USS Washington (BB-47)
 Incomplete hull of USS Washington (1922)
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Washington |
| Namesake | State of Washington |
| Builder | New York Shipbuilding Corporation |
| Laid down | 30 June 1919 |
| Launched | 1 September 1921 |
| Stricken | 8 February 1922 |
| Fate | Sunk as target, 25 November 1924 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Colorado class |
| Displacement | 32,600 long tons (33,100 t) |
| Length | 624 ft (190 m) |
| Beam | 97 ft 6 in (29.72 m) |
| Draft | 30 ft 6 in (9.30 m) |
| Speed | 21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph) |
| Complement | 1,354 officers and men |
| Armament |
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| Armor |
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USS Washington (BB-47), a
On 8 February 1922, two days after the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty for the Limitation of Naval Armaments, all construction work ceased on the 75.9%-completed superdreadnought. She was sunk as a gunnery target on 26 November 1924, by the battleships New York and Texas.[1][2]
Design
In 1916, design work was completed on the next class of battleships to be built for the United States Navy beginning in 1917. These ships were nearly direct copies of the preceding Tennessee class, with the exception of the main battery, which increased from twelve 14-inch (356 mm) guns to eight 16 in (406 mm) guns. The Colorado class proved to be the last class of battleships completed of the standard type.[3]
Washington was 624 ft (190 m)
She was armed with a main battery of eight
History
With
On 8 February 1922, two days after the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty for the Limitation of all Naval Armaments, all construction work was stopped on the 75.9-percent-completed superdreadnought.[1] By that time, she had her underwater armored protection in place.[9][10]
The ship was towed out in November 1924, to be used as a gunnery target. On the first day of testing, the ship was hit by two 400-pound (180 kg) torpedoes and three 1-metric-ton (1.1-short-ton) near-miss bombs causing minor damage and a list of three degrees. She then had 400 pounds of TNT detonated on board, but remained afloat. Two days later, the ship was hit by fourteen 14-inch (356 mm) shells dropped from 4,000 feet (1,200 m), but only one penetrated. The ship was finally sunk by Texas and New York with fourteen more 14-inch shells. After the test, it was decided that the existing deck armor on battleships was inadequate, and that future battleships should be fitted with triple bottoms, which was underwater armor with three layers.[8]
Footnotes
Notes
Citations
- ^ a b Ferguson 2007, p. 57.
- ^ a b Graff 2010, p. 41.
- ^ Friedman 1985, p. 137.
- ^ a b c Friedman 1986, p. 118.
- ^ a b Friedman 1985, p. 445.
- ^ Friedman 1985, pp. 137, 420–421.
- ^ Friedman 1980, pp. 97–100.
- ^ a b Friedman 1985, p. 186.
- ^ Kearns & Morris 2011, p. 47.
- ^ Martin 1997, p. xi.
References
- Ferguson, John C. (2007). Historic Battleship Texas: The Last Dreadnought. Military History of Texas No. 4. Abilene: State House Press. ISBN 978-1-933337-07-4.
- Friedman, Norman (1980). "United States of America". In Gardiner, Robert & Chesneau, Roger (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. pp. 86–166. ISBN 978-0-87021-913-9.
- Friedman, Norman (1985). U.S. Battleships: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-715-1.
- 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.
- Graff, Cory (2010). The Navy at Puget Sound. Charleston: Arcadia Publishing. OCLC 700503123.
- Kearns, Patricia M.; Morris, James M. (2011). Historical dictionary of the United States Navy (Second ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-7229-5.
- Martin, Robert J. (1997). USS West Virginia (BB-48). Nashville: Turner Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-56311-341-3.
External links
- Washington (BB-47), construction cancelled 1922 Archived 30 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- MaritimeQuest USS Washington BB-47 Photo Gallery
- Photo gallery of Washington at NavSource Naval History
- "Washington (Battleship No. 47)". DANFS. 23 February 2016. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- DANFS photographs of USS Washington (BB-47)
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1924 | |
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