The Battleship USS ''Iowa'' Museum is a

maritime museum A maritime museum (sometimes nautical museum) is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water. A subcategory of maritime museums are naval museums, which focus on navy, navies and the m ...

located at the

Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "Amer ...

in San Pedro, Los Angeles,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, United States. The museum's main artifact is the USS ''Iowa'' (BB-61), lead ship of the ''Iowa'' class of battleships.

History

USS ''Iowa'' (BB-61) was the lead ship of the last class of

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

s to be built by the United States. The battleship was originally commissioned in 1943, and served during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, and through the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

. ''Iowa'' earned 11 battle stars during her career and hosted three U.S. Presidents, ultimately earning the nicknames Battleship of Presidents and Big Stick. ''Iowa'' was awarded to the Pacific Battleship Center on September 6, 2011 for display at the

in San Pedro, California – home to the United States Battle Fleet from 1919 to 1940. On October 27, 2011, the battleship was relocated from Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet to the Port of Richmond, California for painting and refurbishment. On May 27, 2012, ''Iowa'' was towed underneath the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean in California, United States. The structure links San Francisco—the northern tip of the San Francisco Peni ...

, on the bridge's 75th anniversary, for her final journey to Los Angeles. ''Iowa'' opened in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

on July 4, 2012 to a crowd of over 1,500 supporters and veterans at Port of Los Angeles Berth 87. The USS ''Iowa'' Museum offers daily tours, group programs, education visits, special events, filming, military ceremonies, and is in the process of starting an overnight program. Daily tours include visits to see the largest guns ( 16"/50 caliber) on a U.S. Navy ship, officers ward room, President Roosevelt's cabin, armored bridge, missile decks, enlisted berthing, mess decks, helicopter deck, and other areas. The ship is located at the Los Angeles World Cruise Center and has over 2,100 parking spaces available. ''Iowa'' has played various roles in films and television series including '' NCIS: Los Angeles'', ''

American Warships ''American Warships'' is a 2012 science fiction war film directed by Thunder Levin and distributed by The Asylum. It premiered on the Syfy Channel on May 15, 2012. In the tradition of The Asylum's film catalog, the film is an extremely low-budg ...

'', '' Bermuda Tentacles'', '' The Rookie'', and '' Dark Rising''. ''Iowa'' is home to annual American-focused events including the City of Los Angeles Veterans Appreciation, a Memorial Day Celebration, and September 11 remembrance.

References

External links

Pacific Battleship Center / USS ''Iowa'', official museum site
{{authority control Maritime museums in the United States Maritime museums in California San Pedro, Los Angeles

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

Museums in Los Angeles

History

See also

References

External links