_ The Enterprise's structure was built at Mare Island and boosted to orbit for finishing and engine fitting.

[@mentallyilldarkjeroid5378]

I want to see a train streetrunning that causeway. People should buy my "Impact" a James Grider novel on Amazon enough times so I can afford a used car.

[@Rubycon99]

The screws are covered up to prevent someone from analyzing the shape and developing a sound signature for the boat.

[@ericlau6435]

I went to Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine on Mare Island. It's still active now. You were really close to it. It was always weird but cool to have so many abandoned buildings around us. Also i love submarines so that was a big bonus. Thanks for taking me back...

[@Afterburner]

Sarah - I worked on a superfund site in Sacramento for 30+ years and we had similar pipes sticking out of the ground - they were wells dug by the environmental monitoring agencies to test the groundwater for pollutants and I'd bet good money that these pipes you are seeing at Mare Island are at least, in part, monitoring wells... Great episode as always ;>) Keep them coming.

[@Lavender-d8r]

I Worked at McClellan afb as a civilian at the CDC- Child Development Center back In 1984-1986. One day a parent told me not to let her child drink the water because it was polluted with air plane cleaner ( foam). Shortly after that I quit working there. We were never warned about anything. I was always curious about what happened to that base. I googled it and found out that it was a superfund site. That there were barrels of toxic stuff buried under the ground on that base! I spent two years on that base using the water at that center, yikes! Growing up, I lived on many air force bases, mainly in Germany. Rhein Main from 1976- 1980. The base no longer exists, it's part of the frankfurt airport, hotels and businesses, even a sub way under where the old base housing was ( Gateway gardens). So sad to see the base no longer exists, so many memories. Like our time there didn't matter.

[@go-goakins1489]

This is the first naval base west of Mississippi. First military golf course here also. They say the museum is haunted. 💀

[@go-goakins1489]

Located in Vallejo Near Napa Spooky place at night in my 📖. Wonderhussy rules!!!!👈🙌🤟😎

[@BobSmith-ce2zp]

I was stationed there at the Marine Barracks in the late 80's, we started the first Marine Corps FAST Company. Its sad to see it like this.. :(

[@LockwoodInvestigations]

Just wanted to say I was a federal police officer on Mare Island from 1988 to 1994 and I like your interest in the island. Mare Island was truly magical. I loved working there!

[@dbfbobt]

In the scene where you are talking about a ferry landing you are walking toward a 5 story brick building, bldg. 273. My wife and I met on the third floor in 1980. We are now watching your video in 2019, 500 miles away. Thank you.

[@BrianWanda]

Cool video, but now the Soviets are going to steal our metal pylon cap technology.

[@TheDustysix]

Pure sheet copper. Enough $ for a party .

[@wes11bravo]

Protect the end grain!!!

[@jrfoster4225]

I was stationed at CSTSC Mare Island in 1985 and 1986. Lots of memories.

[@jrfoster4225]

Just another note, CSTSC = Combat Systems Technical Schools Command.

[@Gary.7920]

Sarah Jane, Wow, you just took me on a tour of my past. I was stationed in Mare Island in 1963 for Cryptographic school. While I was there, on June 22, 1963, they launched the USS Danial Boone SSBN-629 Yes those areas that came up out of the water was where they launched ships that they built. Well, the hippies from San Francisco were raising hell, and saying they were going to lay in the ways to keep them from launching the submarine. The Navy took several of us that were in school at the time and put us on tugboats with Thompson Sub-Machine guns to keep the hippies from doing their thing. Guess what They did not give us any ammo for the Thompsons. I would have rather had a ball bat. Then in 2012, the ship that I had served on in the Navy, The USS Mispillion AO-105 was moved from Suisun Bay to Mare Island, Mispillion had been sold for scrapping in early December 2011 and in early January 2012 was moved to Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, California, where she was placed in drydock to be prepared for her last voyage to the scrapyard in Brownsville, Texas. She began her voyage to Brownsville on 27 January 2012 and transited the Panama Canal from the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea between 21 and 22 February 2012. On 4 March 2012, she arrived at ESCO Marine in Brownsville to be scrapped. She was 67 years old, had the longest life overall and longest working life of any Cimarron-class oiler, and was the last World War II-built oiler in existence. As a point of interest, I spent about a year on Treasure Island in SF Bay in 1961-1962 going to electronics school. I believe it is now luxury homes or condos or something. Maybe you could do a video on it as well sometime. Thank you so much for your trip down memory lane. Gary from N.W. Arkansas

[@thepsychedelicfairy]

Gary Jones thanks for sharing your memories!

