The Battleship North Carolina

When building began in 1937, North Carolina was the first American battleship to be built in 16 years.  North Carolina and her sister ship, Washington, comprised the North Carolina class.  They were the first of 10 fast battleships to join the American fleet in World War II.  Commissioned on April 9, 1941, North Carolina participated in every major naval offensive in the Pacific during World War II, earning 15 battle stars.  She established the role of battleships as protectors of aircraft carriers when she defended carrier Enterprise against air attacks during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, August 24, 1942.  During the war, she steamed over 300,000 miles.  She survived many close calls and near misses and one hit when a torpedo slammed into the Battleship's hull on September 15, 1942.  After the war, the ship served as a training vessel for midshipmen.  She was decommissioned June 27, 1947 and placed in the Inactive Reserve Fleet in Bayonne, New Jersey.

North Carolina is an authentically restored World War II Battleship, a National Historic Landmark, and a memorial honoring the 10,000 North Carolinians of all branches of service who gave their lives in World War II.

Below are pictures taken aboard Battleship North Carolina, now located in Wilmington, NC.

Fun Facts about Battleship North Carolina:

• The Battleship North Carolina was designed to carry 1,800 men but by the end of WWII she was home to over 2,300.
• The crew slept in metal bunks stacked five tiers high.
• The ship is 729 feet (approximately 2 1/2 football fields) in length.
• Her top speed was 28 knots (almost 32 miles per hour).
• She averaged 1 mile per 145 gallons!!!
• During the war she steamed 307,988 miles!
• North Carolina made its own electrical power, producing 8.4 megawatts of electricity, enough to power a small town of 6,500 people.
• The Battleship could carry 120 days of food supplies including:
• 7,800 eggs
• 16,800 lbs. of butter
• 94,200 lbs. of sugar
• 214,000 lbs. fresh meat
• 466,000 lbs. fresh vegetables
• 135,000 lbs. fresh fruit

 

An official train depot in Wilmington, below, now for sightseeing.

More of the Marrakesh Restaurant, Downtown Wilmington

The "Read-Out" during our final week of school at AOH before Summer Break

Happy Summer Break!!!  Keep on reading:)