Battleship New Jersey (USS New Jersey)

The Battleship New Jersey, officially designated USS New Jersey (BB-62), is an Iowa-class battleship that served in the United States Navy across four separate active service periods spanning World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Commissioned on May 23, 1943, the vessel was named after the state of New Jersey and earned 19 battle stars across its service career. More than any other battleship in the Iowa class. Among the highest totals of any American warship. After its final decommissioning on February 8, 1991, USS New Jersey was transferred to the state of New Jersey and now serves as a museum ship permanently berthed in Camden on the Delaware River. The battleship is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and draws hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

History

Construction and Commissioning

USS New Jersey was built at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, with her keel laid on September 16, 1940. She was the second of four Iowa-class vessels completed during the war. USS Iowa came first, followed by USS Missouri and USS Wisconsin. The Iowa class represented the final and most capable expression of American battleship design, built in part to escort the fast carrier task forces that would dominate Pacific operations. Each ship measured 887 feet in length, displaced approximately 45,000 tons at standard load, and was powered by eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers driving four Westinghouse geared turbines producing over 212,000 shaft horsepower, enough to sustain speeds exceeding 30 knots. USS New Jersey was launched on December 7, 1942. Exactly one year after the attack on Pearl Harbor. She was commissioned on May 23, 1943, under the command of Captain Carl F. Holden.

World War II Service (1943–1945)

After commissioning and shakedown exercises in the Caribbean, USS New Jersey joined the Pacific Fleet in January 1944. Almost immediately she became the flagship of Admiral William F. "Bull" Halsey, commander of the Third Fleet. That assignment put her at the center of American Pacific strategy during some of the war's most consequential naval campaigns. She provided cover during operations in the Marshall Islands and participated in strikes against Truk, then considered the most heavily fortified Japanese base in the Pacific.

During summer and fall of 1944, USS New Jersey participated in operations supporting the Mariana Islands Campaign, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and the Leyte Gulf landings in the Philippines. She was present during the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944, the largest naval battle in history by some measures, operating with Halsey's Third Fleet. Through the final year of the war, she conducted shore bombardment operations against Japanese positions across the Pacific, including strikes against the Japanese home islands in the summer of 1945. When Japan formally surrendered on September 2, 1945, USS New Jersey was at anchor in Tokyo Bay. She earned 9 battle stars for her World War II service.

Following Japan's surrender, USS New Jersey participated in occupation operations and transported American service personnel home as part of Operation Magic Carpet. She was decommissioned for the first time on June 30, 1948, and placed in reserve at Bayonne, New Jersey.

Korean War Service (1950–1956)

The Korean War broke out in June 1950, and the Navy moved to reactivate USS New Jersey. She was recommissioned on November 21, 1950. Deploying to Korean waters in May 1951, the battleship served two tours along the Korean coast, conducting extensive shore bombardment operations against North Korean and Chinese Communist troop concentrations, rail lines, supply depots, and coastal gun emplacements. Her 16-inch guns proved highly effective against hardened targets that lighter naval gunfire couldn't destroy. Operating along both coasts of the peninsula, she supported UN ground forces during critical phases of the conflict.

USS New Jersey earned 4 battle stars for her Korean War service before being decommissioned a second time on August 21, 1956, returning to the reserve fleet.

Vietnam War Service (1968–1969)

Demand for heavy naval gunfire support during the Vietnam War prompted a third reactivation. She was recommissioned on April 6, 1968, the only battleship to serve in that conflict, and departed for the Western Pacific that fall. Operating off the coast of Vietnam from September 1968 to April 1969, she fired her 16-inch guns against enemy troop concentrations, bunker complexes, and logistical targets along the DMZ and further south. During this deployment she expended more 16-inch ammunition than in any comparable period since World War II. She earned 3 battle stars for Vietnam service and was decommissioned again on December 17, 1969.

Reagan-Era Reactivation (1982–1991)

As part of the Reagan administration's push to build a 600-ship Navy, USS New Jersey was reactivated and modernized for the fourth time, recommissioned on December 28, 1982. The refit was extensive. New systems transformed the ship into something quite different from her World War II configuration. Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles were added, along with Harpoon anti-ship missiles, Phalanx close-in weapon systems, and updated electronics. Several of the original 5-inch secondary gun mounts were removed to accommodate the new weapons systems.

USS New Jersey deployed to the Western Pacific and later to the Mediterranean Sea, participating in operations during the Lebanese Civil War. In December 1983 and January 1984, she fired her 16-inch guns in support of Lebanese government forces and in response to Syrian positions threatening U.S. personnel near Beirut. These were the first combat firings of 16-inch guns since the Vietnam deployment. She also participated in joint exercises and deployed to Central American waters during the mid-1980s. She earned 3 additional battle stars during this final active period. USS New Jersey was decommissioned for the last time on February 8, 1991, struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1999, and donated to the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial in 2000.

Transfer to New Jersey and Museum Opening

Advocates in New Jersey worked to secure the ship as a permanent memorial after decommissioning. The vessel was towed from Bremerton, Washington, arriving in Camden on November 1, 2000. Following restoration and preparation work, the Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial opened to the public on October 15, 2001. The berth in Camden, directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, places the ship close to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard where she was built. That location gives the site added historical resonance. She was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, recognizing her significance to American military and maritime heritage.

