USS Alabama BB-60

High-angle view of the stern of USS Alabama, off Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Virginia, 20 August 1943. 

USS Alabama (BB-60) is a retired battleship. She was the fourth and final member of the South Dakota class of fast battleships built for the United States Navy in the 1940s. The first American battleships designed after the Washington Treaty system began to break down in the mid-1930s, they took advantage of an escalator clause that allowed increasing the main battery to 16-inch (406 mm) guns, but Congressional refusal to authorize larger battleships kept their displacement close to the Washington limit of 35,000 long tons (36,000 t). A requirement to be armored against the same caliber of guns as they carried, combined with the displacement restriction, resulted in cramped ships. Overcrowding was exacerbated by wartime modifications that considerably strengthened their anti-aircraft batteries and significantly increased their crews.

After entering service, Alabama was briefly deployed to strengthen the British Home Fleet, tasked with protecting convoys to the Soviet Union. In 1943, she was transferred to the Pacific for operations against Japan; the first of these was the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign that began in November that year. While operating in the Pacific, she served primarily as an escort for the fast carrier task force to protect the aircraft carriers from surface and air attacks. She also frequently bombarded Japanese positions in support of amphibious assaults. She took part in the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign in June–September and the Philippines campaign in October–December. After a refit in early 1945, she returned to the fleet for operations during the Battle of Okinawa and the series of attacks on the Japanese mainland in July and August, including several bombardments of coastal industrial targets.

Alabama assisted in Operation Magic Carpet after the war, carrying some 700 men home from the former war zone. She was decommissioned in 1947 and assigned to the Pacific Reserve Fleet, where she remained until 1962 when she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register. A campaign to save the ship from the breakers' yard succeeded in raising the necessary funds, and Alabama was preserved as a museum ship in Mobile Bay, Alabama. 

 

Alabama (BB-60), December 1, 1942. 

Gilberts Operation, November 1943: U.S. Navy ships of Task Force 50 en route to the Gilberts and Marshalls to support the invasions of Makin and Tarawa, 12 November 1943. Ships are (l-r): USS Alabama (BB-60); USS Indiana (BB-58), in the distance, wearing dazzle camouflage; and USS Monterey (CVL-26).

Chief Specialist Robert William (Bob) Feller by a 40mm quadruple anti-aircraft gun mount, probably on board USS Alabama (BB-60) in late 1942 or early 1943. The original caption (released 5 March 1943) reads: GUN CAPTAIN FELLER. Bob Feller, one of the finest baseball pitchers of the era, is all set to do a different kind of pitching these days. As a Chief Specialist, he is the captain of a 40mm gun crew aboard one of Uncle Sam's new battleships. The former American Leaguer joined the U.S. Navy as a physical education instructor and later applied for Gunnery School. Subsequently he was assigned to sea duty and here he is grin and all beside his guns on a cold winter day. 

Alabama underway in the Pacific with Task Force 58.2, circa 1943-44. Taken by a USS Essex (CV-9) photographer. 

The U.S. Navy destroyer USS Knapp (DD-653) with Task Force 58.3, escorting the battleship USS Alabama (BB-60), 28 April 1944. 

An Imperial Japanese Navy Nakajima B6N ("Jill") releases its torpedo off the starboard bow of the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Essex (CV-9) off Formosa on 14 October 1944. In the background are the battleship USS Alabama (BB-60), right, and a destroyer, center. 

USS Alabama en route to Gilbert islands, 12 November 1943; note USS Indiana in distance and another ship in background; photo taken from USS Monterey. 

View of the U.S. Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Washington, in 1945. Identifiable ships include (left to right): the battleship USS California (BB-44) in drydock No. 5. She arrived at the yard on 15 February after a kamikaze hit; the battleship USS Alabama (BB-60). She entered drydock on 18 January 1945, and she remained there until 25 February. Shipyard work continued until 17 March 1945; the light aircraft carrier USS Monterey (CVL-26). She arrived in January 1945 for an overhaul; an Essex-class carrier in the drydock, probably USS Ticonderoga (CV-14), which was under repair at the yard from 15 February to 20 April 1945 following a kamikaze hit; the escort carrier USS Commencement Bay (CVE-105) is visible on the right. She arrived at Bremerton on 1 February 1945 for duty as a training ship in Puget Sound until 2 October 1945. 

