Janet Nolan. Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez NOLAN / GONZALEZ SEVEN AND A HALF TONS OF STEEL. THERE IS A SHIP, a navy ship.

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1 Photo by Chris Guillen JANET NOLAN, a lifelong lover of books and a seeker of good stories, is the author of fiction, nonfiction, and historical fiction picture books, including PB & J Hooray! Your Sandwich s Amazing Journey from Farm to Table and The Firehouse Light. She considers it an honor to have written Seven and a Half Tons of Steel. Janet holds a BA from The Evergreen State College and a master s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a member of the Society of Children s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). The mother of two adult children, she lives outside Chicago with her husband and their dog, Ladybug. THOMAS GONZALEZ was born in Havana, Cuba, and moved to the United States as a child. An artist and painter, he directed advertising campaigns for clients such as Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, NASCAR, the NFL, and McDonald s. He has illustrated a number of children s books, including Toad Weather, The House on Dirty-third Street, and 14 Cows Children s NOLAN / GONZALEZ SEVEN AND A HALF TONS OF STEEL $17.95 THERE IS A SHIP, a navy ship. It is called the USS New York. It is big like other navy ships, and it sails like other navy ships, but there is something special about the USS New York. Following the events of September 11, 2001, a steel beam from the World Trade Center towers was given to the United States Navy. The beam was driven from New York to a foundry in Louisiana. Metal workers heated the beam to a high, high temperature. Chippers and grinders, painters and polishers worked on the beam for months. And then, seven and a half tons of steel, which had once been a beam in the World Trade Center, became the bow of a navy ship. This powerful story reveals how for America. He lives in Georgia. ISBN $17.95 Janet Nolan something remarkable can emerge from a devastating event. Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez Printed and manufactured in Malaysia

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4 Janet Nolan Illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd 2-3 4/21/16 2:44 PM

5 There is a ship, a navy ship. It is called the USS New York. It is big like other navy ships, and it sails like other navy ships, but there is something different, something special about the USS New York. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd 4-5 4/21/16 2:44 PM

6 On September 11, 2001, clouds of smoke billowed into the clear blue sky. The World Trade Center towers came down. Almost three thousand people lost their lives. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd 6-7 4/21/16 2:44 PM

7 In the days after the towers collapsed, people brought flowers and photographs, stuffed animals and pictures drawn with crayon. They lit candles and left handwritten notes to decorate a place now called Ground Zero. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd 8-9 4/21/16 2:45 PM

8 For weeks and months afterward, people cleared away metal and stone from Ground Zero. One truck carried a beam, made of steel, from New York to a foundry in Louisiana. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

9 Workers heated the beam to a high, high temperature. Steel melted into liquid. Molten metal, bright orange and fiery red, was poured into a mold. It took four days to cool. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

10 Seven and a half tons of steel, which had once been a beam in the World Trade Center, was now the bow of a navy ship. Chippers and grinders, painters and polishers worked on it for months. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

11 Once a beam, but now a bow, it was taken to a shipyard in the city of New Orleans. Shipbuilders, engineers, electricians, mechanics, welders, carpenters, painters, and plumbers worked together to build the USS New York. And then it was time to install the bow. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

12 Shipbuilders stopped their work and came to watch. Draped in an American flag, seven and a half tons of steel were lifted by a crane and welded into place on the USS New York. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

13 Out in the ocean, a storm started to swirl. Wind twisted. Water churned. Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans. Levees broke, homes flooded, and businesses were swept away. Many shipbuilders lost their homes. They could not work on the USS New York until 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

14 Kamp Katrina was built. Now the workers had a place to live. They could continue building the ship. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

15 Finally, the USS New York was finished. But the mighty ship still sat on dry land. Inch by inch, using skids, grease, and hydraulic lifts, the ship was put into the water. It was the biggest moving object on the earth that day. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

16 The ship sailed down the Mississippi, into the Gulf of Mexico, and out into the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean. The USS New York was going home. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

17 The USS New York sailed past the Statue of Liberty and came to a stop across from Ground Zero, the site where the World Trade Center towers once stood. There was silence on the water. There was silence on the land. The silence was broken by a twenty-one-gun salute. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

18 When the ceremony ended, the warship set out to do its job at sea. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

19 On September 11, 2011, the tenth anniversary of the collapse of the World Trade Center towers, the USS New York returned home. The men and women of the United States military services lined the rails of the ship. People came from all over the country and around the world to see the ship that bore the crest Never Forget. The USS New York is part of our American history. Wherever it sails the high seas, its bow cuts the water. Seven and a half tons of steel lead the way. 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

20 More about the USS New York The crest of the USS New York The USS New York was built to carry up to 360 U.S. Navy sailors and 700 to 800 combat-ready Marine Corps troops, their equipment, and supplies. The USS New York is also known as LPD 21. LPD stands for landing platform/dock. The USS New York is the 21st LPD in the navy s fleet. On the ship, there is a diner called the Skyline Café, which was the name of a restaurant on the 107th floor of the World Trade Center. LENGTH: WEIGHT: 684 feet 25,000 tons CONTAINS: 500 miles of electrical cable, 315 tons of paint, 60 miles of piping SPEED: MOTTO: up to 22 knots (about 25 miles per hour) Strength forged through sacrifice. Never forget. On the crest it is shortened to Never Forget. The crest features three colors H Dark blue and gold: the sea and excellence (Navy colors) H Red: sacrifice and valor H White: purity of purpose On the crest, you ll find the following elements, which represent H Blue border: the New York State Seal H Sunburst: the Statue of Liberty H Mountain and lake, surrounded by maple leaves: the state of New York H Crossed swords: the Navy and Marine Corps H Gray bars: Twin Towers H Gray chevron: the bow of the ship. This intersects with the gray bars to indicate that the bow of the ship incorporates steel from the World Trade Center. H Three stars: battle stars earned by a previous USS New York during World War II H Phoenix: the country s hope and determination. On the shield on the phoenix s breast Red stripe: the New York City Fire Department Dark blue stripe: the New York City Police Department Light blue stripe: the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Red drops: blood and sacrifice 7.5 Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

21 Peachtree Publishers 1700 Chattahoochee Avenue Atlanta, Georgia Text 2016 by Janet Nolan Illustrations 2016 by Thomas Gonzalez All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Illustrations created in pastel, colored pencil, and watercolor on archival 100% rag watercolor paper. Title created with Pilsen Plaket by Dieter Steffmann for Typographer Mediengestaltung, 2000; text typeset in ITC Bookman by Ed Benguiat for International Typeface Corporation. To the men and women who built and who serve on the USS New York J. N. I would like to dedicate my work to my family, to our founding fathers, and to all who perished on 9/11. T. G. Edited by Kathy Landwehr Title, book, and jacket designed by Thomas E. Gonzalez; composition by Loraine M. Joyner Printed in March 2016 by Tien Wah Press in Malaysia First Edition ISBN Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Nolan, Janet. Gonzalez, Thomas, illustrator. Title: Seven and a half tons of steel / written by Janet Nolan ; illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez. Description: Atlanta, GA : Peachtree Publishers, [2016] Identifiers: LCCN Subjects: LCSH: New York (Amphibious transport dock : LPD-21)- Juvenile literature. September 11 Terrorist Attacks, Influence Juvenile literature. Classification: LCC VA65.N616 N DDC /6--dc23 LC record available at Tons of Steel_int_rev.indd /21/16 2:45 PM

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