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Google Sightseeing takes you on tour of the world as seen from satellite, using the free Google Earth program, or Google Maps in your web browser. Each weekday your guides James and Alex present new weird and wonderful sights as suggested by readers.

The editors: James & Alex

Iowa Class Battleships

Friday, 25th November 2005 by James

The last battleships ever built by the United States are known as “Iowa class” and were named after the states of Missouri, Wisconsin, New Jersey and Iowa. The four ships were built in the 1940s and between them have served in almost every major U.S. battle between then and the 1990s when they were decommissioned. There’s loads more detail about the ships on the Wikipedia page.

The USS Wisconsin is currently berthed in Norfolk, VA. It is in an Inactive Reserve status, meaning that it is still a commissioned warship of the U.S. Navy, but not in active service.

The USS New Jersey is now a museum at Camden, New Jersey.

The USS Missouri is berthed in Pearl Harbour, Hawaii.

The USS Iowa is part of the previously posted Suisun Bay reserve fleet in California (it’s the big one on the end). The Iowa is the only ship of the four which is currently not open to the public but has recently been acquired by Stockton, California where it will be a museum.

Thanks: Robert Amos for compiling links to all four ships and many other people for submitting at least one of the ships.

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Locations: California, Hawaii, New Jersey, Virginia / Categories:

6 Responses to 'Iowa Class Battleships'

  1. 1. Peter says: November 26th, 2005 at 12:19 am

    Apropos of nothing, Camden New Jersey, where the USS New Jersey is berthed, has the highest violent crime rate of any American city.

  2. 2. Nikon says: December 5th, 2005 at 10:55 am

    High Resolution Photographs of Peral Harbour has been added to Google Earth lately. You can have a nice view of the USS Missouri…

  3. 3. bill says: December 23rd, 2005 at 5:10 am

    the 1990s when they were decommissioned.
    THANK-YOU CLINTON ADMINISTRATION FOR MAKING US SAFE

  4. 4. byroncdrummer says: February 9th, 2006 at 4:52 am

    all but the USS Missouri was decommissioned befor Clinton took office
    so i beleve that would be the first Bush Administration you have to thank
    for making us safe
    BB61 Iowa in 1990
    BB62 New Jersey 1990
    BB64 Wisconsin 1991
    BB63Missouri the begining of 1992
    Bill Clinton took office Jan 1992

  5. 5. Ed Koffman says: February 27th, 2006 at 4:13 pm

    All of these ships were decommissioned on the theory that they would be of no use in the ballistic/guided missle age. It might be nice to have their armament augmented by missles and the vessels returned to active duty.

  6. 6. Stockton says: April 15th, 2006 at 4:47 am

    The USS Iowa is not in Stockton….YET! Check out the latest at http://www.visitstockton.org/USSIowa.htm

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