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USS Connecticut (BB-18)
Encyclopedia
USS Connecticut (BB-18), the fourth United States Navy
ship to be named after the state of Connecticut
, was the lead ship
of her class
of six. Her keel
was laid on 10 March 1903; launched on 29 September 1904, Connecticut was commissioned
on 29 September 1906 as the most advanced ship in the U.S. Navy.
Connecticut served as the flagship
for the Jamestown Exposition
in mid-1907, which commemorated the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown
colony. She later sailed with the Great White Fleet
on a circumnavigation of the Earth to showcase the US Navy's growing fleet of blue-water
-capable ships. After completing her service with the Great White Fleet, Connecticut participated in several flag-waving exercises intended to protect American citizens abroad until she was pressed into service as a troop transport at the end of World War I
to expedite the return of American Expeditionary Force
s from France.
For the remainder of her career, Connecticut sailed to various places in both the Atlantic and Pacific while training newer recruits to the Navy. However, the provisions of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty
stipulated that many of the older battleships, Connecticut among them, would have to be disposed of, so she was decommissioned on 1 March 1922 and sold for scrap
on 1 November 1923.
The design that evolved into the was conceived on 6 March 1901 when Secretary of the Navy
John Davis Long
asked the Board on Construction for a study of future battleship designs. When this was completed, different bureaus supported different designs.
The Board on Construction favored a ship on which 6 inches (152.4 mm) and 8 inches (203.2 mm) guns would be replaced by 24 newly designed 7 inches (177.8 mm) guns, which were the most powerful guns with shells that could be handled by one person. In addition, the ships would mount twenty-four 3-inch (76 mm) anti-torpedo boat
guns. The main armor would be thinner overall because it would be distributed over the entire length. The Board's favored design would result in a ship weighing 15560 long tons (15,809.7 t) displacement
.
The Bureau of Construction and Repair
, however, proposed a modified with sixteen 8-inch guns, twelve in turrets and four in casemate
s; the casemate guns were later eliminated, leaving twelve 8-inch, twelve 6-inch, and eight 3-inch guns on a ship of 15860 long tons (16,114.6 t). This design was later rejected because the reduction in anti-torpedo boat guns was too drastic.
Although one of the two designs had been rejected, the debate did not end. In November, the Board decided on a different plan, with eight 8-inch guns mounted in four waist turrets and 12 7-inch guns. This arrangement was chosen because the 8-inch gun could penetrate medium armor on battleships, and the 7-inch gun was capable of rapid fire. The new design also had heavier armor and a thicker belt than the first design. Two ships of this plan, Connecticut and , were authorized on 1 July 1902, and three more were added on 2 March 1903: , , and . was authorized on 27 April 1904. The reason for the long gap were the two s that were built between Minnesota and New Hampshire. This class was the result of trying to "prune back the growth of battleship size and cost" by a "congressionally limited displacement". However, as they had to cut down the Connecticut design by a little less than 20%, the designs were not very successful, and those ships were sold about six years after being commissioned. See: Friedman (1985), pp. 45 and 47.
on 10 March 1903 and launched
on 29 September 1904 by the Brooklyn Navy Yard
. She was sponsored by Miss Alice B. Welles, granddaughter of Gideon Welles
, Secretary of the Navy during the American Civil War
. A crowd of over 30,000 people attended the launch, as did many of the Navy's ships. The battleship
s , , , , , , , and were at the ceremony, along with the protected cruiser
s and and the auxiliary cruiser .
Three attempts to sabotage the ship were discovered in 1904. On 31 March, rivets on the keel plates were found bored through. On 14 September, a 1⅜ in (3.5 cm) bolt was found driven into the launching way, where it protruded some 5 in (11 cm). Shortly after the Connecticut was launched on 29 September, a hole 1 in (2.5 cm) in diameter
was discovered drilled through a ⅝ in (1.6 cm) steel keel
plate.It was estimated that drilling the hole would have taken 20 minutes. See: The ship's watertight compartments and pumps prevented her from sinking, and all damage was repaired. The incidents prompted the Navy to post armed guards at the shipyard, and an overnight watch was kept by a Navy tug manned by Marines
who had orders to shoot to kill any unauthorized person attempting to approach the ship.