[@carlosslim7305]

Gary Jones have you had cancer or any life threatening diseases sir? I am curious as to veterans health related to shipyards...

[@ericocampo4427]

Mr.James Thank you for your memories and Service...

[@ericocampo4427]

Mr.Jones...Sorry for misspelling your name...Dam talking app..

[@marqueemark5917]

When i was a young man out of high-school i worked for a savage crew that began demolishing at mare island back in the early 80's..Some of those buildings had large quantities of recycle materials

[@sandyswearingen2429]

I was stationed there for a year 68-69 while the submarine (USS Grayback) I was assigned to was being refitted and recommissioned. It is very sad to see the condition the base is in. There were numerous naval schools along with the shipyard.

[@RandomBitsRV]

Great Video! It was home for me in 1986. I attended school there. The crypto school I attended was in the same building that was used a the morgue back in WWII. I also learned after the fact that the stained glass in the chapel was original Tiffani Glass.

[@cyclingchantal]

I grew up near Soesterberg, Netherlands, where USAF was located. I remember they opened the first McDrive near the base. For us Dutchies very weird to order fast food sitting in your car. Brings back memories this video

[@JohnWilliams-fs7ts]

I was a Marine stationed there in 1974 and this video takes me back.😢

[@kingzleypub]

Great video Sarah, my brother spent time in the 60's there while serving in the Navy. Keep em coming. Thanks again.

[@andrealamesajan4654]

I was born in this town and live in the neighboring town!!! They have done, and are continuing, to do some significant updates to the island in the last couple years. I visited the island for the first time in 2014 and you could go pretty much anywhere without running into security. It never fails to fascinate, no matter how many times you go there.

[@jonathancolby9625]

I remember that my dad used to work there when I was young we had to move to Washington because that place closed in 96 pretty crazy awesome video

[@greenspiraldragon]

The Navy purchased the original 956 acres (387 ha) of MINSY on 4 January 1853. The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. MINSY made a name for itself as the premier US West Coast submarine port as well as serving as the controlling force in San Francisco Bay Area shipbuilding efforts during World War II. The base closed in 1996 and has gone through several redevelopment phases.

[@pigoff123]

Hanau was amazing and sad seeing everything closed. All the places I grew up with an worked at as a young woman empty and abandoned. My school torn down and the housing area I lived in empty and abandoned.

[@bvcxz47]

I went on a tour of Mare island in 93, that was really an amazing place ,It never should have been shut down, anyplace that can build a nuke sub from scratch can build anything, there will never be another base with the capabilities of Mare Island,another interesting thing is the church on the base it was the oldest naval chapel in the US.the church has tiffany stained glass windows,its the largest collection of Tiffany stained glass on the west coast ,A truly amazing piece of history wiped out with the stroke of a pen.

[@Goodsxp]

Thanks for sharing this, another good find by Wonderhussy Adventures ;)

[@jonahsahn]

My dad worked there. I was born in 1984 and I think he was there until it closed. My parents divorced around like 1986 and I moved to San Diego with my mom.

[@hobblone3887]

Right On!! Mare Island has a great history, w/1,000,00O workers at it's peak.Lathe ally, punch-press row,machine shop ave.Even nuclear subs.Thanks!

[@chromabotia]

During WWII the Kaiser corp. built a ton of liberty ships around here. Yes, the same Kaiser as the health company now. But the most ginormous Navy base was at Alameda. Most all of the 7th Pacific fleet used to come into the bay to dock, resupply and give leave for the sailors. Even big modern aircraft carriers used to come in - they had to come in at low tide to avoid hitting the Golden Gate. Then, I think it was in the 90's Alameda was closed (and redeveloped) and the entire 7th Fleet now goes to San Diego. I believe the site your video shows was part of that shut down. It probably is toxic, older ships used tons and tons of asbestos. Your Military Industrial Complex in inaction. BTW, for all the reactionary's out there the term Military Industrial Complex was coined by President Dwight David Eisenhower. kzbin.info/www/bejne/haqlf6CbmLunmrc Great video WHA

[@kingofthecatnap7923]

Gully Foyle , fascinating addition to this video...thanks for pointing this out!

