About the Collection
George Albert Converse (1844-1909) was an officer in the U.S. Navy who is remembered for his contributions to naval engineering. He was a pioneer in the use of electricity on men-of-war, experimentation with smokeless powder in the Navy, and the development of torpedo boats. The digital collection contains most of the documents and photographs that comprise the physical collection.
The collection includes correspondence, naval orders, ship specifications, contracts, reports, notebooks, newspaper and periodical clippings, pamphlets, etc. relating chiefly to the development of torpedo boats in the United States and Europe. Most of the papers cover the period 1888-1897 and were written in Newport, Rhode Island, Washington, D.C., and England. Also included are photographs of various ships, construction of ships and other related views. There are also views of ruins of a gun cotton factory after an explosion, "Cushing's" experiments with torpedoes, Yarrow & Co. torpedo boats, and steam yachts.
![[Telegraph to George Converse from Hilary Herbert]](/-/media/site/libraries/digital-collections/gcp/gcp_landing_new_telegram.jpg?h=400&iar=0&w=600&hash=D33711E38230E0256181691390502239)