As Connecticut was only 55% complete when she was launched, missing most of her upper works, protection, machinery and armament, it was two years before Connecticut was commissioned
on 29 September 1906. Captain William Swift
was the first captain of the new battleship. Connecticut sailed out of New York for the first time on 15 December 1906, becoming the first ship in the US Navy to ever go to sea without a sea trial
. She first journeyed south to the Virginia Capes
, where she conducted a variety of training exercises; this was followed by a shakedown cruise
and battle practice off Cuba and Puerto Rico. During the cruise, she participated in a search for the missing steamer Ponce.Ponce was eventually found and towed back to port by a German freighter; the seven passengers were taken off by the Quebec liner Bermudian. See:
_commissioning.jpg)
On 13 January 1907, Connecticut ran onto a reef
while entering the harbor at Culebra Island. The Navy did not release any information about the grounding until press dispatches from San Juan
carrying news of the incident reached the mainland on 23 January. Even then, Navy authorities in San Juan claimed to be ignorant of the situation, and, that same day, the Navy Department itself said that they only knew that Captain Swift thought she had touched bottom and that an examination of the ship's bottom by divers had revealed no damage. The Navy amended this the next day, releasing a statement that Connecticut had been only slightly damaged and had returned to her shakedown cruise. However, damage to the ship was much more serious than the Navy admitted; in contrast to an official statement saying that Connecticut had only "touched" the rocks, she actually had run full upon the reef when traversing "a course well marked with buoys" in "broad daylight" and did enough damage to probably require a dry dock
ing. This apparent attempt at a cover-up was enough for the United States Congress
to consider an official inquiry into the matter.
On 21 March, the Navy announced that Swift would be court-martial
ed for "through negligence, causing a vessel to run upon a rock" and "neglect of duty in regard to the above". Along with the officer of the deck at the time of the accident, Lieutenant
E. H. Yarnell, Swift faced a court martial of seven rear admirals, a captain, and a lieutenant. He was sentenced to one year's suspension from duty, later reduced to nine months; after about six months, the sentence was remitted on 24 October. However, he was not assigned command of another ship.
_speed_trials.jpg)
Connecticut steamed back to Hampton Roads
after this, arriving on 16 April; when she arrived, Rear Admiral Robley D. Evans, commander of the Atlantic Fleet
, transferred his flag from to Connecticut, making her the flagship
of the fleet. President Theodore Roosevelt
opened the Jamestown Exposition
on 25 April, and Connecticut was named as the official host of the vessels that were visiting from other countries. Sailors and marines from the ship took part in various events ashore, and foreign dignitaries, along with the governors of Virginia
and Rhode Island
, were hosted aboard the ship on 29 April. Evans closed the Exposition on 4 May on the quarterdeck of Connecticut. On 10 June, Connecticut joined in the Presidential Fleet Review; she left three days later for an overhaul in the New York Naval Yard. After the overhaul, Connecticut conducted maneuvers off Hampton Roads and target practice off Cape Cod. She was ordered back to the New York Naval Yard once again on 6 September for a refit that would make her suitable for use as flagship of the Great White Fleet
.
, the fleet headed for the Caribbean. They approached Puerto Rico on the 20th, caught sight of Venezuela on the 22nd, and later dropped anchor in Port of Spain
, the capital of Trinidad
, making the first port visit of the Great White Fleet. With the torpedo boat
flotilla that had left Hampton Roads two weeks previously, and five colliers
to fill the coal bunkers of the fleet, Port of Spain had a total of 32 US Navy ships in the harbor, making it "[resemble] a U.S. Navy base".
After spending Christmas in Trinidad, the ships departed for Rio de Janeiro
on 29 December. A ceremonial Brazilian escort of three cruisers met the task force 12 nmi (13.8 mi; 22.2 km) outside of Rio, and "thousands of wildly cheering Brazilians lined the shore"; 10 days of ceremonies, games, and festivities followed, and the stopover was so successful that the visit was the cause of a major boost in US–Brazilian relations. The fleet left Rio on 22 January 1908, still heading south, this time bound for the coaling stop of Punta Arenas, Chile
.
Four cruisers from Argentina, San Martin, Buenos Ayres, 9 De Julio, and Pueyrredon, all under the command of Admiral Hipolito Oliva, sailed 300 nmi (345.2 mi; 555.6 km) to salute the American ships on their way to Chile. The fleet arrived at Punta Arenas on 1 February and spent five days in the town of 14,000. Heading north, they followed the coastline of Chile, passing in review of Chilean President Pedro Montt
on 14 February outside of Valparaíso
, and they were escorted to Callao
in Peru by the cruiser Coronel Bolognesi on 19 and 20 February. Peru's president, José Pardo
, came aboard Connecticut during this time, as Rear Admiral Evans was quite ill and could not go ashore. After taking on coal, the ships steamed for Mexico on 29 February, passing in review of the cruiser Almirante Grau, which had Pardo embarked, before leaving.