[@lilorbielilorbie2496]

Gully Foyle all of what you said 'maybe true" but the longest dry docks on the west coast where in Long Beach CA. they where over one thousand feet long. i have seen both the battleships Missouri and New Jersey in them. they where built by a company called Connolly-Pacific.

[@chromabotia]

Yes, Long Beach has very long dry docks. Maersk container ships are now over 1000 feet, as are some super tankers and in modern times I sure you did see the Missouri and the New Jersey there. Traditionally the big battleships were based out of Pearl Harbor and Pearl has very large dry docks too. But the big repair - refit facility that I know of is up on the Washington coast - dry docks up to the largest and newest carrier class. Sorry I can't think of the port or town on the Washington coast just now... It is sad that the old battlewagons do not have a role in today's Navy, mainly due to advances in aircraft, submarines and guided missiles.

[@lilorbielilorbie2496]

Gully Foyle Long Beach does not have dry docks any more. the ones that i was talking about where in the Navy Base. they closed the base some time in the 90,s. what you see in Long Beach now are "docks"some people call the piers. but you can not remove the water to make it a "dry dock". they are used to unload the cheap junk from overseas.

[@kshensales]

Gully Foyle The Kaiser Ship yards were in Richmond , California, that's where I grew up

[@williammurray1564]

This is one of your best videos yet! I love your sense of curiosity and wonder. This base has fascinated me for many years, I was in the navy - not mare island- and I actually had an aunt who was a school teacher in Vallejo. Did you know that Mythbusters shot some of their episodes at Mare Island? All very cool! Thanks for the memories!

[@michigandogman3060]

I spent 3 years of my life there, I was stationed aboard the USS Richard B Russell SSN687 fast attack submarine. The barracks with the orange doors were where I stayed when we were in port.

[@Emanuela9]

I always love hearing what's up with you. I live in San Diego and our abandoned navy training base has been turned into a mixed use area. Trader Joe's, Stone Brewery, restaurants, shops, churches, chapel turned into a wedding chapel, park, boat landing. There's hope for Mare Island. Just has to be the will and effort. I hope it happens one day and you'll enjoy a pleasant hang out location. Thank you very much for sharing. I love hearing from you. Keep those armpits unshaven, they're beautiful. You're beautiful! 😍

[@jimmy1667]

I and my family all worked here until closure. Amazing history in every direction.

[@k.m.slattery6263]

Wow‼️👍👍Love this deep American- historical- military tour‼️ Hoping to visit here soon‼️

[@Shaxuul]

Lived in Vallejo from 1985-2002. Used to fish where you were standing at the waterfront. Father was a volunteer firefighter and trained at Mare Island in the '80s. I remember him taking me along one day when I was 6. I remember being fascinated by all the large buildings and cranes and everything. So surreal seeing the entire place in that condition now.

[@loganinkosovo]

BTW I was stationed in Heidelberg from 84 to 87. I worked for ODCSI in the H building on Campbell Barracks and had a Barracks Room on Patton Barracks and later had Government furnish housing in Schwetzingen. It brought back memories when you mentioned PHV and MTV. :)

[@andrewpettola6097]

Awesome , awesome! I happened upon Mare Island the first time I was in San Francisco back in 1996. I got to see the WWII aircraft carrier USS Oriskany (CV-34) as it was being prepared to be sunk as an artificial reef.

[@Shawps]

I too use to live there. I decommissioned one submarine and overhauled another. Good video of the old commissary, exchange, and navy club. Thoughts were the days. Great video.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@rayrowe2664]

WHY ARE THOSE NOT SET UP FOR HOMELESS VETERANS

[@darangemaster1]

i was going to say something similar use this for the homeless

[@highcurrent1125]

So you think honoring our war veterans by housing them on a super fund site is a good idea?

