Tag Archives: USS Texas (Battleship No. 35)

A much deserved show

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It happened 80 years ago today.

The crew of USS Texas (Battleship No. 35) assembled for a USO Show onboard in Leyte Gulf on 22 May 1945, relaxing after being relieved from the Battle of Okinawa.

Courtesy of the National Archives & Records Administration.

As detailed by the Battleship Texas Foundation, just the week prior:

USS Texas was relieved from the Battle of Okinawa after 50 days in action. Texas expended a staggering amount of ammunition in those 50 days:

14” – 2,019 rounds
5” – 2,643 rounds
3” – 490 rounds
40 mm – 3100 rounds
20 mm – 2205 rounds

While the battle was over for Texas on May 14, 1945, Okinawa was not secured until June 22nd. This long, protracted battle was grueling for the land forces but also exposed the Navy to near-constant air attacks. The Navy lost nearly 5,000 men and another 5,000 were wounded. 36 ships were sunk and over 350 were damaged. Texas emerged from her time off Okinawa unscathed in large part due to her crew’s constant state of readiness. Captain Charles Baker included the following praise in his after-action report:

“It is worthy of comment that this vessel remained in Condition I or I Easy [“battle stations”] throughout the entire period off the coast of Okinawa, some seven weeks. That the men took this without undue fatigue is a tribute to their spirit and physical condition. It is not believed that any lesser condition of readiness can meet adequately the emergencies of suicide bombers and suicide boats. The only answer to the approaching [kamikaze] is early and great volume of fire, using every gun that will possibly bear, and early warning by radar cannot always be relied upon. The men realized this and preferred to remain at their stations, resting and sleeping there as opportunity offered, rather than be called up frequently from below as would inevitably have happened. The rest period when it finally came, however, was much appreciated.”

-Captain Baker’s Report for the Battle of Okinawa, filed May 26, 1945

Battleship Texas has new permanent-ish home, afloat at Galveston

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Three years after being uprooted from her long-time shallow berth under the San Jacinto Monument– where she rested for nearly 75 years– USS Texas (Battleship No. 35), the country’s only Great War-era Dreadnought, has a new home.

As released yesterday by the Battleship Texas Foundation:

Big news for Battleship Texas! After years of hard work and dedication, we’re thrilled to have the support of the Wharves Board to bring TEXAS to Pier 15 in Galveston- just a short walk from Pier 21 and the historic Galveston Strand. TEXAS, the last ship of its kind, will promote tourism, educate future generations, and create a visitor experience worthy of her crew and legacy.

It’s about time this was ironed out.

For a deeper dive, The Houston Chronicle details that the spot next door to the port’s newest cruise ship terminal nails down a heartburn-filled effort and secures the historic ship’s future at least for the near term. She just completed a $40 million drydock and extensive refit, raised through a mix of state funds and private donations.

There are more steps to the process including paperwork and building shoreside infrastructure as well as getting everyone from the USCG on down to give a final stamp of approval, but it looks like she could be back on public display by the end of the year and looking better than ever.

It would have been better for her 110-year-old hull to be in fresh rather than brackish water, but as long as the Foundation gets in touch with some serious cathodic protection on the hull and splash zones, coupled with a strict internal monitoring program and aggressive maintenance, she should still be good to go for another couple of decades.