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From
the photographs of Brown
& Schaffer, the fleet enters Rio De Janeiro
| The reception of the American Fleet in Reo made up for Trinidad. At 75
miles out they received greetings and “Welcome American Fleet” over the
telegraph. At 30 miles they were met by
three Brazilian warships firing a thirteen gun salute befitting a
Vice-Admiral.
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They then steamed single
file into Batafoga Bay where the shores,
hills and buildings were covered with people to view and greet the fleet. Many of the spectators had waited more than
two days at there location to get a good view.
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Members
of the American colony in Rio de Janeiro
coordinated a repectionn for the men of
the American Fleet through the local YMCA,
the American Consulate General, and the
Seamen's Society. The map to the left
is the inset to the booklet below providing
a list of excursions and sites for sailors
during their visit to the City.
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During
the Fleet's visit, special cars left the
Tramway Station from 9 to 11 am daily. Shown
at right is a pass issued to Midshipman
Wayne Tod, USS Maine. The Tramway
ran by the Presidenti's Palace and stopped
at the Botanical Gardens, bosted as the
best in the world. It returned to
Larangeiras where special trains were waiting
to take sailors to the peak of Corvovado
at 2300 feet above sea level.
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From
the cards received by
Miss May Phelps from C. F. Cleary, a
Second Class Machines Mate on the USS Maine.
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This
photograph shows the USS Connecticut while
sitting at anchor in Rio de Janeiro. This
real photo postcard was probably taken and
processed on one of the ships of the fleet.
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The Above
photographs are from the M.
R. Battey Collection,
Within the harbor was the German cruiser Bremen anxious to greet the Americans. As cool as the British had been towards the
Americans, the Germans were as warm.
Globally with the British siding with Japan in there recent alliance, the
Germans felt their alliance must now be made with the Americans. It was clear to most that there would soon be
a war between Britain and Germany. Given this situation Germany hoped to gain American favor and as an
ally in any future war with England
and Japan. The Captain of the Bremen
was early to come aboard the Connecticut
to pay his respects to Admiral Evans.
That evening the fleet rigged green and white lights on the
ship to honor Brazil and Rio provided the fireworks for sailors onboard the
ships. The next day hundred of sailors
went ashore to explore the city. At one
point a fight broke out with sailors at a bar that grew to be a larger
disturbance in the street involving the police and even armed troops. It was resolved by the next day, at no cause
of the sailors, and Admiral Evans placed 4,000 men ashore. And Rio was
ready to receive them. The streets were
decorated with American and Brazilian flags, there were information booth on
every corner, and more that 20,000 maps were produced to help the bluejacket
find his way to popular sites. Most
popular was the train to the top of Mount
Cordova.
On January 21st, the last full day in the harbor,
a reception for the Brazilians was held aboard the Minnesota.
Henry Reutedahl was responsible for the decorations and preparing the
ships for this occasion including rock gardens, ponds with fish, and
waterfalls. Over 3,000 guests attended
the function including the officers of the Bremen.
The next day the ships weighted anchor and headed for open sea. They were accompanied by 16 cruisers of the
Brazilian Navy.
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The
two cards are from the collection of
William
Burgess, USS Kersearge and include a
senic rendering and a nice card of
the Grand Hotel with a trolley in front.
The note on this card states, "This
is certainly a dandy place and a modern
city also very pretty but it certainly is
hot. W.G.B"
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