[@darangemaster1]

no i would rather see all the golf courses closed and have wonderful housing built for them instead of giving funding for welfare and other services for illegals. but you can bet that won't happen. i have no idea what a super fund site is.....

[@highcurrent1125]

I'd rather see all soccer fields closed for the homeless. I love golf!!

[@darangemaster1]

nope close all those damn courses for the wealthy and privileged don't care if you like golf lol..... and pro football stadiums as well as the nfl with probably tank as well ....

[@BIGBADWOOD]

Always 5 star videos ... another great one ! Stay safe !

[@pepawg2281]

So crazy! My sister and my brother-in-law both worked at Mare Island back in the 80s and 90s. Recently (December 2019), we visited the Mare Island museum and also got a personal tour of the Chapel! While studying the many exhibits in the museum, we came across a random photo of decommissioned WW2 submarines docked at the shipyard. We were stunned when, upon closer investigation, one of the subs in the photo was none other than the USS Steelhead that my father served on in the South Pacific theater in the war!!!! So coincidental, it had to be fate...

[@dezertraider]

Thank you WH,Another ,Dinner with WH and such a great video.TY73s

[@WarrenFahyAuthor]

My grandfather worked security on Mare Island during WWII. He was an engineer and a carpenter and he lathed billy clubs for all the guys working security there.

[@chatter7653]

I grew up on a military base in Germany too, ...early 70's , for a few years anyway...Pattonville, near Ludwigsburg...yep, that was the name. I have memories of some of the great weekend trips we'd take, like to nearby Stuttgart and the Neushwanstein castle and other castles and a trip up a mountain on a train with a steep incline that ended inside the mountain, cool stuff!

[@Dave30867]

Another Hussy presentation great job luv them all .

[@sammyhale9121]

I was stationed there in 1984, went to Data Systems “A” school, Link 11 “C” school and KG-40 crypto school.

[@dank3823]

I'm a army brat myself. Ironically, I live by ft ord which suffered the same fate as this place. It's abandoned too...AND the real estate is being developed for big $$. I also worked with ppl that worked on that island and transferred out here. Cool stuff.

[@hestheMaster]

One of the most interesting urbex videos Sarah has done. Nice narrative as Wonderhussy has done in her old blog writing.

[@terrybates6271]

My First Duty station in 1971. I was assigned to the USS Pyro (AE-24). She was in drydock under going re-fit. We had to use the "yardbird" cafeteria because our mess decks were closed.Finally got sea trials in October. I remember seeing South Vietnamese sailors training on river craft in the bay. After sea trials we went to Port Chicago for loading ammo for a WESTPAC CRUISE. I was transferred to a Command at North Island shortly thereafter.But I encountered her in Subic Bay and saw an old friend there in mid 1972.

[@josephdesmond6207]

Terry i was on the mauna kea,ae22,I loved mare island,very cool base,they trained the Iranian navy officers there also,had a nice rifle range,we used to shoot a lot with the marines, also the marines had a bar called chestys place,staggered out of there more than once,hahaha.

[@markshietze4783]

oh , how cool is that !?? I'm gonna have to look it up to learn more & see more pictures ! 😁😊😄

[@bobbybaldeagle702]

I can see that the bunks sure can read those signs. It looks like they broken every piece of glass and tag ever wall they could... Those brats really piss me of. Their disrespect for other peoples property makes me so angry I just want to find them and go slap their parents for not teaching them RESPECT!!!! Thanks for sharing this video... Be blessed... BBE..

[@kasheem1747]

Great work!

[@edwardanderson6600]

Community center, Navy Exchange ,communications center, warehouses, enlisted housing, Captains house, high school, ship building facility, dry dock area. Those houses are not new some are Victorian some are queen ann. And a few are new.

[@steve94044]

Mare Island looks a bit like abandoned Fort Ord in Monterey Bay Area of Calif. lots of old abandoned buildings there too. They are still monitored by military security though.

[@rockforeverentertainment1919]

I love how you use words like "Holy Canoli," "Yikes," "Crikes," "Holy Crikes," etc. I know people use those words, but when you say them, it's somehow different in a good way. I love your frustration at not being able to go into a building, or up that latter, etc. it shows how passionate you are about exploring! You almost lost me at the white lady privilege comment. I would love to do the kind of exploring you are doing. I love witnessing old, abandoned, rusty creepy old stuff! There is so much history there and viewing it invokes my imagination to the lives and worlds of people who came before us! Like you say, amazing!!!

