Naval History Blog

On 30 July 1945, while sailing from Guam to Leyte, Indianapolis was torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-58. The ship capsized and sank in twelve minutes. Survivors were spotted by a patrol aircraft on 2 August. All air and surface units capable of rescue operations were dispatched to the scene at once, and the surrounding waters were thoroughly searched for survivors. Upon completion of the day and night search on 8 August, 316 men were rescued out of the crew of 1,199.

RIP Shipmates.  You Stand Relieved.  We have the watch.

The USS Indianapolis National Memorial is located at the North end of the Canal Walk. The Memorial is an outdoor site and is available to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Engraved on the South face of the monument are the names of the ship's company and one passenger who made up her final crew.

The USS Indianapolis National Memorial is a must see for all students of naval history.

Please also view our  FAQ about about the sinking of the USS Indianapolis for additional information and photos.

(DD–886: dp. 2,425; l. 390’6”; b. 41’1”; dr. 18’6”; s. 34 k.; cpl. 367; 6 5”, 16 40mm., 5 21” tt., 6 dcp., 2 dct., 1 dcp (hh); cl. Gearing)

Brandon Richards of KPLC 7 in Lake Charles, Louisiana reports:

It’s been sixty-five years since J.T. Platt last boarded the USS Orleck.  “I was one of the grunts. I did what I was told,” said Platt, who worked at Consolidated Steel Corporation, the group that built the Orleck starting in 1944.  Platt worked at the company in Orange, Texas from 1944 to 1945.

He left Consolidated Steel two months after the Orleck was commissioned. Platt was part of the original group from Consolidated Steel, responsible for making sure all of the equipment on board the Orleck was in working order. Platt was also in charge of making sure all of the ship’s wires were working properly…

Click here to read the rest of the story.  For a brief history of the USS Orleck as well as background information on her namesake, please click here.

To plan a visit to the USS Orleck Naval Memorial in Lake Charles, Louisiana, click here.

Edson (DD-946) was launched 4 January 1958 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Maine; sponsored by Mrs. M. A. Edson; and commissioned 7 November 1958.

 Our nation’s fleet of historic ships grows by one!

Tim Younkman of the Bay City Times writes, “The battle continues to bring the Vietnam-era destroyer USS Edson to the Bay City riverfront.  Volunteers and maritime enthusiasts have worked for 13 years to secure a 20th century combat ship as a Bay City attraction.  Their efforts paid off when the U.S. Navy granted ownership of the 56-year-old Edson, now in mothballs, to the Saginaw Valley Navel Ship Museum.”

Full article here.

For more about the namesake of the USS Edson, click here.

The USS Gravely (DDG-107) undergoing sea trials on June 23, 2010.

According to Navy News Service, “The Navy officially accepted delivery of the future USS Gravely from Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding during a ceremony July 26 in Pascagoula, Miss. Designated DDG 107, Gravely is the 57th ship of the Arleigh Burke class.” 

Moreover, according to Navy News Service, “The new destroyer honors the late Vice Adm. Samuel L. Gravely Jr., the first African American commissioned as an officer from the Navy Reserve Officer Training Course. He was the first African American to command a warship (USS Theodore E. Chandler); to command a major warship (USS Jouett); to achieve flag rank and eventually vice admiral; and to command a numbered fleet (Third).”

For more about the life of VADM Samuel L. Gravely, Jr., USN, please view our on-line exhibit by clicking here.

Looking for something fun to do with free admission.  Please consider our Navy’s Naval History enterprise which consists of a dozen official U.S. Navy museums, NHHC headquarters which is home to the Navy Library, the Navy Art Gallery, and the USS Constitution.

For more information, click here.

Can you Say Road Trip?

        Last Friday, April 16th the Navy Department Library was the recipient of a very generous donation. Mrs. Mary Lou Mawdsley, her son Alan Mawdsley, and her grandson Jimmy presented us with 59 cruise books collected by her late husband, Dr. Dean L. Mawdsley. The collection ranges from World War I to the Cold War, with a majority of them coming from the World War II era. 

        Cruise books are often compared to yearbooks, in that they tell the informal story of a ship and the people who have served onboard. Our collection contains nearly 3,000 cruise books and continues to grow.  The publication of cruise books began in the late 19^th century to commemorate special events such as the Great White Fleet’s world voyage, and a few were issued for vessels in World War I.  World War II helped establish a more widespread practice.  These books were not official US Navy publications, and were largely initiated, funded, and produced by the crew of the ship.     

        Dr. Mawdsley is the author of Cruise Books of the United States Navy in World War II, a bibliography published in 2004 by the former Naval Historical Center now the Naval History and Heritage Command.  Dr. Mawdsley was a retired physician with a passion for collecting books.  His passion grew into the bibliography, and he was considered an expert on World War II naval cruise books.  The contributions he made to the publication and now to our library are significant to researchers and cruise book enthusiasts, and we are very grateful for this incredible donation.

Berthed at Nauticus in Norfolk, VA , the Battleship Wisconsin is one of the largest and last battleships ever built by the U.S. Navy.

For additional images of the USS Wisconsin, click here.

For a ship’s history, click here.

For information about touring the USS Wisconsin, click here.

Click here to become a fan of the USS Wisconsin (BB-64) on Facebook.

Wisconsin crew members,  please post your sea stories in our comments section.