USS Utah (BB-31)

Coordinates: 21°22′08″N 157°57′45″W / 21.3690045°N 157.9624782°W / 21.3690045; -157.9624782
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For other ships with the same name, see USS Utah.

Stern view of Utah (BB-31) in 1912
History
United States
NameUtah
Namesake
State of Utah
BuilderNew York Shipbuilding Corporation
Laid down9 March 1909
Launched23 December 1909
Commissioned31 August 1911
Decommissioned5 September 1944
Stricken13 November 1944
FateSunk at Pearl Harbor, 7 December 1941. Hull near Ford Island.
General characteristics
Class and typeFlorida-class battleship
Displacement
Length
Beam88 ft 3 in (26.9 m)
Draft
  • 28 ft 6 in (8.7 m) (mean)
  • 30 ft 1 in (9.2 m) (max)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Crew1,001 officers and men
Armament
Armor
Notes1 battle star awarded
USS Utah wreck
Location
Honolulu, Hawai'i
Websitewww.nps.gov/valr/index.htm
NRHP reference No.89001084
Added to NRHP5 May 1989

USS Utah (BB-31/AG-16) was the second and final member of the Florida class of dreadnought battleships. The first ship of the United States Navy named after the state of Utah, she had one sister ship, Florida. Utah was built by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, laid down in March 1909 and launched in December of that year. She was completed in August 1911, and was armed with a main battery of ten 12-inch (305 mm) guns in five twin gun turrets.

Utah and Florida were the first ships to arrive during the United States occupation of Veracruz in 1914 during the Mexican Revolution. The two battleships sent ashore a landing party that began the occupation of the city. After the American entrance into World War I, Utah was stationed at Berehaven in Bantry Bay, Ireland, where she protected convoys from potential German surface raiders. Throughout the 1920s, the ship conducted numerous training cruises and fleet maneuvers, and carried dignitaries on tours of South America twice, in 1924 and 1928.

In 1931, Utah was demilitarized and converted into a

anti-aircraft guns of different types to train gunners for the fleet. She served in these two roles for the rest of the decade, and late 1941 found the ship in Pearl Harbor. She was in port on the morning of 7 December, and in the first minutes of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
, was hit by two torpedoes, which caused serious flooding. Utah quickly rolled over and sank; 58 men were killed, but the vast majority of her crew were able to escape. The wreck remains in the harbor, and in 1972, a memorial was erected near the ship.

Design

Main article: Florida-class battleship

Utah was 521 

kW) and twelve coal-fired Babcock & Wilcox boilers, generating a top speed of 20.75 kn (38.43 km/h; 23.88 mph). The ship had a cruising range of 5,776 nmi (6,650 mi; 10,700 km) at a speed of 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph). She had a crew of 1,001 officers and men.[1]

The ship was armed with a main battery of ten

armored belt was 11 in (279 mm) thick, while the armored deck was 1.5 in (38 mm) thick. The gun turrets had 12 in (305 mm) thick faces and the conning tower had 11.5 in (292 mm) thick sides.[1]

Service history

Construction – 1922

Utah, c. 1911

Utah was

Naval Academy on a midshipman training cruise off the coast of New England, which lasted until 25 August.[2]

For the next two years, Utah followed a similar routine of training exercises and midshipman cruises in the Atlantic. During the period 8–30 November 1913, Utah made a goodwill cruise to European waters, which included a stop in

Marines and Bluejackets to begin the occupation of the city on 21 April. Over the next three days, the Marines battled rebels in the city and suffered 94 casualties, while killing hundreds of Mexicans in return.[1]

Utah during World War I wearing dazzle camouflage

Utah remained off Veracruz for two months, before she returned to the New York Navy Yard for an overhaul in late June. She spent the next three years conducting the normal routine of training with the Atlantic Fleet. On 6 April 1917, the United States entered

Rear Admiral Thomas S. Rodgers. BatDiv 6 was tasked with covering convoys in the Western Approaches against possible attacks from German surface raiders. Utah served in the division along with Nevada and Oklahoma.[2][3]

Following the end of the war in November 1918, Utah visited the

Cherbourg, France. After arriving, she became the flagship of American warships in Europe. She carried on in this role until she was relieved by the armored cruiser USS Pittsburgh in October 1922.[2]

1922–1941

Utah returned to the US on 21 October, where she returned to her old post as the flagship of BatDiv 6.

