Tag Archives: USS Wisconsin (BB-64)

The ‘Last’ Yankee Battleship

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Some 80 years ago today, the final American battleship laid down whose construction was completed* entered the fleet.

The second U.S. Navy warship to be named for the 30th State, USS Wisconsin (BB-64), was ordered on 12 June 1940, laid down on 25 January 1941 at the Philadelphia Navy Yard; launched on the second anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack, 7 December 1943 (of note, sistership USS New Jersey was commissioned on the 1st anniversary the year before); sponsored by Mrs. Margaret Roche Goodland, wife of Wisconsin Governor Walter S. Goodland; and commissioned on 16 April 1944, with Milwaukee-born Capt. Earl Everett Stone (USNA 1917), in command.

A Badger-state battlewagon, for sure!

*While Wisconsin was the fourth and final– sisters Illinois and Kentucky were never completed– Iowa class super battleship ordered, the third member of the class, USS Missouri (BB-63), which was ordered on the same day (12 June 1940) and laid down two weeks before BB-64 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, was not commissioned until 11 June 1944, making the third member of the class the last delivered, even though she had an earlier hull number and keel authentication date.

USS Wisconsin (BB-64) at anchor on 30 May 1944, during her Atlantic coast shakedown period. 80-G-453313

After shakedown in the Caribbean, Wisconsin sailed for the Pacific in October 1944 and stopped at Pearl Harbor to be inspected by Nimitz himself on her way to the combat zone.

She tied up next to the shattered hulk of the raised dreadnought USS Oklahoma (BB-37), which had only been decommissioned two months prior.

USS Wisconsin tied up outboard of the hulk of USS Oklahoma (BB-37), at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, 11 November 1944. Note: anti-torpedo netting outboard of the ships as well as the great difference in lengths of these two battleships (887 vs 583 feet), commissioned just 28 years apart. NH 78940

Over the next nine months, Wisconsin took part in operations to capture the Philippines, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa, as well as raids on the Japanese home islands, surviving two typhoons in the process.

Wisconsin earned five battle stars for her WWII service, another for Korea, and the Navy Unit Commendation for Desert Storm. Although 62 years passed from when she was commissioned and stricken for good, she only served roughly 14 of those (1944-48, 1951-58, and 1988-1991) on active duty.

Wisconsin also held a couple of other important “lasts” in naval history.

While Missouri and Wisconsin both fought in the First Gulf War (Desert Storm) in 1991, it was the “Big W” who fired the last battleship naval gunfire-support mission of the war, and, on 28 May 1991, would be the final member of her class to fire her 16-inch guns.

The Wisconsin (BB-64) fires one of its Mark 7 16-inch 50-caliber guns from turret No. 2 while underway. This is the last firing of the vessel’s guns, 28 May 1991. USN photo # DN-ST-92-00496, by PH1 Bruce M. Morris, from the Department of Defense Still Media Collection.

Iowa and Wisconsin were finally stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 17 March 2006, making them the last battleships in service in the world.

Now, some 80 years in the rearview, and 33 after her guns fell silent, she is still beautiful.

The Nauticus Museum, where she has been since 2001 (although the Navy only transferred ownership to the City of Norfolk in 2010, still technically holding on to the possibility of reactivating her until then) is celebrating all month. 

When in Norfolk, please stop by and tell the old girl hello. 

Deck the Discone with Boughs of Holly…

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Check out these amazing shots of the Iowa-class battleship, USS Wisconsin (BB-64), as she currently sits at the Nauticus Maritime Museum in Norfolk, decorated for the holidays as part of the museum’s Winterfest.

The ship’s distinctive discone antenna on the bow makes a great artificial Christmas “tree,” although Charlie Brown may disagree.

Originally intended for the Naval Tactical Data System (NTDS) and added during her final commissioning, the 44-foot tall discone/discage antenna coupler group on the bow is actually 2 antennas, each used for transmitting voice and data.

Navy Radio’s love affair with the composite discone cage vertically polarized antenna started in the mid-1950s and was full blown by the Vietnam-era, with most cruisers, destroyers, and escorts given one of these devices, typically on the bow or on the most forward gun mount.

These ranged in height from simple 20-foot cages built on 5-inch/38 Mark 30s and 5″/54 Mark 42s (later replaced with a simpler fan-type HF antenna) to mammoth 32-footers among the up to 82-foot masts on the converted Saipan-class light aircraft carrier turned command ship/NECPA, USS Wright (CC-2).