Arriving in Mexico on 20 March, the fleet underwent three weeks of target practice. Rear Admiral Evans was relieved of command during this time, as he was completely bedridden and in constant pain, so on 30 March, Connecticut set sail north at full speed. She was met two days later by the schooner , which took the admiral to a hospital. Connecticut traveled back south to rejoin the fleet, and Rear Admiral Charles M. Thomas took Evans's place on Connecticut as the commander of the fleet, which continued its journey north, bound for California
.
On 5 May, Evans returned to Connecticut in time for the fleet's sailing through the Golden Gate
on 6 May, although he was still in pain. Over one million people watched the 42-ship fleet sail into the bay.The Great White Fleet was joined by various Pacific Fleet warships and a torpedo boat flotilla for their entrance into the harbor, making the conglomerate of ships the "most powerful concentration of naval might yet gathered in the Western Hemisphere". See: Albertson (2007), p. 47. After a grand parade through San Francisco, a review of the fleet by Secretary of the Navy Victor H. Metcalf
, a gala reception, and a farewell address from Evans (who was retiring due to his illness and his age), the fleet left San Francisco for Seattle, with Rear Admiral Charles Stillman Sperry
as commander. The ships all underwent refits before the next leg of the voyage. The fleet left the West Coast again on 7 July, bound for Hawaii, which it reached on 16 July.
Leaving Hawaii on 22 July, the ships next stopped at Auckland
, Sydney
, and Melbourne
. High seas and winds hampered the ships for part of the voyage to New Zealand, but they arrived on 9 August; festivities, parades, balls, and games were staples of the visits to each city. The highlight of the austral visit was a parade of 12,000 U.S. Navy, Royal Navy
, and Commonwealth
naval and military personnel in front of 250,000 people.
After stopping at Manila
in the Philippines, the fleet set course for Yokohama
, Japan. They encountered a typhoon on the way on 12 October, but no ships were lost; the fleet was only delayed 24 hours. After three Japanese men-of-war and six merchantmen escorted the Americans in, festivities began. The celebrations culminated in the Uraga
, where Commodore
Matthew C. Perry had anchored a little more than 50 years prior. The ships then departed on 25 October. After three weeks of exercises in the Philippines' Subic Bay
, the ships sailed south on 1 December for Singapore
; they did not stop there, however, passing outside the city on 6 December. Continuing on, they stopped at Colombo
for coal from 12–20 December before sailing on for the Suez Canal
. It took three days for all 16 battleships to traverse the canal, even though it was closed to all other traffic. They then headed for a coaling stop at Port Said
, Egypt
, after which the fleet split up into individual divisions to call on different ports in the Mediterranean. The First Division, of which Connecticut was a part, originally planned to visit Italy before moving on to Villefranche
, but Connecticut and were quickly dispatched to southern Italy on a humanitarian mission when news of an earthquake reached the fleet. Seamen from the ships helped clear debris and unload supplies from the U.S. Navy refrigerated supply ship ; Admiral Sperry received the personal thanks of King Victor Emmanuel III
for their assistance.
After port calls were concluded, the ships headed for Gibraltar
, where they found a conglomerate of warships from many different nations awaiting them "with decks manned and horns blaring": the battleships and with the cruiser and the Second Cruiser Squadron represented Great Britain's Royal Navy
, battleships and with cruisers , and represented the Imperial Russian Navy
, and various gunboats represented France and the Netherlands. After coaling for five days, the ships got under way and left for home on 6 February 1909.
After weathering a few storms, the ships met nine of their fellow U.S. Navy ships five days out of Hampton Roads: four battleships ' onMouseout='HidePop("84740")' href="/topics/Old_Point_Comfort">Old Point Comfort
, ending a 46729 nmi (53,774.9 mi; 86,542.1 km) trip. Roosevelt boarded the ship after she anchored and gave a short speech, saying, "You've done the trick. Other nations may do as you have done, but they'll follow you."