White-Forster oil-fired models that had been removed from the battleships and battlecruisers scrapped as a result of the Washington Naval Treaty. Utah also had a catapult mounted on her Number 3 turret along with cranes for handling the floatplanes. [2]

Utah being painted as her 1941 overhaul at Puget Sound nears completion

Utah returned to active duty on 1 December, after which she served with the Scouting Fleet. She left Hampton Roads on 21 November 1928 for another South American cruise. This time, she picked up President-elect

Herbert C. Hoover and his entourage in Montevideo, and transported them to Rio de Janeiro in December, and then carried them home to the United States, arriving in Hampton Roads on 6 January 1929. According to the terms of the London Naval Treaty of 1930, Utah was converted into a radio-controlled target ship, to replace the older North Dakota. On 1 July 1931, Utah was accordingly redesignated "AG-16". All of her primary and secondary weapons were removed, though her turrets were still mounted. The plane handling equipment was removed along with the torpedo blisters that were added in 1925. Work was completed by 1 April 1932, when she was recommissioned.[2]

On 7 April, Utah left Norfolk for

Fleet Problem XVI in May 1935, during which she served as a transport for a contingent of Marines.[5] In June, the ship was modified to train anti-aircraft gunners in addition to her target ship duties. To perform this task, she was equipped with a new 1.1-inch (28 mm)/75 caliber anti-aircraft gun in a quadruple mount for experimental testing and development of the new type of weapon.[2]

Utah returned to the Atlantic to participate in

Puget Sound Navy Yard on 31 May, where she was overhauled. She was equipped with new 5-inch (127 mm)/38 cal dual-purpose guns in single mounts to improve her ability to train anti-aircraft gunners. She left Puget Sound on 14 September, bound for Pearl Harbor, where she resumed her normal duties through the rest of the year.[2]

Attack on Pearl Harbor

Utah capsizing during the attack on Pearl Harbor
Main article: Attack on Pearl Harbor

In early December 1941, Utah was moored off Ford Island in berth F-11, after having completed another round of anti-aircraft gunnery training. Shortly before 08:00 on the morning of 7 December, some crewmen aboard Utah observed the first Japanese planes approaching to attack Pearl Harbor, but they assumed they were American aircraft. The Japanese began their attack shortly thereafter, the first bombs falling near a seaplane ramp on the southern tip of Ford Island. At the same time sixteen Nakajima B5N torpedo bombers from the Japanese aircraft carriers Sōryū and Hiryū flew over Pearl City approaching the west side of Ford Island. The torpedo bombers were looking for American aircraft carriers, which usually anchored where Utah was moored that morning. The flight leaders identified Utah and rejected her as a target, deciding instead to attack 1010 Dock. However six of the B5Ns from Soryu led by Lieutenant Nakajima Tatsumi broke off to attack Utah, not recognizing that the shapes over the barbettes were not turrets, but boxes covering empty holes. Six torpedoes were launched against Utah, two of them struck the battleship while another missed and hit the cruiser Raleigh.[6]

Serious flooding started to quickly overwhelm Utah and she began to list to port and settle by the stern. As the crew began to abandon ship, one man—Chief Watertender Peter Tomich—remained below decks to ensure as many men as possible could escape, and to keep vital machinery running as long as possible; he received the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions.[2] At 08:12, Utah rolled over onto her side, while those crew members who had managed to escape swam to shore. Almost immediately after reaching shore, the ship's senior officer on board, Commander Solomon Isquith, heard knocking from men trapped in the capsized ship. He called for volunteers to secure a cutting torch from the badly damaged cruiser Raleigh and attempt to free trapped men; they succeeded in rescuing four men. In total, 58 officers and men were killed, though 461 survived.[2]

Salvage

Utah during an ultimately unsuccessful salvage attempt

The Navy declared Utah to be in ordinary on 29 December, and she was placed under the authority of the Pearl Harbor Base Force. Following the successful righting (rotation to upright) of the capsized Oklahoma, an attempt was made to right the Utah by the same parbuckling method using 17 winches. As Utah was rotated, she did not grip the harbor bottom, and slid towards Ford Island. The Utah recovery effort was abandoned, with Utah rotated 38 degrees from horizontal.[7]

As abandoned, Utah cleared her berth. There was no further attempt to refloat her; unlike the battleships sunk at Battleship Row, she had no military value. She was formally placed out of commission on 5 September 1944, and then stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 13 November. Utah received one battle star for her brief service during World War II. Her rusting hulk remains in Pearl Harbor, partially above water;[2] the men killed when Utah sank were never removed from the wreck, and as such, she is considered a war grave.[8]

