Former US Navy minesweeper ship to open as museum at Stockton port this weekend
STOCKTON — A former U.S. Navy minesweeper ship will come to rest in Stockton, and we got an early glimpse.
The USS Lucid, which served four tours in the Vietnam War, is one of only two ships like it left in the world. It will now serve as a maritime museum at the Port of Stockton.
It will be a new addition after it is docked permanently along the port. It will potentially bring more people to Stockton as a new tourist attraction.
David Rajkovic is the standing president of the Stockton Maritime Museum. For the past 12 years, he and his team of volunteers and former sailors have been working on restoring the USS Lucid, which is one of two left in the world.
The former Navy minesweeper was built in the 1950s.
"Sixty-six were built for our Navy and this is the last one left in the United States. All of the others have been scrapped," Rajkovic said. "Three of these were built in Stockton."
Keeping the history of Stockton alive is what Rajkovic and his team aim to do, opening the Lucid up to the public on Saturday.
"There were 12 shipyards at the height of World War II, and there's none left now. Ship building has left a long time ago," he said.
Rajkovic added that the USS Lucid will be docked on the south shore, across the street from the ballpark.
Hundreds of people are expected this weekend to tour the Lucid for it's second open house, bringing a big boost to the city and the ship's restoration efforts.
"We're expecting people from all over the country to come here, even people that have served in the Navy and on this ship," Rajkovic said.
Officials are planning to build a replica of the shipyard, like the one it was built in, to act as the front of the museum.
Sign ups for this weekends open house can be found here.