Arkansas (CGN 41) - Naval Cruise Book

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USSOZARK The battleship ARKANSAS (BB-33) was launched in 1911 by New York Shipbuilding Co., Camden N.J. The ship took part in the Presidential Naval review in the 1 ludson River in 1912. Later in the same year ARKANSAS carried President William H. Taft to the Panama Canal Zone for an inspection of the unfinished canal. From 1913 until 1917 the ship cruised in Caribbean and Mediterranean waters and assisted in the occupation of Veracruz., Mexico. USS Arkansas GB-33 in World War II Sixth Battle Squadron, British Grand Fleet Operations Trans-Atlantic Escort — World War II Invasion of Normandy Invasion of Southern France Iwo Jima Operation Okinawa Gunto Operation 1918 1941-1944 1944 1944 1945 1945 7

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The Past • • CGN-41 is the fifth fighting ship to carry the ARKANSAS name. Construction on the Confederate ironclad river ram ARKANSAS began in 1861 in Memphis, Tcnn. However, when the Union fleet threatened Memphis in May 1862. the ship was moved up the Yazoo River for completion. Two months later, ARKANSAS broke out of the Yazoo River, disabling three vessels. Heading down the Mississippi River, ARKANSAS smashed through Farragut’s fleet and safely reached Vicksburg, Mississippi. The ship survived an attack by two ships while lying under the Vicksburg batteries. Nearly two weeks later ARKANSAS was attacked about five miles above Baton Rouge. It became unmanageable and drifted ashore. The ship was abandoned and set on fire to prevent Union capture. The second ARKANSAS was a screw steamer built and commissioned in 1863 at Philadelphia, Pa. as TONAWANDA. It served in the West Gulf Blockading Squadron as a transport and tug and captured one prize. The ship was ordered north to Portsmouth N.H. and decommissioned in 1865. The third ARKANSAS was a Newport News-built vessel. It was a single-turretcd NEW NAVY monitor and one of the last monitors built for the Navy. Its keel was laid on November 14, 1899, and Hull Number 26 was launched a year later. The ship's first duty was with the U.S. Naval Academy as an instruction and cruise ship for midshipmen. Renamed OZARK on March 2, 1909. the ship was assigned to the District of Columbia Naval Militia from 1910 to 1913. It was then sent to Norfolk for refitting as a submarine tender. The ship patrolled waters off Mexico. Key West, Central America and the Canal Zone. OZARK returned to Hampton Roads in June 1919, and was decommissioned two months later. j •-T i .. j - ‘ '• I'ri-'iz t« . - ft O O ----u 6 BLUE PRINT OF THIRD ARKANSAS LATER RENAMED OZARK

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 During World War I ARKANSAS patrolled along the eastern seaboard and served the 6th Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet at Rosyth, Scotland. The ship witnessed the surrender of the German High Seas Fleet on November 20, 1918. ARKANSAS served effectively during World War II, First on the Neutrality Patrol in June 1941 when escorting the first Marines to Iceland. Between December 1941 and April 1944. the ship escorted nine convoys and saw service at Omaha Beach during the Normandy Invasion. ARKANSAS also participated in the bombardment of Cherbourg and the invasion of southern France. After an overhaul in Boston in 1944, ARKANSAS was moved to the Pacific theatre and performed the indispensable battleship function of overwhelming shore bombardment. It played a vital role at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. After the war the ship ferried servicemen from Pearl Harbor back to the States. In early 1946 ARKANSAS was prepared for final service — as a target vessel in Operation Crossroads, the Bikini atomic bomb experiments. It was sunk on July 25,1946 as a result of the Baker test explosion. ARKANSAS was the oldest American battleship to see active service during World War II, and it received four battle stars. 8 BB-33 in ‘ Measure 32” Camouflage