a picture of stokers{black gang}in one of the fire rooms of the USN armored cruiser Brooklyn. this was a job of unparalleled labor while the ship was underway. at flank speed a large ship would use thousands of pounds an hour of coal. the British Canopus Class Battleships for instance burned 10 tons an hour at full speed. it was all shoveled in by hand by stokers as in this picture. temperatures in an operating fireroom could be well above 100 degrees F. this is where the steam for the triple expansion engines is produced.
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