Following her return from the world cruise, Connecticut continued to serve as flagship of the Atlantic Fleet, interrupted only by a March 1909 overhaul at the New York Navy Yard. After rejoining the fleet, she cruised the East Coast from her base at Norfolk, Virginia
. For the rest of 1909, the battleship conducted training and participated in ceremonial observances, such as the Hudson-Fulton Celebration
. In early January 1910, Connecticut left for Cuban waters and stayed there until late March when she returned to New York for a refit. After several months conducting maneuvers and battle practice off the New England
coast, she left for Europe on 2 November to go on a midshipman training cruise. She arrived in Portland
, England on 15 November and was present during the 1 December birthday celebration of Queen Alexandra
, the queen mother
. Connecticut next visited Cherbourg, France, where she welcomed visitors from the town and also hosted commander-in-chief of the French Navy
Vice-Amiral Laurent Marin-Darbel, and a delegation of his officers. While there, a boat crew from Connecticut engaged a crew from the French battleship in a rowing race; Connecticuts crew won by twelve lengths. Connecticut departed French waters for Guantánamo Bay, Cuba on 30 December, and stayed there until 17 March, when she departed for Hampton Roads.
Connecticut was the leader of the ships that passed in review during the Presidential Fleet Review in New York on 2 November; she then remained in New York until 12 January 1912, when she returned to Guantánamo Bay. During a March overhaul at the Philadelphia Naval Yard, the battleship relinquished her role as flagship to the armored cruiser . After the overhaul's completion, Connecticuts activities through the end of 1912 included practicing with torpedoes in Fort Pond Bay
, conducting fleet maneuvers, and battle practice off Block Island
and the Virginia Capes. Stopping in New York, Connecticut conducted training exercises in Guantánamo Bay from 13 February to 20 March; during this time (on the 28th), she once again became the Atlantic Fleet flagship for a brief and final time when she served in the interim as Rear Admiral Charles J. Badger
transferred his flag from to . After taking on stores in Philadelphia, Connecticut sailed for Mexico and arrived on 22 April; she was to patrol the waters near Tampico and Vera Cruz
, protecting American citizens and interests during disturbances there and in Haiti
.
_dressed_with_flags.jpg)
On 22 June 1912, Connecticut departed Mexican waters for Philadelphia, where she was dry docked for three months of repairs. Upon their completion, Connecticut conducted gunnery practice off the Virginia Capes. On 23 October, Connecticut became the flagship of the Fourth Battleship Division. After the division passed in review before Secretary of the Navy George von Lengerke Meyer
on the 25th, Connecticut left for Genoa
, Italy, where she remained until 30 November. The battleship departed Italy for Vera Cruz and arrived on 23 December. She took refugees from Mexico to Galveston and carried officers of the Army and representative from the Red Cross back in the opposite direction.
On 29 May 1914, while still in Mexico, Connecticut relinquished the duty of flagship to , but remained in Mexico until 2 July, when she left for Havana
. Arriving there on 8 July, Connecticut embarked Madison R. Smith
, the US minister to Haiti, and took him to Port-au-Prince
, arriving five days later. Connecticut remained in Haiti for a month, then left for Philadelphia on 8 August and arrived there on 14 August.
Connecticut then went to Maine
and the Virginia Capes for battle practice, after which she went into the Philadelphia Naval Yard for an overhaul. After more than 15 weeks, Connecticut emerged on 15 January 1915 and steamed south to Cuba, where she conducted training exercises before returning to Philadelphia. She remained there until 31 July, when she embarked 433 men from the Second Regiment, First Brigade, of the United States Marine Corps
for transport to Port-au-Prince, where they were put ashore on 5 August as part of the US occupation of Haiti. Connecticut delivered supplies to amphibious troops in Cap-Haïtien
on 5 September and remained near Haiti for the next few months, supporting landing parties ashore, including detachments of Marines and sailors from Connecticut under the command of Major
Smedley Butler
. After departing Haiti, Connecticut arrived in Philadelphia on 15 December and was placed into the Atlantic Reserve Fleet
.
made her the flagship of the Fifth Battleship Division, transferring his flag from Minnesota. Connecticut operated along the East Coast and in the Caribbean until the United States entered World War I
on 6 April 1917. For the duration of the war, Connecticut was based in York River, Virginia. More than 1,000 trainees—midshipmen and gun crews for merchant ships—took part in exercises on her while she sailed in Chesapeake Bay
and off the Virginia Capes.
for transport duty, and from 6 January-22 June 1919 she made four voyages to return troops from France. On 6 January, she left Hampton Roads for Brest, France
, where she embarked 1,000 troops. After bringing them to New York (arriving on 2 February), Connecticut traveled back to Brest and picked up the 53rd Pioneer Regiment, a company of Marines, and a company of military police
, 1,240 troops in all. These men were delivered to Hampton Roads on 24 March. After two months, Connecticut made another run overseas: following a short period of liberty in Paris for her crew, she embarked 891 men variously from the 502nd Army Engineers, a medical detachment, and the Red Cross. They were dropped off in Newport News on 22 June. On 23 June 1919, after having returned over 4,800 men, Connecticut was reassigned as flagship of the Second Battleship Squadron of the Atlantic Fleet, under the command of Vice Admiral Hilary P. Jones
.
