Armistice Day in the Bay, 1936 edition
In honor of Veterans Day, which was Armistice Day from 1918 to 1954, here’s a short Warship Wednesday.
Remember, today isn’t about saving 20 percent on select bedding or a free buffet at the local hog trough.
Below we see, some 90 years ago today, on 11 November 1936, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier and four battleships at anchor beside San Francisco’s Bay Bridge.
Official caption: “Navy’s Men ‘O War in Shadow of Bay Bridge. Infrared films penetrated a deep haze to catch this picture of five of Uncle Sam’s fighting ships at anchor in the shadow of the Oakland-San Francisco Bay Bridge, recently opened to traffic. The picture was taken on the San Francisco side of the great bridge.”
Acme News picture via the San Francisco Public Library, local identifier AAD-2295.
Pictured are the Lexington-class flattop USS Saratoga (CV-3), recognizable by the vertical stripe she carried on her huge 16-funneled stack between Fleet Problem IX in early 1929 and March 1941, when she picked up the first of three camo schemes she would carry during WWII, a simple Measure 1 Dark Gray (5-D) on vertical surfaces, with Light Gray (5-L).
In the foreground is a New York-class battleship, either NY herself or USS Texas, recognized by the distinctive tripodal mainmast, single funnel, and five twin 14-inch main gun turrets. As NY was off the East Coast at the time, this must be Texas.
The middle and background battlewagons are Colorado– (USS Colorado, Maryland, and West Virginia) or visually similar Tennessee– (Tennessee and California) class, as distinguished by their tripod or lattice cage masts and twin funnels.
A postcard of the above, from a slightly different vantage point, was published shortly after, with Sara and three BBs.
Stanley A. Piltz postcard of Saratoga and the newly opened San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, November 1936
Passing through the Bay that week, under the incomplete Golden Gate Bridge, included USS Arizona (BB-39), followed by USS Nevada (BB-36), Maryland (BB-46), and Texas (BB-35) at a minimum. They also had Sara, her sister Lexington, and the newly completed Ranger (CV-4).
Talk about a proper fleet!
Battleships of the U.S. Fleet entering San Francisco Bay, 10 November 1936. Note the unfinished Golden Gate Bridge. NH 63348
A total of 12 battleships were assigned to the Pacific Battle Force at this time, divided across four battleship divisions (BATDIVs):
Battleships Assigned to the Pacific (November 1936)
| Division | Battleships | Main Battery |
| Battleship Division 1 |
USS Pennsylvania (BB-38)
USS Arizona (BB-39)
USS Nevada (BB-36) |
14-inch guns |
| Battleship Division 2 |
USS Tennessee (BB-43)
USS California (BB-44)
USS Oklahoma (BB-37) |
14-inch guns |
| Battleship Division 3 |
USS Idaho (BB-42)
USS Mississippi (BB-41)
USS New Mexico (BB-40) |
14-inch guns |
| Battleship Division 4 |
USS Colorado (BB-45)
USS Maryland (BB-46)
USS West Virginia (BB-48) |
16-inch guns |