A starboard view of the forward section of the guided-missile destroyer USS Farragut (DDG 37) during an overhaul at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard. Visible on the deck are the ASROC (anti-submarine rocket) launcher and the Mark 42 5-inch/54-caliber gun mount with HF antenna. Above the bridge are the satellite receiving antenna and the Mark 68 gunfire control director, 10/6/1983 Don S. Montgomery, USN (Ret.). 330-CFD-DN-ST-84-00779

USS Wright (CC-2) Underway off the southern California coast, 25 September 1963, shortly after conversion to a command ship. Note her extensive array of communications antennas and their associated masts. Official U.S. Navy Photograph. KN-5885

Even 327 and 378-foot Coast Guard cutters got in on the act in the 1970s and 80s, carrying a cage atop their single 5-inch/38 Mark 30 mount.

Iowas first picked up their big forward discone in 1968 when USS New Jersey (BB-62) was reactivated for a tour off Vietnam and the other three class members would see them added in their later “600 Ship” Lehman Navy modernization in the early 1980s.

They still get some actual use, and not just as Christmas decorations. 

The USS New Jersey Battleship Museum’s ham radio station, NJ2BB, in Camden operates at 800 watts from the ship’s bow-mounted discone antenna.

Big O, and One Wild Airwing

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70 years ago, the newly completed improved Essex-class attack carrier USS Oriskany (CVA-34) at Sasebo, Japan, on 27 October 1953. The Iowa class battlewagon USS Wisconsin (BB-64), fresh off her Korean War service, is hiding in the background.

National Archives photo 80-G-642739 via the NHHC

Oriskany has CVG-19 aboard– the historic old airwing carried by Lexington and Enterprise in the tail-end of WWII. Looking very different from the days of Hellcats, Helldivers, and Avengers, for Oriskany’s 14. September 1953 – 22. April 1954 deployment she carried an AD-6 Skyraider squadron (VA-195), another of F9F-5 Panthers (VF-192), one of F9F-6 Cougar (VF-191), and a third different jet fighter squadron of F2H-3/4 Banshees (VF-193) types– all seen arrayed on her deck above. To this crazy mix were added some photo Panthers, a HO3S-1 det, a few AD-4W airborne early warning birds, and a handful of AD-4NLs “Night Raiders” and F2H-3s “Night Banshees” of VC-3/35. These night fighters and strike aircraft are easy to spot from the rest of the airwing due to their dark livery.

Laid down on 1 May 1944 by the New York Naval Shipyard, owing to the end of WWII and shrinking budgets, Oriskany’s construction was suspended until after the outbreak of hostilities in Korea in June 1950, then rushed to completion, commissioning on 25 September and being rushed for a Mediterranean deployment with CVG-4 embarked in May 1951.

After conversion to operate jets, Oriskany would make it to Korea with CVG-102/CVG-12– a hybrid air group with piston-engine Corsairs and Skyraiders along with two fighter squadrons equipped with Grumman F9F Panther jets and a Sikorsky HO3S helicopter squadron– embarked on Halloween 1952. Her combat there wrapped up in April 1953 and she returned to the West Coast for some downtime before departing San Francisco on 14 September 1953 for her second cruise to the Far East, arriving at Yokosuka on 15 October, as seen above.

Oriskany received two battle stars for Korean service and ten for Vietnamese service, wrapping up her 15th and final Westpac deployment on 3 March 1976. Decommissioned later that year, she was in mothballs for the rest of the Cold War, with SECNAV John Lehman long considering bringing her back to active duty.

Eventually, Oriskany was turned into a reef in 2006 off the Florida panhandle, the largest American warship even utilized for such a purpose.

WisKy Delivering in the ROK

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80 years ago: The Iowa-class fast battleship USS Wisconsin (BB-64) fires a three-gun salvo from her forward 16″/50 caliber gun turret, during bombardment duty on the “bombline” off Korea. The original Kodachrome color photograph is dated 30 January 1952.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. 80-G-K-12103

Reactivated from mothballs, Wisconsin was recommissioned on 3 March 1951, and, arriving at Yokosuka, Japan, on 21 November, she relieved USS New Jersey (BB-62) as flagship for VADM Harold M. Martin, Commander, Seventh Fleet. By 2 December, she was providing naval gunfire support for the Republic of Korea (ROK) Corps in the Kasong-Kosong area. She would continue this spate of inshore bombardment for her Korean stint.

Via DANFS: 

After disembarking Rear Adm. Denebrink on 3 December at Kangnung, the battleship resumed station on the Korean “bombline,” providing gunfire support for the U.S. First Marine Division. Wisconsin’s shellings accounted for a tank, two gun emplacements, and a building. She continued her gunfire support task for the 1st Marine Division and 1st ROK Corps through 6 December, accounting for enemy bunkers, artillery positions, and troop concentrations. On one occasion during that time, the battleship received a request for call-fire support and provided three starshells for the 1st ROK Corps, illuminating a communist attack that was consequently repulsed with considerable enemy casualties.