[@lic2kil007]

Lived in Vallejo in early 90's lived in the condo's right behind the propeller @1:59. Was a really nice city you can take the ferry to SF. Good times. Mare Island was one of many naval bases for submarine refurb's and had docked old naval ships from WW2.

[@margaretsnewtoylynnparks5336]

Was in similar housing, 3 people to a room. Brings back memories. E1 to E5. E6 singles get a room to themselves on 3rd floor.

[@jenbyrne1683]

That was not a high school. I lived on mare island in the eighties. There was only an elementary school there. The gymnasium was Rodman center. It was kind of a rec area that had a pool, basketball court and gym. There was a bowling ally upstairs. There should have been a movie theater next to it. Fun fact David Robinson a famous basketball player played there when he was in the navy. You only have to Google pictures of mare island in the eighties to find pictures and maps of that area. I loved seeing a place where great memories for me were made. I think a little research on your part before making the video would have been great

[@RowantheHearingAssistDog]

Jen Byrne thank you. That lady had no idea what she was filming or babbling about.

[@smedley5215]

Yes, that's what that building is. They filmed the Netflix show "13 Reasons Why" in Vallejo and on Mare Island. That's where the "Liberty Tigers" stuff came from.

[@climbingfamily]

Saw Star Wars there for 50cents. We always had matinees there during the summer also, good times!

[@jasonhubbard5422]

My father was stationed there in the 70’s. He also served as the projectionist at the theater for extra duty. I saw many R rated movies there as a child haha. Often I would sit with him upstairs and watch him change the reels.

[@jefflogue4884]

Thank you Sarah for the great video.

[@TheDustysix]

I have watched many of your videos and am subscribed. I knew there was something unique about your persona that I admire. Merry Christmas Army Brat from a USMC Veteran. We are all family. I am in Florida now. I lived in Phoenix and Yuma for years. Las Vegas might be next. I used to be an avid off roader. Your videos pique my interest to explore once more. All the best.

[@mikekelley4181]

Oh and you were right about the row of businesses for entertainment......etc. That was the navy exchange, uniform shop, beauty shop, barber shop, and on the end was both an ice cream shop and video store. The separate large building nearby was the commissary.

[@jessicaasher6250]

I use to work there at the Farragut Club. I met my husband there. This whole video made my eye leak a little bit.

[@esotericeric1564]

Are you a nomad or just on an “extended trip”, you make this lifestyle look very enticing! “Holy Krike”???😊😅

[@vanscoyoc]

I really love this one...Mare Island is probably coming back...

[@hobblone3887]

A launching pad for Cape Canaveral was built there in the '90s, & Kaiser Steel used it to mfgr Offshore oil platforms from '80s- '90s.

[@FSAUDIOGUY]

Cool video...and cool chick filming! I like the jogger thing also!

[@SFCRambo60]

When I was active duty in the Marine Corp, our Barracks was 125 to a wing and we had 4 wings but only 2 heads or showers, bathroom facilities. So you had to learn to shower shave at the same time. We did have individual showers, we had to share with at least 50 Marines at a time, oh almost for got, it was best to also brush your teeth which showering. Not until I had almost 3 months left in the Marine Corp did we get to move into refurbish Barracks, they took the old Barracks and gutted them and made between 1 man rooms to 4 man rooms. Still had no privacy in the Head. This was 1969 to 1973 and I am a Vietnam Marine Veteran.

[@midnight4109]

I spent my entire Navy career listening to stories about all of those California bases mentioned but went to similar schools at Great Lakes and on the east coast where I was stationed. Interesting video as always. There is always more to explore in California. It is truely a place for dreamers!

[@Screaming_Sloth]

Neat video. Thanks for exploring and sharing. Most of all be careful.

[@electrocreations3300]

Hello, Wonder Hussy, I love your show. You pick Cool music. Wonder Hussy Your Camera Pans just right, you hold it on nature, deserts and ship yards, Well, Happy Holidays Stay safe have fun!

