Post by rwebb on Aug 5, 2010 9:55:02 GMT -5
The use of sea power to protect its shores and to project the power of a nation beyond those boundaries has been used since the early days of the Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans. Since ours is an island nation bounded by two oceans, naval heritage, within the maritime heritage context, has been an important element in our Country since its founding.
Over the centuries, maritime nations have developed major classes of seagoing combatants that have enabled them to effectively carry out the protection of its shores or the projection of power. Whether it was the ship-of-the-line or battleship, in their respective eras, these major combatants reflected the leading edge of technology of the period and the will of the nation.
The Battleship NORTH CAROLINA's heritage can be traced to a more recent event. In 1906 the British Admiralty commissioned a totally new design, DREADNOUGHT. With an increased number of larger guns in her main battery, a more capable secondary battery, larger designed displacement, better armor and increased speed, DREADNOUGHT became the prototype for subsequent battleships built by other nations, including the United States.
Historically, and until most recently, the most capable class of major combatants, or capital ships, in the U.S. Navy were named for States in the Union.
While the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA is a very visible, and powerful, example of a capital ship, her lineage is equally impressive. The first ship to bear the name NORTH CAROLINA was a ship-of-the-line in the 1820s. Following her was a Confederate ironclad in the 1860s, a World War I-era armored cruiser, a never-completed post-World War I battleship, the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA of World War II fame, and in 2007 a nuclear attack submarine.
While the focus is the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA, information on the others named for the State are included in this site.
* Ship-of-the-Line NORTH CAROLINA
* Confederate Ironclad NORTH CAROLINA
* Armored Cruiser NORTH CAROLINA (ACR 12)
* Battleship NORTH CAROLINA (BB 52)
* Battleship NORTH CAROLINA (BB 55)
* Nuclear Attack Submarine NORTH CAROLINA (SSN 777)
The History of BB 55
"Wherever we went, we were NORTH CAROLINA sailors. We always carried that with us. And I can tell you, this ship was one which had a tremendous impact on the Navy, then and still today. It had a spirit, an infectious spirit."
- Rear Admiral Julian T. Burke, Jr., USN (Ret)
When the keel of NORTH CAROLINA was laid in October of 1937, she was the first battleship to be constructed in sixteen years. She became the first of ten fast battleships to join the fleet in World War II. NORTH CAROLINA (BB 55) and her sister ship, WASHINGTON (BB 56), comprised the NORTH CAROLINA Class. Following them were the SOUTH DAKOTA Class – SOUTH DAKOTA (BB 57), INDIANA (BB 58), MASSACHUSETTS (BB 59), and ALABAMA (BB 60) – and the IOWA Class - IOWA (BB 61), NEW JERSEY (BB 62), MISSOURI (BB 63), and WISCONSIN (BB 64).
At the time of her commissioning on 9 April 1941, she was considered the world’s greatest sea weapon. Armed with nine 16-inch/45 caliber guns in three turrets and twenty 5-inch/38 caliber guns in ten twin mounts, NORTH CAROLINA proved a formidable weapons platform. Her wartime complement consisted of 144 commissioned officers and 2,195 enlisted men, including about 100 Marines.
During World War II, NORTH CAROLINA participated in every major naval offensive in the Pacific area of operations and earned 15 battle stars. In the Battle of the Eastern Solomon’s Islands in August of 1942, the Battleship’s anti-aircraft barrage helped save the carrier ENTERPRISE, thereby establishing the primary role of the fast battleship as protector of aircraft carriers. One of her Kingfisher pilots performed heroically during the strike on Truk when he rescued ten downed Navy aviators on 30 April 1944. In all, NORTH CAROLINA carried out nine shore bombardments, sank an enemy troopship, destroyed at least 24 enemy aircraft, and assisted in shooting down many more. Her anti-aircraft guns helped to halt or frustrate scores of attacks on aircraft carriers. She steamed over 300,000 miles. Although Japanese radio announcements claimed six times that NORTH CAROLINA had been sunk, she survived many close calls and near misses - such as the Japanese torpedo which slammed into the Battleship’s hull on 15 September 1942. A quick response on the part of the crew allowed the mighty Ship to keep up with the fleet. By war’s end, the Ship lost ten men in action and had 67 wounded.
After serving as a training vessel for midshipmen, NORTH CAROLINA was decommissioned 27 June 1947 and placed in the Inactive Reserve Fleet in Bayonne, New Jersey, for the next 14 years until the 1958 announcement of her impending scrapping led to a statewide campaign by citizens of North Carolina to save the ship from the scrappers torches and bring her back to her home state. The Save Our Ship (SOS) campaign was successful and the Battleship arrived in her current berth on 2 October 1961 and was dedicated as the State's memorial to its World War II veterans on 29 April 1962.
Vital Statistics
Hull Number: BB 55
Keel Laid: October 27, 1937
Launched: June 13, 1940
Commissioned: April 9, 1941
Decommissioned: June 27, 1947
Length: 728 feet 5/8 inches long
Extreme Beam: 108 feet 3 7/8 inches wide
Mean Draught: 31 feet 7 inches normal, 35 feet 6 inches maximum
Displacement: 36,600 tons standard, 44,800 tons full load
Complement: 2,339 (144 officers and 2,195 enlisted)
Speed: 28 knots
Armament: 9 16-inch/45 caliber guns
20 5-inch/38 caliber guns
60 40mm/56 caliber guns
48 20mm/70 caliber guns
2009 USS North Carolina Battleship Commission
battleshipnc.com/history/bb55/index.php
Over the centuries, maritime nations have developed major classes of seagoing combatants that have enabled them to effectively carry out the protection of its shores or the projection of power. Whether it was the ship-of-the-line or battleship, in their respective eras, these major combatants reflected the leading edge of technology of the period and the will of the nation.