U.S. Navy ships at Seattle, Washington, on 9 January 1947. Three aircraft carriers are at Pier 91, USS Bunker Hill (CV-17), USS Bon Homme Richard (CV-31) and USS Essex (CV-9). USS Ticonderoga (CV-14) is at Pier 92. The battleships USS Indiana (BB-58) and USS Alabama (BB-60) are moored opposite of the Ticonderoga. 

USS Alaska CB-1

Alaska photographed from USS Missouri (BB-63) off the U.S. east coast during their shakedown cruise together in August 1944. Note her Measure 32 camouflage. 

USS Alaska was the lead ship of the Alaska-class "large cruisers" which served with the United States Navy during the end of World War II. She was the first of two ships of her class to be completed, followed only by Guam; four other ships were ordered but were not completed before the end of the war. Alaska was the third vessel of the US Navy to be named after what was then the territory of Alaska, and was assigned the hull number CB-1. She was laid down on 17 December 1941, ten days after the United States entered the war, was launched in August 1943 by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, in Camden, New Jersey, and was commissioned in June 1944. She was armed with a main battery of nine 12 in (305 mm) guns in three triple turrets and had a top speed of 33 kn (61 km/h; 38 mph).

Due to being commissioned late in the war, Alaska saw relatively limited service. She participated in operations off Iwo Jima and Okinawa in February–July 1945, including providing anti-aircraft defense for various carrier task forces and conducting limited shore bombardment operations. She shot down several Japanese aircraft off Okinawa, including a possible Ohka piloted missile. In July–August 1945 she participated in sweeps for Japanese shipping in the East China and Yellow Seas. After the war, she assisted in the occupation of Korea and transported a contingent of US Army troops back to the United States. She was decommissioned in February 1947 and placed in reserve, where she remained until she was stricken in 1960 and sold for scrapping the following year.

Crew of a 40mm quad antiaircraft machine gun mount on Alaska loading clips into the loaders of the left pair of guns. Taken on 6 March 1945, during the Iwo Jima operation. The man at the right is Seaman Second Class Richard Roberts, and the gun captain (in the phone talker’s helmet) is Gunner’s Mate Second Class Glenn F. Groff. 

USS Alaska (CB-1).

Alaska off Philadelphia, 30 July 1944. 

Alaska, 11 September 1944.

Aerial photograph of the Bayonne Naval Supply Depot, New Jersey (USA), on 15 April 1953 with ships in reserve. The two large ships at right on the near side of the peninsula are Alaska (CB-1) and Guam (CB-2). The next two ships astern are North Carolina (BB-55) and Washington (BB-56). Further astern are (from outboard to inboard) Fargo (CL-106), Albemarle (AV-5) and Wakefield (AP-21). The carriers Enterprise (CV-6) and Franklin (CV-13) are at the far left. Also present are the escort carriers Card (CVE-11), Croatan (CVE-25), Mission Bay (CVE-59), and Guadalcanal (CVE-60) along with the cruisers Providence (CL-82), Little Rock (CL-92), Spokane (CLAA-120) and Fresno (CLAA-121). One of the two CLAAs is tied up outboard of the Alaskas. 

A U.S. Navy Gunner’s Mate First Class Carrick N. Thomas passing a clip of four 40 mm rounds through a hatch in a 40 mm handling room aboard the Alaska. Note the green, red, and white color coding on the projectiles, the room’s white paint, and the red battle lamp. Photographed on 6 March 1945 during the Iwo Jima operation. 

Alaska. 

Alaska on 13 January 1945. This overhead photo shows her traditional cruiser layout. By the time she entered service in late 1944, all the cruisers, that she was built to defeat, were gone. She and her sister, the USS Guam (CB-2), served the carrier task forces well, lending their powerful anti-aircraft defenses and high speeds to protect the fleet.