[@Chris-lq3mo]

I worked there in 1999 . Beautuful place.

[@jackyfelder2563]

I was on Mare island in a building with workers when it was announced the closure of the base. Very sad.

[@mikewarren1378]

Great video. You always find good places. Keep it up.

[@AnubianOddity]

They’ve demolished most of these buildings. Building 503 was one of the last to go, and was demolished earlier this year. They were all full of led paint, asbestos, and PCBs which is probably in part why they didn’t spend the money to repurpose them. I used to explore building 503 and a few others with my friends and it was sad to see them go. The old abandoned mansion, the some of the warehouses by the waterfront, and touro university are still standing, at least for now.

[@williamparker4612]

Yeah, neat pictures. I was stationed there for 2 years for Electronics training. Lot of neat stuff. Thanks

[@earlwyss520]

I'm a USAF service brat, & USAF vet, and seeing closed & abandoned bases breaks my heart. I graduated HS in Germany, & the base was closed decades ago. I looked at the base on google earth some time ago, & my HS is gone. I learned from the alumni association that the bldgs were torn down because of water damage. During my time in the service, I was assigned to 6 bases, and the first 4 are all closed, the fourth while I was there. I looked at them on Google earth too, and it broke my heart too.

[@jimkey920]

Looks like Batchelor Officers Housing to me. They sure should sell all this surplus property off. I grew up in South jersey, we had shipbiulding, campbell Soup and RCA Records. Now it is a war zone like Detroit. Admiral Quarters, tey would have had 4 or 5 Phillapino Stewards for help. Mare Island was a major repair facility, Ships torn up in action would be taken there and repaired. You always find the interesting stuff. Smart idea not to trespass. It is a drydock.

[@sharkfin2009]

they have

[@upracer9311]

"They" should give it back to us citizens. We paid for it with our tax dollars, didn't we? The military budget is incredibly insane. And nobody hardly says a word. Would be nice to take some of that funding and use it for positive things for us citizens and veterans. But I'm sure the indoctrinated ones will preach about how necessary military imperialism is. Smh.

[@marcogodoy12]

@@upracer9311 Good analogy!

[@erictaylor5462]

I've been on Mare Island many many times before it closed. And it is actually an island. A section of the Napa River cuts it off from the mainland. 8:30 That was the base commander's house. I delivered several pizzas there. 14:00 Vallejo was pretty ghetto even in the 80's. I was looking bater in the late 90's. Don't know about now though.

[@Rubycon99]

Vallejo is still pretty rough

[@erictaylor5462]

@@Rubycon99 Parts, I'm sure. A dated a black woman who's father lived in this neighborhood that was extremely rough. When she invited my to dinner to meet her dad, her dad said he liked me, but he didn't want me to come to his house ever again. Not because he didn't want to see me. It wasn't safe for me. Or him. Some of his neighbors wouldn't like it that his daughter was seeing a white man. I hate racism.

[@CrazyCranker]

Was stationed there 84-87 SBU-IX, Brown Water Navy River Rats. Those were the best of times. When I left in 87 a lot of those buildings were not there. The base was actually growing. They were building new barracks, a new Exchange shopping center. What a shame to see it ruins. :(

[@bob18fan29]

Caps on posts are to shed water to help from rotting, wonderful vid always!

[@corvetteguy1980]

I used to live at Mare Island back when it was still active. My dad was a sub commander there

[@SuperFrank6666]

I was sent there back during Desert Sheild to goto the Army base for my training. A lot of history.

[@dacaololan]

Mare Island, much like Treasure Island Naval Station, would cost an amazing amount of money to clean up. There were so many years of burying stuff on the island that the government won't pay it to make it ready to sell.

[@laurenalisekeltz5876]

I’m very interested to know what’s buried ? 👀

[@patriciogudino7880]

I came across this chan and I love it. The way this woman narrates makes u interested besides the fact she is full of beauty

[@pigoff123]

I lived in hanau from 72-96 so it was a shock to see it abandoned. I am sure the people who lived here feels the same way

[@InTheirImage7]

Man that house is freaking fab! I wish you could have gone in there also!

[@jimbrown9166]

Hey Hussy just watched this video I had a Business across from Norton AFB San Bernardino and when they shut it down the base housing was deemed not suited for Homeless Housing so they leveled them !

