Ships named for Iowa, her towns and residents

I recently started looking into ways to share Iowa’s military history. I thought I would run the U.S.S. Iowa and maybe a few other stories the month before Memorial Day. I was then shocked as I dug into Naval history the amount of ships that have their namesakes rooted in Iowa. It became evident, this was going to take more than just a few weekends to cover.

The most obvious place to start was with the BB-61, U.S.S. Iowa. You might be surprised as I have been, at the extent of Iowa’s history in the US Navy.

Most all of us from Iowa are familiar with our namesake battleship. The U.S.S. Iowa’s keel was laid down the 27th of June, 1940. The Iowa was launched 27th of August, 1942, and she was then sponsored by Ilo Wallace, the wife of then Vice President Henry Wallace.

During WWII the U.S.S. Iowa was the only ship of her class that served in the Atlantic; serving as the “Air Force One” of her day. She was President Roosevelt’s transport to meetings with the allies, including the Tehran conference.

In serving the President, she is the only ship in the US Navy to have ever been installed with a bath tub.

After service in the Atlantic, she was transferred to the Pacific fleet where she shelled beachheads in advance of allied landings. She was on hand in Tokyo Bay for the surrender of Japan, ending WWII.

The Iowa was once again called into duty during the Korean War, where she took part in raids on the North Korean coast. During her time in combat she earned 9 battle stars.

BB-61 U.S.S. Iowa fires broadside during a August of 1984 demonstration (photo USN)

After the Korean War, she was put into the “mothball fleet” where she languished until 1984.  This is when she was updated to be part of the 600 ship navy and helped to win the Cold War ,with her presence, by adding more pressure to the Soviet Empire.

An explosion of the #2 turret in 1989 killed 47 sailors, and she was once again decommissioned in 1990, and struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1995. 1996 saw a brief reprieve from the scrap yard or museum duty as a congressional act required that 2 Iowa class battleships be retained and maintained.

The Navy has received a 1,180 page application from the Pacific Battleship Center to have the Iowa moved there. They are one of two groups interested in having the U.S.S. Iowa.

I recently spoke with those representing Historic Ships Memorial at Pacific Square on their efforts to bring the Iowa to the former naval base of Mare Island in the San Francisco Bay Area. In an e-mail interview with Merylin Wong, President & Director of Historic Ships Memorial at Pacific Square on the Iowa.

I started off with wanting to know the current state of the battleship?

Decommissioned in 1990, the USS IOWA was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register (for the second time) in 2006. The battleship is currently available for use as a museum and memorial by a qualified non-profit organization and its transfer from the Department of the Navy is subject to competitive bidding. It is in the best interests of the Navy to donate USS Iowa for use as a museum and memorial as soon as possible. By law, the ship must be located within the State of California. She is currently moored at the US Maritime Administration, Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet, Benicia in Northern CA.

What benefits will it provide to you and your group having the ship in your location?

Aside from the well-understood benefits of berthing the USS Iowa as a naval attraction such as economic and community development, education, and job creation, the battleship’s placement in the San Francisco Bay Area with 16 million visitors annually, near the Napa-Sonoma Wine Country, at America’s first Pacific naval base, Mare Island will afford USS Iowa the necessary demographics and tourist-rich environment to be financially self-sustaining. In an independent study, the projected attendance for USS Iowa at Mare Island is nearly 400,000 annual visitors. (By comparison, the independent study for the competing proposal for the ship to berth in San Pedro concludes that the ship will see on average 190,000 visitors and experience an annual operating deficit of $2.7 million.)

Will there be a benefit to those of us from Iowa, other than of course our namesake not being scrapped?

• State identification with an educational project having enormous public acceptance, national consequence, global appeal and media attention
• Prominent recognition of the State of Iowa within one of the largest major metropolitan areas and in America’s most populous state, California
• Complimentary visits of USS Iowa for Iowans with valid identification
• Shipboard and/or pier side space to showcase The Hawkeye State while projecting State and ship pride through the common motto, “Our Liberties We Prize and Our Rights We Will Maintain”
• State exposure to expected 400,000 USS Iowa visitors annually
• Unique State and ship visibility as USS Iowa will be the first and only battleship on the entire West Coast
• Formal association of the State of Iowa with the only floating Presidential site, former Undersecretary of the Navy and Commander-in-Chief Franklin Delano Roosevelt
• Direct linkage to the State’s namesake and lead ship of the most famous and illustrious class of ships in the world, christened by Mrs. Henry A. Wallace, wife of FDR’s third Vice President, Henry A. Wallace, commanded first by Captain John McCrea, all native Iowans
• Priceless international stature resulting from the ship serving as a center for conferences on conflict resolution to be sponsored by the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute
• Opportunity for enormous show of pride while honoring the nation’s veterans, inspiring youth, and educating the public

The U.S.S. Iowa as she sits and waits for her new home. (Image courtesy Jeremy Bonelle © 2010)

What was the factor in your groups desire to preserve the Iowa?

Our shared interest in making a valuable contribution to the nation by working to place USS Iowa in a tourist-rich environment, in a place where as many Americans as possible would see her and in a locale where patronage revenue would be sufficient to maintain and preserve this enormous ship. USS Iowa is one of the most historic ships in the world and a source of pride to Americans throughout our great nation.

Who has endorsed your desire to turn the ship into a museum?

Our bid to berth USS Iowa at Mare Island is endorsed by unanimous vote of the City of Vallejo (whose jurisdiction Mare Island is under) City Council. Our long list of endorsements include past and current Governors of the State of Iowa dating back to 1999. Governors Bob Ray, Tom Vilsack and Terry Branstad serve as our Honorary Chairs. It was Governor Vilsack’s letter that we delivered to then Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig, now an Honorary Chair of our organization, which became a factor in the Secretary’s decision to relocate USS Iowa from Rhode Island to California in 2001. In fact, two other former Secretaries of the Navy,The Honorable Gordon England and The Honorable John Dalton, also participate on our Honorary Board.

If you would like to learn more about Historic Ships Memorial at Pacific Square visit their website, and see if you are interested in becoming involved.

I hope to hear soon from the other group interested in the Iowa.

There are many other fascinating stories from those that served and Iowa’s contribution to the United States Military.

If you have a suggestion of either an Iowa unit, or person please email them to me at info@oskynews.org.