The Ships of Battlegroup: United States Massachusetts (BB-59)

Displacement	39,600 tons	Belt Armor	12.25 inches
Overall Length	680 feet	Deck Armor	6 inches
Beam	108.25 feet	Main Turret Armor	18 inches
Speed	27 knots	Main Guns	9 × 16″

Prior to building BB-59 a number of ships with the Massachusetts name served in the United States Navy, including BB-2, a pre-dreadnought commissioned in 1896. All United States dreadnought battleships were named after states, a custom that went back to the naming of wooden ships of the line during the age of sail. Also, all battleships were assigned a hull number (from 1920) that was normally displayed on the hull. A projected new U. S. S. Massachusetts (BB-54) was eleven percent complete when cancelled as a result of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty and no further United States battleships would be laid down until the late 1930s. The first modern United States battleships built since the 1920s were the two North Carolinas (North Carolina and Washington) and the four South Dakotas (Alabama, Indiana, Massachusetts and South Dakota), all of which could manage at least 27 knots. These ships all carried a main armament of nine 16 inch guns mounted three per turret, two centerline superfiring forward and one centerline aft on a displacement of around 35,000 tons, making them among the most powerful battleships in the world. The Massachusetts (BB-59) was the third ship of the South Dakota class. Laid down on July 20, 1939; launched on September 23, 1941 and commissioned on May 15, 1942, Massachusetts, like all of her class, exceeded her original treaty-imposed displacement of 35,000 tons due to the need for more powerful engines to achieve 27 knots. For their day, the Massachusetts and her sisters were very advanced and powerful vessels; outclassed only by the newer Iowa class battleships, as they joined the fleet, and. by the two much larger Japanese Yamato class battleships, with their 18-inch guns and thicker armor, although the Japanese battlewagons had much inferior radar.

Following shakedown and training operations, she was part of “Operation Torch,” the invasion of North Africa. She successfully engaged French warships, including the battleship Jean Bart, at Casablanca, Morocco, on 8 November 1942. Massachusetts was dispatched to the Pacific Ocean in early 1943. After an inactive period in the South Pacific, she participated in the invasions of the Gilberts and Marshalls in late 1943, early 1944 raids on Japanese-held islands and the Hollandia invasion in April 1944. After a brief refit, BB-59 was part of the invasion of the Marianas, Palau and the Philippines, including the decisive Battle of Leyte Gulf. In 1945, she participated in the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and raids and bombardments against the Japanese home islands. When World War Two ended, Massachusetts got a late 1945 overhaul and remained in the Pacific until returned to the Atlantic in April 1946.

Decommissioned in March 1947, BB-59 was mothballed and remained in the Reserve Fleet until stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in June 1962. In 1965, U. S. S. Massachusetts became a memorial and museum ship at Fall River, Massachusetts.

For a foreign ship with nine 16 inch guns, see: Nelson .

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