The Battleship NORTH CAROLINA's heritage can be traced to a more recent event. In 1906 the British Admiralty commissioned a totally new design, DREADNOUGHT. With an increased number of larger guns in her main battery, a more capable secondary battery, larger designed displacement, better armor and increased speed, DREADNOUGHT became the prototype for subsequent battleships built by other nations, including the United States.
Historically, and until most recently, the most capable class of major combatants, or capital ships, in the U.S. Navy were named for States in the Union.
While the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA is a very visible, and powerful, example of a capital ship, her lineage is equally impressive. The first ship to bear the name NORTH CAROLINA was a ship-of-the-line in the 1820s. Following her was a Confederate ironclad in the 1860s, a World War I-era armored cruiser, a never-completed post-World War I battleship, the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA of World War II fame, and in 2007 a nuclear attack submarine.
While the focus is the Battleship NORTH CAROLINA, information on the others named for the State are included in this site.
* Ship-of-the-Line NORTH CAROLINA
* Confederate Ironclad NORTH CAROLINA
* Armored Cruiser NORTH CAROLINA (ACR 12)
* Battleship NORTH CAROLINA (BB 52)
* Battleship NORTH CAROLINA (BB 55)
* Nuclear Attack Submarine NORTH CAROLINA (SSN 777)
The History of BB 55
"Wherever we went, we were NORTH CAROLINA sailors. We always carried that with us. And I can tell you, this ship was one which had a tremendous impact on the Navy, then and still today. It had a spirit, an infectious spirit."
- Rear Admiral Julian T. Burke, Jr., USN (Ret)
When the keel of NORTH CAROLINA was laid in October of 1937, she was the first battleship to be constructed in sixteen years. She became the first of ten fast battleships to join the fleet in World War II. NORTH CAROLINA (BB 55) and her sister ship, WASHINGTON (BB 56), comprised the NORTH CAROLINA Class. Following them were the SOUTH DAKOTA Class – SOUTH DAKOTA (BB 57), INDIANA (BB 58), MASSACHUSETTS (BB 59), and ALABAMA (BB 60) – and the IOWA Class - IOWA (BB 61), NEW JERSEY (BB 62), MISSOURI (BB 63), and WISCONSIN (BB 64).
At the time of her commissioning on 9 April 1941, she was considered the world’s greatest sea weapon. Armed with nine 16-inch/45 caliber guns in three turrets and twenty 5-inch/38 caliber guns in ten twin mounts, NORTH CAROLINA proved a formidable weapons platform. Her wartime complement consisted of 144 commissioned officers and 2,195 enlisted men, including about 100 Marines.
During World War II, NORTH CAROLINA participated in every major naval offensive in the Pacific area of operations and earned 15 battle stars. In the Battle of the Eastern Solomon’s Islands in August of 1942, the Battleship’s anti-aircraft barrage helped save the carrier ENTERPRISE, thereby establishing the primary role of the fast battleship as protector of aircraft carriers. One of her Kingfisher pilots performed heroically during the strike on Truk when he rescued ten downed Navy aviators on 30 April 1944. In all, NORTH CAROLINA carried out nine shore bombardments, sank an enemy troopship, destroyed at least 24 enemy aircraft, and assisted in shooting down many more. Her anti-aircraft guns helped to halt or frustrate scores of attacks on aircraft carriers. She steamed over 300,000 miles. Although Japanese radio announcements claimed six times that NORTH CAROLINA had been sunk, she survived many close calls and near misses - such as the Japanese torpedo which slammed into the Battleship’s hull on 15 September 1942. A quick response on the part of the crew allowed the mighty Ship to keep up with the fleet. By war’s end, the Ship lost ten men in action and had 67 wounded.
After serving as a training vessel for midshipmen, NORTH CAROLINA was decommissioned 27 June 1947 and placed in the Inactive Reserve Fleet in Bayonne, New Jersey, for the next 14 years until the 1958 announcement of her impending scrapping led to a statewide campaign by citizens of North Carolina to save the ship from the scrappers torches and bring her back to her home state. The Save Our Ship (SOS) campaign was successful and the Battleship arrived in her current berth on 2 October 1961 and was dedicated as the State's memorial to its World War II veterans on 29 April 1962.
Vital Statistics
Hull Number: BB 55
Keel Laid: October 27, 1937
Launched: June 13, 1940
Commissioned: April 9, 1941
Decommissioned: June 27, 1947
Length: 728 feet 5/8 inches long
Extreme Beam: 108 feet 3 7/8 inches wide
Mean Draught: 31 feet 7 inches normal, 35 feet 6 inches maximum
Displacement: 36,600 tons standard, 44,800 tons full load
Complement: 2,339 (144 officers and 2,195 enlisted)
Speed: 28 knots
Armament: 9 16-inch/45 caliber guns
20 5-inch/38 caliber guns
60 40mm/56 caliber guns
48 20mm/70 caliber guns
2009 USS North Carolina Battleship Commission
battleshipnc.com/history/bb55/index.php
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