| Act Act of 4 March 1911: |
"._._. The President
is hereby authorized to have constructed two first-class battleships, each
carrying as heavy armor and as powerful armament as andy vessel of its class,
to have the highest practicable speed and the greatest practicable radius
of action, and to cost, exclusive of armor and armament, not to exceed six
million dollars
each. ._._." |
| Oklahoma (BB-37) was laid down 26 october 1912 by New York
Shipbuilding Corp., Camden, New Jersey; launched 23 March 1914; sponsored
by Miss Lorena J. Cruce, and commissioned at Philadelphia 2 May 1916, Captain
Roger Wells in command. |
| Joining the Atlantic Fleet with Norfolk her home port,
Oklahoma trained on the eastern seaboard until sailing 13 August 1918
with sistership
Nevada (BB-36)
to join in the task of protecting Allied convoys in European waters. Until
the signing of the armistice on 11 November 1918, Oklahoma, along
with the sister battleships
Utah (BB-31)and
Nevada, operated
from Bantry Bay, covering the Allied convoys approaching the British Isles,
ready to deal with any surface threat that the German Navy could hurl at
the valuable transports and supply ships. |
| In December Oklahoma was part of the escort as President
Woodrow Wilson arrived in France, departing the 14th for New York and arrived
in France, departing the 14th for New York and winter fleet exercises in
Cuban waters. She returned to Brest 15 Jun 1919 to escort President Wilson
in George Washington home from his second visit to France, returning
to New York on 8 July. |
| A part of the Atlantic Fleet for the next two years,
Oklahoma was overhauled, trained, and twice voyaged to South America's
west coast; early in 1921 for combined exercises with the Pacific Fleet,
and later that year for the Peruvian Centennial. She then joined the Pacific
Fleet for six years highlighted by the cruise of the Battle Fleet to Australia
and New Zealand in 1925. Joining the Scouting Fleet in early 1927,
Oklahoma continued intensive exercises during that summer's Midshipmen
Cruise, voyaging to the East Coast to embark midshipmen, carrying them through
the Panama Canal to San Francisco, and returned by the way of Cuba and
Haiti. |
| Modernized at Philadelphia between September 1927 and July 1929,
Oklahoma rejoined the Scouting Fleet for exercises in the Caribbean,
and returned to the west coats in June 1930 for fleet operations through
spring 1936. That summer she carried midshipmen on a European training cruise,
visiting northern ports. The cruise was interrupted with the outbreak of
civil war in Spain, as Oklahoma sped to Bilbao, arriving 24 July 1936
to rescue American citizens and other refugees, whom she carried to Gibraltar
and French ports. She returned to Norfolk 11 September, and to the West Coast
24 October. |
| Oklahoma's Pacific Fleet operations during the next four
years included joint operations with the Army and the training of
reservists. |
| She training in company with her division mates
Arizona (BB-39)
and Nevada
(BB-36), conducting a night firing exercise on the night of 4 December 1941.
All three ships morred at quays ("keys") along Ford Island on the 5th. |
| Oklahoma was based at Pearl Harbor from 6 December 1940
for patrols and exercises, and was moored in Battleship Row 7 December 1941
when the Japanese attacked. Outboard alongside Maryland,
Oklahoma took 3 torpedo hits almost immediately after the first Japanese
bombs fell. As she began to capsize, 2 more torpedoes struck home, and her
men were strafed as they abandoned ship. Within 20 minutes after the attack
began, she had swung over until halted by her masts touching bottom, her
starboard side above water, and a part of her keel clear. Many of her crew,
however, remained in the fight, clambering aboard Maryland to help
serve her antiaircraft batteries. Twenty officers and 395 enlisted men were
either killed or missing, 32 others wounded, and many were trapped within
the capsized hull, to be saved by heroic rescue efforts. Such an effort was
that of Julio DeCastro, a civilian yard worker who organized the teams which
saved 32 Oklahoma sailors. |
| The difficult salvage job began in March 1943, and Oklahoma
entered drydock 28 December. Decommissioning 1 September 1944,
Oklahoma was stripped of guns and superstructure, and sold 5 December
1946 to Moore Drydock Co., Oakland, California. Oklahoma parted her
tow lin and sank 17 May 1947 540 miles out, bound from Pearl Harbor to San
Francisco. |
 |
|
Oklahoma received 1 battle star for World War II
service. |
|
|
|
Bibliography
 |
Larry W. Jewell, Who's Who of United States
Battleships, (Internet publication), edition: 30 August, 1993. |
|
James L. Mooney, Dictionary of American Naval
Fighting Ships, (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office,
1964), Vol.1 -- A-B, p. 195 |
|
James L. Mooney, Dictionary of American Naval
Fighting Ships, (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office,
1970), Vol.5: N-Q, p. 148 |
|