Museum and Memorial

The Battleship New Jersey Museum and Memorial is one of the most comprehensive naval museum ships in the United States. It offers self-guided and docent-led tours of multiple decks and dozens of spaces throughout the vessel. Visitors can explore the combat information center, pilot house, flag bridge, crew's berthing spaces, engine rooms, and all three 16-inch gun turrets. The turrets are a consistent highlight. Each houses three guns with barrels weighing approximately 134 tons apiece, capable of firing a 2,700-pound armor-piercing shell over 23 miles. Turret No. 1 is fully traversable and gives visitors a direct sense of the machinery involved in operating the main battery.

Many of the guided tours are conducted by veterans or members of the USS New Jersey Association. These are former crew members from one of the ship's four active service periods, and they can speak to shipboard life from personal experience. Exhibits throughout the vessel document her service in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and the 1980s reactivation, using photographs, personal correspondence, artifacts, and official records. The flag plot and admiral's cabin, preserved largely intact, reflect the ship's long service as a fleet flagship.

The museum runs overnight encampment programs for youth groups and school parties, allowing participants to sleep in original crew berthing spaces and take part in structured programming about naval history and military service. Educational programming is available for all grade levels, aligned with New Jersey state curriculum standards in history and social studies. The waterfront location on the Delaware River provides clear views of the Philadelphia skyline and contextualizes the ship's connection to the region's maritime industrial past, including the nearby shipyard where she was built.

The museum draws an estimated 100,000 to 200,000 visitors annually. It's become one of the more prominent tourism destinations on Camden's waterfront, contributing to the ongoing development of the city's riverfront district alongside the Adventure Aquarium and Freedom Mortgage Pavilion.

Technical Specifications

USS New Jersey shares the core specifications of the Iowa class, though individual ships varied slightly following successive modernizations. At standard load she displaced approximately 45,000 tons, rising to over 57,000 tons at full combat load. Her overall length was 887 feet 3 inches, with a beam of 108 feet 2 inches and a draft of approximately 37 feet. The propulsion plant consisted of eight Babcock & Wilcox boilers and four Westinghouse geared turbines producing 212,000 shaft horsepower driving four shafts, giving the ship a designed top speed of 33 knots. She achieved that figure and slightly exceeded it during speed trials.

The main battery consisted of nine 16-inch/50 caliber Mark 7 guns mounted in three triple turrets. Two forward, one aft. These remain the largest guns ever carried by a United States Navy warship. Each gun could fire either a 2,700-pound armor-piercing shell or a 1,900-pound high-capacity shell, both to a maximum range of roughly 23 miles. Originally she carried twenty 5-inch/38 caliber dual-purpose guns in ten twin mounts. During her 1982–1991 reactivation, four of these twin mounts were removed to accommodate Tomahawk cruise missile armored box launchers and Harpoon missile canisters, along with four Phalanx CIWS mounts for close-in air defense.

Armor protection included a main belt up to 12.1 inches thick, with armored decks and heavily protected turret faces and barbettes. This protection was designed to defeat shells from opposing battleships, though by the end of World War II the primacy of carrier aviation had already shifted the calculus of naval power away from gun-line engagements. The crew complement varied across service periods but typically numbered around 1,500 officers and enlisted men during World War II operations, with a reduced crew during the 1980s reactivation due to automation improvements.

Notable Features and Service Record

USS New Jersey's 19 battle stars place her above any other Iowa-class battleship and reflect her participation in three distinct conflicts across nearly five decades. The breakdown: 9 stars for World War II, 4 for Korea, 3 for Vietnam, and 3 for the 1982–1991 period including Lebanese operations. No other American battleship served in combat in four separate conflicts or accumulated a comparable record of sustained operational use.

Her service as fleet flagship is another distinguishing characteristic. She served as the flagship of Admiral Halsey and Third Fleet during critical Pacific operations in 1944–1945, and later as the flagship of various task force commanders during subsequent deployments. The flag accommodations, including a separate admiral's quarters, flag bridge, and staff spaces, remain intact and accessible to museum visitors today.

The ship's four active service periods, spanning 1943 to 1991, also demonstrate the durability of the Iowa-class design in practical terms. Most battleships of the World War II era were scrapped within a decade of the war's end. All four Iowa-class ships completed during the war remained available for reactivation well into the Cold War era, and USS New Jersey was the most frequently called upon. Each reactivation brought updated electronics, weapons systems, and habitability improvements while the core hull, machinery, and main battery remained fundamentally unchanged. That speaks to the original design's quality.

Cultural Significance

USS New Jersey holds a particular place in the identity of the state whose name she carries. The ship's presence in Camden, a city that's faced significant economic challenges since the mid-twentieth century, has provided a stable cultural and tourism anchor on the Delaware waterfront. She serves as a memorial to the thousands of men who served aboard her across four active service periods, with plaques and exhibits honoring those who died in service. Annual ceremonies mark key dates in her history and in American naval history more broadly, drawing veterans, families, and the public.

Educational institutions across New Jersey have incorporated the museum into history curricula, and the overnight encampment programs give students direct physical contact with a piece of twentieth-century military history. No classroom exhibit can fully replicate that experience. The ship has been featured in documentary films and historical publications and remains a recognized landmark in the Delaware Valley region.

The USS New Jersey Association, composed of former crew members, continues to support the museum's preservation mission, contributing oral histories, artifacts, and volunteer hours. Their involvement keeps living memory of the ship's service connected to the museum's exhibits. A connection that will become increasingly rare and precious as veterans of the ship's active periods age. Ongoing preservation of the vessel requires continuous maintenance work; steel ships in river environments face persistent corrosion challenges.