Memorial

Around 1950, two memorials were placed at the wreck dedicated to the men in the ship's crew who were killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor. The first is a plaque on the wharf to the north of the ship, and the second is a plaque that was placed on the ship itself. In 1972, a larger memorial was erected just off Ford Island, near the sunken wreck,

color guard stands watch over the wreck.[11] On 9 July 1988, Utah and Arizona, the other remaining wreck in the harbor, were nominated to be added to the National Historic Landmark registry. Both wrecks were added to the list on 5 May 1989.[12] As of 2008, seven former crewmen who were aboard Utah at the time of her sinking have been cremated and had their ashes interred in the wreck.[13]

Relics from the ship are also preserved in the Utah State Capitol building; among the items on display are pieces from the ship's silver service and the captain's clock.[14] The ship's bell was on display at the University of Utah near the entrance of the Naval Science Building from the 1960s until 2016,[15] when it was loaned to the Naval War College. It was then sent to the Naval History and Heritage Command in Richmond, Virginia for conservation work. With the bell restored, it was returned to the University of Utah on 7 December 2017 and is currently on display inside the Naval Science Building.[16]

USS Utah Memorial
  • Utah Memorial in 2016
    Utah Memorial in 2016
  • The wreck seen from the memorial, c. 2016
    The wreck seen from the memorial, c. 2016
  • Plaque at the Utah State Capitol memorializing the men killed in the attack
    Plaque at the Utah State Capitol memorializing the men killed in the attack

Notes

Footnotes

  1. ^ /45 refers to the length of the gun in terms of calibers. A /45 gun is 45 times as long as it is in bore diameter.

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d Friedman, p. 114.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Cressman.
  3. ^ Jones, pp. 92, 102.
  4. ^ Nofi, p. 26.
  5. ^ Nofi, p. 197.
  6. ^ Zimm, p. 159.
  7. ^ Martinez, pp. 46–48.
  8. ^ Nalty, p. 35.
  9. ^ USS Utah (AG-16) Memorial.
  10. ^ Pearl Harbor Visitors Bureau.
  11. ^ Pearl Harbor Area Attractions.
  12. ^ Martinez, p. 171.
  13. ^ Cutright, 19 June, 2008.
  14. ^ Utah state capitol memorial.
  15. ^ Historic Bell.
  16. ^ Roth.

References

  • "Can I visit the USS Utah Memorial?". Pearl Harbor Visitors Bureau. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  • Cutright, Eric J., Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class (AW) (19 June 2008). "Former Sailor Interred at USS Utah Memorial" (Story Number: NNS080619-05).
    U.S. Navy, Fleet Public Affairs Detachment. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 5 May 2013 – via Wayback Machine. → Re: Petty Officer 1st Class Jimmy Oberto (né James Edgar Oberto; 1920–2007).{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: postscript (link
    )
  • Friedman, Norman (1986). "United States of America". In Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 105–133.
    ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5
    .
  • "Historic Bell Returns Home to U Campus". unews.utah.edu. 1 December 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  • Jones, Jerry W. (1998). United States Battleship Operations in World War One.
    ISBN 978-1-55750-411-1
    .
  • Martinez, Daniel A. (1989). "Chapter II: Historical Record – USS Utah – Salvage". In Lenihan, Daniel J. (ed.). Submerged Cultural Resources Study: USS Arizona Memorial and Pearl Harbor National Historic Landmark. Santa Fe: Southwest Cultural Resources Center Professional Papers. pp. 13–74.
  • Nalty, Bernard C. (1999). War in the Pacific: Pearl Harbor to Tokyo Bay. Norman:
    ISBN 0806131993 – via Internet Archive
    .
  • ISBN 978-1-88-473387-1
    .
  • "Pearl Harbor Area Attractions". Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  • Roth, Max (7 December 2017). "USS Utah Bell Reminds Midshipmen of the Sacrifice at Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941". fox13now.com. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  • "USS Utah (AG-16) Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii". Retrieved 10 October 2015.
  • "USS Utah - The 100th Anniversary". Archived from the original on 9 May 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  • Cressman, Robert J. (3 February 2021). "Utah I (Battleship No. 31)". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  • Zimm, Alan D. (2011). Attack on Pearl Harbor: Strategy, Combat, Myths, Deceptions.
    ISBN 978-1-61200-197-5
    .

External links

Media related to USS Utah (BB-31) at Wikimedia Commons

Selected oral histories

21°22′08″N 157°57′45″W / 21.3690045°N 157.9624782°W / 21.3690045; -157.9624782

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