Alaska, probably in the Hampton Roads area, Summer-Fall 1944. 

Alaska, Navy Yard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 25 October 1944. 

A detailed view of the Alaska’s forward superstructure and the aircraft catapults, circa 1945.

Outboard profile of the Alaska-class large cruiser design. This drawing does not represent any one ship in particular, but rather provides an overview of each ship’s general configuration. 

Outboard profile of Alaska in 1944. Camouflage paint scheme is USN Measure 32/1D. 

Outboard profile of Alaska in 1944. Camouflage paint scheme is USN Measure 22.

An outboard profile of Alaska in standard haze gray. 

Alaska, 13 November 1944. 

U.S. Navy Chief Quartermaster John P. Overholt taking a sun sighting with a sextant from the navigating bridge aboard the Alaska. Taken circa March 1945, during the Iwo Jima operation. Taking notes on the observations is Quartermaster Third Class Clark R. Bartholomew. 

Alaska photographed during launching at the New York Shipbuilding Corp., Camden, New Jersey, on 15 August 1943.

Alaska during an air attack, 1945. 

Alaska starboard side view at anchor, date and location unknown. 

Alaska, starboard side view while underway, date and location unknown. 

Alaska, port side view while underway, possibly soon after commissioning. 

Alaska, port bow view while at anchor, possibly soon after commissioning. 

Alaska, port side view while at anchor, possibly soon after commissioning. 

Alaska, port side view while underway, possibly soon after commissioning. 

Alaska, starboard quarter view while moored, post war, possibly Bayonne, New Jersey. while undergoing deactivation. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. Port bow view. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. Forward turret view. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. Port midships view. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. Aft turret view. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. Aft quarter view. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. These are good detail shots of the secondary, light AA weapon arrangement, aircraft handling facilities, and “fast battleship” type of foremast. This tower foremast coupled with the new 12”/50 caliber main armament helped give them the name “Battlecruiser,” while in reality they were large heavy cruisers built without treaty limitations on displacement and armament. 

Alaska, shown here being inclined at Camden, New Jersey, on June 5, 1944, twelve days before her official commissioning. These are good detail shots of the secondary, light AA weapon arrangement, aircraft handling facilities, and “fast battleship” type of foremast. This tower foremast coupled with the new 12”/50 caliber main armament helped give them the name “Battlecruiser,” while in reality they were large heavy cruisers built without treaty limitations on displacement and armament. 

Alaska, looking aft from the bow. Note that all the deck equipment is covered with canvas. 

Alaska, looking aft down the port side from forward. 

Alaska, looking forward up starboard side from aft. 

Alaska, 40mm gun tubs, port side aft. 

Alaska off the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 30 July 1944. 

Alaska off the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 12 November 1944. 

Alaska on 13 November 1944 after receiving post-shakedown alterations. 

Marines atop their 5”/38 gun mount on Alaska during firing practice, circa February 1945. To the left as lookout is Corporal Osborne Cheek, and in the local control position as mount captain is Platoon Sergeant George W. Ewell. Note the local control ring sight and the binoculars and sound powered telephones worn by Ewell. 

Alaska probably in the Pacific in 1945. 

Alaska firing 5”/38 guns on 5 February 1945, one day before the ship arrived at Ulithi and joined the fast carrier task force. Note “flak” bursts in the left distance. 

Alaska as seen from USS Taluga (AO-62), March 1945. 

Alaska, 16 April 1945, cruising in company with the USS Intrepid (CV-11). The Intrepid is smoking from an earlier kamikaze strike and is getting ready to retire back to Ulithi for repairs. The plane is a Helldiver returning to the USS Bennington (CV-20). 

Alaska seen from the USS Enterprise (CV-6) as they both maneuver to enter Ulithi atoll before the invasion of Okinawa. 

Alaska (foreground) and USS Washington (BB-56) (rear) awaiting the cutting torch in Newark, New Jersey, in 1961.