USS Arizona

Sara Smeltzer and Michelle Wargo

USS Arizona History

• It was commissioned in October of 1916 and was built at the New York Navy yard

• It was a battleship that served the Navy from 1916 to 1941

• It served with the British Grand Fleet at the end of WWI

• In late 1931 she returned to her operations with the Battle fleet

USS Arizona History

• On December 7, 1941 she lost over eleven hundred crew members to the Pearl Harbor Attacks

• She transported President Hoover on his trips to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands

• It provided aid to the earthquake victims on Long Beach in 1933

The Day Before

• Many of the men were not on the ship because they were given leave to visit their wives who lived on the island

• It was in the harbor so that it could take care of needed repairs

• Some of the crew members were on the island at the time of the attack but most were on the ship– Eight hours after they returned to the ship almost

all of them were dead at the bottom of Pearl Harbor

December 7th

• The Arizona was one of the first ships under attack

• Explosions on the ship caused massive fires in the front of the ship

• The majority of the crew died in the explosion or they were trapped in the quickly sinking ship– Many survivors showed valor by assisting their

shipmates to safety

After the Attack

• During the following years the USS Arizona became the symbolize the reason the US was fighting in WWII

• After the attack she was left just resting on the bottom with just the deck awash

• Efforts were made to recover bodies and records but were soon proven fruitless– They recovered about 105 bodies but most are

still buried with the USS Arizona

After the Attack Cont.

• During the 1950s she was used as a site for memorial ceremonies

• On December 1, 1942 the Arizona was removed from US Navy registry of vessels

USS Arizona Memorial

• Was created in memory of the men who lost their lives to the attack on Pearl Harbor

• The memorial was talked about for years but in 1949 Hawaii created the Pacific War Memorial Commission

• Eisenhower approved the creation in 1958• It was finished in 1961 with funds from

congress and private donations

USS Arizona Memorial Cont.

• It is an 184 foot long structure spanning the mid-portion of the ship

• It consists of three sections– The entry and assembly rooms

• A central area was designed for ceremonies and observation

• The names of those who died are engraved on a marble wall

USS Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor

Pictures of the USS Arizona

Pictures of the USS Arizona Memorial

The USS Arizona is underneath the memorial

Bibliography• "USS Arizona." The University of Arizona University Libraries. Web. 23 Mar. 2010.

http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/ussarizona/• "USS Arizona - A Brief History." The University of Arizona University Libraries. Web. 23 Mar.

2010. <http://www.library.arizona.edu/exhibits/ussarizona/history/history.html>.• "USN Ships - USS Arizona (BB-39)." Naval History and Heritage Command. Web. 23 Mar.

2010. <http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-a/bb39.htm>.

• "History of U.S.S. Arizona -- Part 3." PAST Foundation. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. <http://www.pastfoundation.org/Arizona/ArizonaHistory_3.htm>.

• "Start." University of Maine at Presque Isle - University of Maine at Presque Isle. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. <http://www.umpi.maine.edu/~chalout/Webquests/06-07/The%20Attack%20on%20Pearl%20Harbor/top.htm>.

• "Photo # 80-G-19942 Picture Data." Ibiblio.org - Our Newest Linux Distributions. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. <http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/OnlineLibrary/photos/images/g10000/g19942c.htm>.

• "USS Arizona." Historic Naval Ships Visitors Guide. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. <http://www.hnsa.org/ships/arizona.htm>.

• "USS Arizona Memorial - Southern Maryland Online MultiMedia Gallery." Main Index - Southern Maryland Online MultiMedia Gallery. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. <http://photos.somd.com/showphoto.php/photo/541>.

• "Pearl Harbor.com - USS Arizona Memorial." Pearl Harbor - December 7, 1941 - Pearl Harbor.com. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. <http://www.pearl-harbor.com/arizona/arizona.html>.