After being relieved on the gunline by the heavy cruiser St. Paul (CA-73) on 6 December 1951, Wisconsin retired only briefly from gunfire support duties. She resumed them, however, in the Kasong-Kosong area on 11 December, screened by Twining. The following day, 12 December, saw the embarkation in Wisconsin of Rear Adm. Harry R. Thurber, Commander, Battleship Division Two (BatDivTWO), who came on board via helicopter, incident to his inspection trip in the Far East.

The battleship continued naval gunfire support (NGFS) duties on the bombline, shelling enemy bunkers, command posts, artillery positions, and trench systems through 14 December 1951. She departed the bombline on that day to render special gunfire support duties in the Kojo area, blasting coastal targets in support of United Nations (UN) troops ashore. That same day, she returned to the Kasong-Kosong area. On 15 December she disembarked Rear Adm. Thurber by helicopter. The next day, Wisconsin departed Korean waters, heading for Sasebo to rearm.

Returning to the combat zone on 17 December 1951, Wisconsin embarked U.S. Senator Homer S. Ferguson (R., Michigan) on 18 December. That day, the battleship supported the 11th ROK division with night illumination fire that enabled the ROK troops to repulse a communist assault with heavy enemy casualties. Departing the bombline on the 19th, the battleship later that day transferred her distinguished passenger, Senator Ferguson, by helicopter to the carrier Valley Forge (CV-45).

Wisconsin next participated in a coordinated air-surface bombardment of Wonsan to neutralize pre-selected targets. She shifted her bombardment station to the western end of Wonsan harbor, hitting boats and small craft in the inner swept channel during the afternoon. Such activities helped to forestall any communist attempts to assault the friendly-held islands in the Wonsan area. Wisconsin then made an anti-boat sweep to the north, utilizing her 5-inch batteries on suspected boat concentrations. She then provided gunfire support to UN troops operating at the bombline until three days before Christmas 1951. She then rejoined the carrier task force.

On 28 December 1951 Francis Cardinal Spellman, on a Korean tour over the Christmas holidays, visited the ship, coming on board by helicopter to celebrate Mass for the Catholic members of the crew. The distinguished prelate departed the ship by helicopter off Pohang. Three days later, on the last day of the year, Wisconsin put into Yokosuka.

Wisconsin departed that Japanese port on 8 January 1952 and headed for Korean waters once more. She reached Pusan the following day and entertained the President of South Korea, Syngman Rhee, and his wife, on the 10th. President and Mrs. Rhee received full military honors as they came on board, and he reciprocated by awarding Vice Adm. Martin the ROK Order of the Military Merit.

Wisconsin returned to the bombline on 11 January 1952 and, over the ensuing days, delivered heavy gunfire support for the First Marine Division and the First ROK Corps. As before, her primary targets were command posts, shelters, bunkers, troop concentrations, and mortar positions. As before, she stood ready to deliver call-fire support as needed. One such occasion occurred on 14 January when she shelled enemy troops in the open at the request of the ROK First Corps. Rearming at Sasebo and once more joining TF 77 off the coast of Korea soon thereafter, Wisconsin resumed support at the bombline on 23 January. Three days later, she shifted once more to the Kojo region, to participate in a coordinated air and gun strike. That same day, the battleship returned to the bombline and shelled the command post and communications center for the 15th North Korean Division during call-fire missions for the First Marine Division.

Returning to Wonsan at the end of January 1952, Wisconsin bombarded enemy guns at Hodo Pando before she was rearmed at Sasebo. The battleship rejoined TF 77 on 2 February and, the next day, blasted railway buildings and marshalling yards at Hodo Pando and Kojo before rejoining TF 77. After replenishment at Yokosuka a few days later, she returned to the Kosong area and resumed gunfire support. During that time, she destroyed railway bridges and a small shipyard besides conducting call fire missions on enemy command posts, bunkers, and personnel shelters, making numerous cuts on enemy trench lines in the process.

Wisconsin arrived off Songjin, Korea, on 15 March 1952 and concentrated her gunfire on enemy railway transport. Early that morning, she destroyed a communist troop train trapped outside of a destroyed tunnel. That afternoon, she received the first direct hit in her history, when one of four shells from a communist 155-millimeter gun battery struck the shield of a starboard 40-millimeter mount. Although little material damage resulted, three men were injured. Wisconsin responded by shelling that battery and destroying it with a 16-inch salvo before continuing her mission. After lending a hand to support once more the First Marine Division with her heavy rifles, the battleship returned to Japan on 19 March.

Relieved as flagship of the Seventh Fleet on 1 April 1952 by sister ship USS Iowa (BB-61), Wisconsin departed Yokosuka, bound for the United States.