USS Nevada (BB-36)

History

USS Nevada (BB-36), the third United States Navy ship to be named after the 36th state, was the lead ship of the two Nevada-class battleships. Launched in 1914, Nevada was a leap forward in dreadnought technology; four of her new features would be included on almost every subsequent US battleship: triple gun turrets, oil in place of coal for fuel, geared steam turbines for greater range, and the "all or nothing" armor principle. These features made Nevada, alongside her sister ship Oklahoma, the first US Navy "standard-type" battleships.

Nevada served in both World Wars. During the last few months of World War I, Nevada was based in Bantry Bay, Ireland, to protect supply convoys that were sailing to and from Great Britain. In World War II, she was one of the battleships trapped when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Nevada was the only battleship to get underway during the attack, making the ship "the only bright spot in an otherwise dismal and depressing morning" for the United States. Still, the ship was hit by one torpedo and at least six bombs while steaming away from Battleship Row, forcing the crew to beach the stricken ship on a coral ledge. The ship continued to flood and eventually slid off the ledge and sank to the harbor floor. Nevada was subsequently salvaged and modernized at Puget Sound Navy Yard, allowing her to serve as a convoy escort in the Atlantic and as a fire-support ship in five amphibious assaults (the invasions of Attu, Normandy, Southern France, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa).

Text from Wikipedia: USS Nevada (BB-36), CC BY-SA 4.0, lightly trimmed.

Wars and campaigns

From Wikidata (CC0).

Key dates

1. 1903
   In 1903, the Board felt all American battleships should have a minimum steaming radius of 6,000 nmi (11,000 km) so that the US could enforce the Monroe Doctrine.
2. 1915
   These began on 4 November 1915, when the ship conducted a twelve-hour endurance run "up and down the New England coast", reaching a top speed of 21.4 kn (24.6 mph; 39.6 km/h).
3. 1918
   This never came to pass, and the war ended on 11 November, with Nevada, then under command of William Carey Cole (14 October 1918 – 7 May 1919), not getting a chance to engage an enemy during the war.
4. 1926
   After the cruise, Nevada, with Clarence S. Kempff (11 June 1926 – 20 September 1927) commanding, put into Norfolk Navy Yard to be modernized between August 1927 and January 1930.
5. 1941
   On 6 December 1941, a Saturday, all of the Pacific Fleet's battleships were in port for the weekend for the first time since 4 July.
6. 1942
   Two more men died aboard during salvage operations on 7 February 1942, when they were overcome by hydrogen sulfide gas from decomposing paper and meat.
7. 1944
   After completing more convoy runs, Nevada set sail for the United Kingdom to prepare for the Normandy Invasion, arriving in April 1944, with Captain Powell M. Rhea (21 July 1943 – 4 October 1944) in command.
8. 1944
   After re-fitting, and with Captain Homer L. Grosskopf (4 October 1944 – 28 October 1945) commanding, she sailed for the Pacific, arriving off Iwo Jima on 16 February 1945 to "[prepare] the island for invasion with heavy bombardment"; which she did through 7 March.
9. 1945
   Nevada, then with her final commanding officer, Captain Cecil C. Adell (28 October 1945 – 1 July 1946), returned to Pearl Harbor after a brief stint of occupation duty in Tokyo Bay.

Dates and events quoted from the same Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Records that place someone aboard this ship

A ship history doesn't name everyone who served. These records do:

• Navy muster rolls, 1939–1949 (National Archives guide)
• Deck logs: how to get them (Naval History and Heritage Command)
• Crew lists research guide (NHHC)
• Search the National Archives Catalog for “USS Nevada (BB-36)”

More history

• Naval History and Heritage Command (DANFS)
• Wikipedia: USS Nevada (BB-36)