_1920.jpg)
While based in Philadelphia for the next 11 months, Connecticut trained midshipmen. On 2 May 1920, 200 midshipmen boarded the ship for a training cruise. In company with the other battleships of her squadron, Connecticut sailed to the Caribbean and through the Panama Canal in order to visit four ports-of-call: Honolulu, Seattle, San Francisco, and San Pedro Bay
(Los Angeles and Long Beach
). After visiting all four, the squadron made their way back through the canal and headed for home. However, the port engine of Connecticut gave out three days after transiting the canal, requiring New Hampshire to tow the battleship into Guantánamo Bay. The pair arrived on 28 August. The midshipmen were debarked there, and Vice Admiral Jones transferred his flag from Connecticut to his new flagship, . The Navy repair ship was dispatched from New York on 1 September to tow Connecticut to Philadelphia; they arrived at the Navy Yard there on 11 September.
On 21 March 1921, Connecticut again became the flagship of the Second Battleship Squadron when Rear Admiral Charles Frederick Hughes
took command. The ships of the squadron departed Philadelphia on 7 April to perform maneuvers and training exercises off Cuba, though they returned to take part in the Presidential Review in Hampton Roads on 28 April. After participating in Naval Academy
celebrations on Memorial Day
, Connecticut and her squadmates departed on a midshipman cruise which took them to Europe. On 28 June, Connecticut hosted a Norwegian delegation that included King Haakon VII
, Prime Minister
Otto Blehr
, the Minister of Defence, and the First Sea Lord of the Royal Norwegian Navy
. After arriving in Portugal on 21 July, the battleship hosted the Civil Governor of the Province of Lisbon and the Commander-in-Chief of the Portuguese Navy
. Six days later, Connecticut hosted the Portuguese president, António José de Almeida
. The battleship squadron departed for Guantánamo Bay on 29 July and, after arrival there, remained for gunnery practice and exercises. Connecticut, leaving the rest of the squadron, departed for Annapolis and disembarked her midshipmen on 30 August, then proceeded to Philadelphia.
Connecticut departed Philadelphia for California on 4 October for duty with the Pacific Fleet. After touching at San Diego on the 27th, she arrived on 28 October at San Pedro, where Rear Admiral H.O. Stickney
designated her the flagship of Pacific Fleet Training. For the next few months, Connecticut cruised along the West Coast, taking part in exercises and commemorations. Under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty
, which set tonnage limits for its signatory nations, the Navy designated Connecticut for scrapping. Getting under way for her final voyage on 11 December, she made a five-day journey to the Puget Sound Navy Yard, where she was decommissioned on 1 March 1923. On 1 November, the ex-Connecticut was sold for scrap to Walter W. Johnson of San Francisco for the sum of $42,750.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
ship to be named after the state of Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, was the lead ship
Lead ship
The lead ship or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable military ships and larger civilian craft.-Overview:...
of her class
Connecticut class battleship
- External links :...
of six. Her keel
Keel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
was laid on 10 March 1903; launched on 29 September 1904, Connecticut was commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 29 September 1906 as the most advanced ship in the U.S. Navy.
Connecticut served as the flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
for the Jamestown Exposition
Jamestown Exposition
The Jamestown Exposition was one of the many world's fairs and expositions that were popular in the United States in the early part of the 20th century...
in mid-1907, which commemorated the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown
Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...
colony. She later sailed with the Great White Fleet
Great White Fleet
The Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from 16 December 1907 to 22 February 1909 by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with...
on a circumnavigation of the Earth to showcase the US Navy's growing fleet of blue-water
Blue-water navy
The term blue-water navy is a colloquialism used to describe a maritime force capable of operating across the deep waters of open oceans. While what actually constitutes such a force remains undefined, there is a requirement for the ability to exercise sea control at wide ranges...
