The USS North Carolina
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A Visit to the USS North Carolina, BB55
For larger images and more, visit my USS North Carolina photoset.
A conference got me to Charlotte, and a rental car and highway 74 got me to Wilmington. One cannot get that close to a genuine battleship and not go for a trip. What follows is sketchy, but time marches on. For the full history of BB55 visit the Hazegray site for the DANFS write up.
The first view of the old girl is startling to say the least. Coming in from the west, you exit the highway, drive a couple of hundred yards, take a sharp right and are presented with this view. No warning, no nothing but trees and a highway sign saying “Battleship Memorial,” and then suddenly the business end of a battleship. Of course there really isn’t any non-business end, but you take my meaning.
The “on” gangway is back towards the stern. Looking forward one sees lots of guns and battle honors.
Looking aft. The floatplane is an original- found as a wreck by the Canadians, and eventually found it’s way to BB55 where it was restored. The gun-tub overhanging the stern was added sometime in 1942-1943 as near as I can tell.
The Main Armament
So, let’s cut to the chase and look at the heavy stuff. Working from the outside we have: Port side optical rangefinder
Inside the turret. The kind of truncated periscope looking things are part of the optical rangefinder.
Ammo!
Inside B Turret
Much further down…
And, just in case you lose your way down in there, reference points are thoughtfully provided.
For the Geeks in the crowd: main battery fire control
Standby To Repel Boarders! Charlie the Alligator, off the Starboard side. According the the blurb, Charlie has been an escort, ah, vessel since 1962.
20mm AAA, starboard side, forward. Maybe they were not too sure about the alligator.
View aft from below.
View forward from the Captain’s chair. I liked it.
Hydraulic steering gear, starboard
Conning tower entrance. Serious armor.
It would be better with a bone in her teeth..
Self explanatory
From across the river in Wilmington