The Ships of Battlegroup: United States North Carolina (BB-55)

Displacement	38,000 tons	Belt Armor	12 inches
Overall Length	729 feet	Deck Armor	4.6 inches
Beam	108.3 feet	Main Turret Armor	16 inches
Speed	28.5 knots	Main Guns	9 × 16″

Prior to building BB-55 a number of ships with the North Carolina name served in the United States Navy, including a particularly handsome 74 gun ship of the line commissioned in 1824, an armored cruiser commissioned in 1908 and BB-52, which was never completed due to the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922. 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 and all battleships were assigned a hull number from 1920 that was normally displayed on the hull. The first United States battleships built since the 1920s were the two North Carolinas. When launched, the North Carolina and the Washington were among the most powerful battleships in the world, outclassed only by the newer and later 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. North Carolina was laid down on October 27, 1937; she was launched on June 13, 1940 and commissioned on April 9, 1941. The attractive ship acquired the nickname “Showboat” as the Navy showed off their new battlewagon in many port cities.

Dispatched to the Pacific in June 1942, she participated in the Solomons campaign, covering the initial landings on Guadalcanal and participating in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons in late August 1942. During that battle, North Carolina was screening the aircraft carrier Enterprise and, in eight action-filled minutes, was credited with shooting down at least seven (and possibly as many as fourteen) Japanese aircraft while enduring seven near misses with no serious damage, although one crewman was killed by strafing. Enterprise was saved, although she was damaged by the determined Japanese aircrews. On September 15, 1942, North Carolina was damaged and had six crewmen killed by a Japanese submarine torpedo. The “Showboat” had to retire from the area for months of repairs and she missed the decisive surface actions in November 1942, when her sister ship Washington sank the Japanese battleship Kirishima. In November 1943, North Carolina assisted in the Gilbert Islands invasion, establishing an operational pattern for the new battleships of screening the fast carriers with antiaircraft guns and supporting landings with barrages from the big guns. In these roles, during 1944 she was involved in the Marshalls invasion in January-February and in attacks on Central Pacific targets through the late winter and spring. During much of this period, she was flagship for Admiral Willis A. “Ching” Lee (1888–1945), Commander Battleships Pacific. Later that year, North Carolina was in the Marianas invasion and Battle of Philippine Sea in June and, after a refit from July to October, she participated in western Pacific carrier strikes in November and December. In 1945, North Carolina participated in the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and bombarded the Japanese home islands. Off Okinawa, on April 6, 1945, she downed three kamikazes, but took a 5-inch hit from another ship during the antiaircraft fire. Three men were killed and 44 wounded from that “friendly fire”, BB-55’s heaviest casualties of the war. North Carolina received 12 battle stars for World War II service.

Decommissioned on June 27, 1947, she was part of the “mothball” reserve fleet until stricken from the Navy List in June 1960. On September 6, 1961, North Carolina was transferred to the State of North Carolina. On April 29, 1962, she was dedicated to become the present memorial to all North Carolinians who died in World War Two at Wilmington, North Carolina.

The North Carolina usually accompanied the fast carriers, including: Enterprise, Hornet, Intrepid, Lexington and Yorktown .

The North Carolina was one of ten new United States battleships constructed during World War Two, including: Alabama, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Jersey and Wisconsin .

Where did we get all these fascinating historical tidbits and factoids? See the Bibliography for the culprits. For more about the between the wars “battleship building holiday”, see Introduction to these articles. If you are ever in Wilmington on a warm summer night, the old “Showboat” puts on a spectacular light show.