[@ausfuhrpramienjagar]

Yup! Drydock #1 #2 and #3. The granite block dry dock #1 construction, which is farther south was started in 1871 and wasn't finished until 1891. It took 20 years to complete the build.

[@laurenalisekeltz5876]

It’s so sad that the buildings are so unusable that they can’t even be used for all the homeless

[@ausfuhrpramienjagar]

Oh wow! Just now seeing this.. The "Yard" is only a couple miles from my house.. Lots of history on that shipyard and I know all about it.. From 1854 until it closed in the mid 1990's.. Funny seeing you standing along the promenade on the Vallejo side with the old ship propeller and the memorial wall in the background, my old hangout. And then crossing the Mare Island Causeway Bridge onto the Yard.

[@garyhall2126]

I think Mare Island actually is an island. You have to take a bridge to get there and can sail a boat all the way around it. It was home of the NIOTC (Naval Inshore Operations Training Command) during the Vietnam War. The marshes to the north of the Island were a good simulation of the marshes in Vietnam so they used them for training the "brown water navy". I was stationed there twice, once for 6 months in 1969 while going to Nuclear Power School (it was on the north end of the island, I think it was torn down) and again on the USS John C. Calhoun SSBN-630 undergoing a refit in the shipyard. Lived down in Benicia, Vallejo was a kind of "tough" town back then. (At least in the areas a sailor could afford) Thanks for showing us around!

[@KeikoFXDesigns]

I lived near Pattonville back in 87- 91. I really miss Germany had lots of fun there. Good people.

[@ceramic49]

I didn't know you are an Army Brat, born in Germany. I was stationed in Mannheim in the early 80's. The metal over those poles is to keep the water from being able to soak in, so it won't rot.

[@jackroper8829]

I watched your video. Thanks! I was Stationed at mare Island in 1972. Marine detachment on the USS PROTEUS. SUB TENDER.I don't recognize anything on Mare island. that waterfront you walked on where the propeller was never exited back then. Our Ship was in dry dock for months before going to Guam. I was a Marine gate Sentry to board the ship. I lived in San Francisco and would drive my 1939 ford coupe to base. I loved old cars. while on base I had a 1942 Willys americar. ( Rare) leaving base a drunk driver on the freeway wiped it out. Those barracks you were looking at, look to me to be from the 1950's or 1960's? we stayed in two story ww2 , wood building. There were no new homes on mare island back in my day! When sailors went to Captains mass to get punished, my Job was to PT them, and run them by the water docks back in 1972. The main street was tenensee street. What memories, of a better time back then for me.

[@gordbaker896]

Very interesting exposé. So much waste. Really too bad you couldn't tour a few buildings inside. Thanks for all your risk and effort.

[@karlschweizer2554]

i really injoy your videos always ready for the next one you show places that most of us will never see

[@BKR]

Hello from Scotland :) . That is a great location!

[@tomblackburn7724]

The "apartments" were the BEQ (Bachelor Enlisted Quarters) for tenant commands, submarine crews while in overhaul, and transient personnel. Charlie and Delta were my buildings when I was stationed at the Q in '92-'93, sad to see them in that shape now. Bldg. 999 was the main Bachelor Quarters office and where I worked out of. Next was the NEX (Exchange), and the smaller store fronts were the barber shop, uniform shop, etc., and yes the "store" was the commissary. Mostly, the rest of the buildings around the Q were warehouses. I think the busted sign was the movie theater and you also passed the gym. The nice old houses was the area where the C.O.'s of the various commands on station, and sub commanders lived. I didn't have kids, so I never went over by that school. Next, you were indeed at the dry docks. When I was there, they mostly overhauled, refueled, and decommissioned submarines down there. If you wanted to hop the fence and check out the other side, I would bring along a Geiger counter. Yes, espionage was the reason for no photography, but I'm sure there is nothing classified there anymore. Vallejo was ghetto long before the shipyard closed, but yeah it decimated the town. It was announced MINSY would be closed during the BRAC in the early nineties. I got, and took, the option for an early out once the closure was announced. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!

[@g.k.dickenson9259]

You gave a really nice overview of this base. Thanks.