In our previous update we announced that the monument is going to be located at the gateway to the city of Bremerton and will be one of the first things people see when they enter the city from the south. The site at First and Wycoff is currently a right of way and will be rezoned as a park upon completion, gaining the Charleston neighborhood and City of Bremerton a new park. The Navy has removed the Sail from the submarine and it is currently in 4 pieces. Removal of other parts of the boat continues and we have a verbal confirmation from the Navy that we can have the requested USS BREMERTON artifacts. David Fergus and Rice Fergus Miller Architects are continuing to refine the design and Art Anderson Associates is working on the engineering for the project. Our site survey is complete and we have coordinated the location of the monument on the site with the city’s public works. We installed a “Future Home of The USS BREMERTON Monument” sign at the site in December 2025.
We have made a lot of progress over the past three months, gaining many new partners to help with the work of preparing the USS BREMERTON artifacts prior to installation in the monument. The sail is currently cut in half horizontally and will need a lot preservation and welding to prepare it for the monument. We provided a presentation to the Puget Sound Ship Repair Association on the project and they have been extremely helpful finding us partners amongst their members. At this point we have partners for all the services we need to prepare the Sail for installation in the monument. Our partners include: Metropolitan Solutions who have taken samples of the sail materials, South Bay Sand Blasting and Tank Cleaning, who will be removing internal structure and corrosion as well as preparing surfaces, American Scaffold who will be setting up work areas and containment and helping with preservation, Sherwin Williams who is providing all the paint, and IMIA, LLC, who is helping with preservation, welding the sail back together and coordinating the work of the other partners. We hope to start preparing the USS BREMERTON artifacts this year.
We are still looking for additional partners to help us move the parts from the shipyard to the location we will prepare them and eventually to the monument site. We are also meeting with potential partners to help us with the park infrastructure such as concrete, electrical, landscaping, signage, etc. Fundraising continues. We have raised approximately $140,000 to date through direct donations, brick sales, and grants. We continue to raise money to pay for materials and services that we do not find partners to donate in-kind.
You can learn more about the monument project on our website:
In order to complete the USS BREMERTON Monument at Navy League Park we need your help. Unfortunately, there is no single list of everyone who served on the BREMERTON. We are asking you to reach out through your networks to those who served with you on the BREMERTON so they have an opportunity to be a part of the monument though our “Join the Monument Crew, Buy a Brick” campaign. We are hopeful that this will make it to all crewmembers to offer them the opportunity to be a perpetual part of the monument with a brick.
https://polarengraving.com/bremertonsailmemorial
We would also ask that you share information on the monument with anyone else you think may be able to help us with the project – either financially or in kind. Lastly, please consider sharing a sea story on the website about your time on the boat.
USS BREMERTON Monument Committee:
Captain (ret) Alan Beam, CO #3
Captain (ret) Jerry Logan, CO #10
Captain (ret) Tom Zwolfer, CO #11
Leave a comment