-capable ships. After completing her service with the Great White Fleet, Connecticut participated in several flag-waving exercises intended to protect American citizens abroad until she was pressed into service as a troop transport at the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
to expedite the return of American Expeditionary Force
American Expeditionary Force
The American Expeditionary Forces or AEF were the United States Armed Forces sent to Europe in World War I. During the United States campaigns in World War I the AEF fought in France alongside British and French allied forces in the last year of the war, against Imperial German forces...
s from France.
For the remainder of her career, Connecticut sailed to various places in both the Atlantic and Pacific while training newer recruits to the Navy. However, the provisions of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty
Washington Naval Treaty
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...
stipulated that many of the older battleships, Connecticut among them, would have to be disposed of, so she was decommissioned on 1 March 1922 and sold for scrap
Scrap
Scrap is a term used to describe recyclable and other materials left over from every manner of product consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has significant monetary value...
on 1 November 1923.
Design
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
John Davis Long
John Davis Long
John Davis Long was a U.S. political figure. He served as the 32nd Governor of Massachusetts between 1880 and 1883. He later served as the Secretary of the Navy from 1897 to 1902....
asked the Board on Construction for a study of future battleship designs. When this was completed, different bureaus supported different designs.
The Board on Construction favored a ship on which 6 inches (152.4 mm) and 8 inches (203.2 mm) guns would be replaced by 24 newly designed 7 inches (177.8 mm) guns, which were the most powerful guns with shells that could be handled by one person. In addition, the ships would mount twenty-four 3-inch (76 mm) anti-torpedo boat
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
guns. The main armor would be thinner overall because it would be distributed over the entire length. The Board's favored design would result in a ship weighing 15560 long tons (15,809.7 t) displacement
Displacement (ship)
A ship's displacement is its weight at any given time, generally expressed in metric tons or long tons. The term is often used to mean the ship's weight when it is loaded to its maximum capacity. A number of synonymous terms exist for this maximum weight, such as loaded displacement, full load...
.
The Bureau of Construction and Repair
Bureau of Construction and Repair
The Bureau of Construction and Repair was the part of the United States Navy which from 1862 to 1940 was responsible for supervising the design, construction, conversion, procurement, maintenance, and repair of ships and other craft for the Navy...
, however, proposed a modified with sixteen 8-inch guns, twelve in turrets and four in casemate
Casemate
A casemate, sometimes rendered casement, is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired. originally a vaulted chamber in a fortress.-Origin of the term:...
s; the casemate guns were later eliminated, leaving twelve 8-inch, twelve 6-inch, and eight 3-inch guns on a ship of 15860 long tons (16,114.6 t). This design was later rejected because the reduction in anti-torpedo boat guns was too drastic.
Although one of the two designs had been rejected, the debate did not end. In November, the Board decided on a different plan, with eight 8-inch guns mounted in four waist turrets and 12 7-inch guns. This arrangement was chosen because the 8-inch gun could penetrate medium armor on battleships, and the 7-inch gun was capable of rapid fire. The new design also had heavier armor and a thicker belt than the first design. Two ships of this plan, Connecticut and , were authorized on 1 July 1902, and three more were added on 2 March 1903: , , and . was authorized on 27 April 1904. The reason for the long gap were the two s that were built between Minnesota and New Hampshire. This class was the result of trying to "prune back the growth of battleship size and cost" by a "congressionally limited displacement". However, as they had to cut down the Connecticut design by a little less than 20%, the designs were not very successful, and those ships were sold about six years after being commissioned. See: Friedman (1985), pp. 45 and 47.
Launch
Connecticut was laid downKeel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
on 10 March 1903 and launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
on 29 September 1904 by the Brooklyn Navy Yard
Brooklyn Navy Yard
The United States Navy Yard, New York–better known as the Brooklyn Navy Yard or the New York Naval Shipyard –was an American shipyard located in Brooklyn, northeast of the Battery on the East River in Wallabout Basin, a semicircular bend of the river across from Corlear's Hook in Manhattan...
. She was sponsored by Miss Alice B. Welles, granddaughter of Gideon Welles
Gideon Welles
Gideon Welles was the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1861 to 1869. His buildup of the Navy to successfully execute blockades of Southern ports was a key component of Northern victory of the Civil War...
, Secretary of the Navy during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. A crowd of over 30,000 people attended the launch, as did many of the Navy's ships. The battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s , , , , , , , and were at the ceremony, along with the protected cruiser
Protected cruiser
The protected cruiser is a type of naval cruiser of the late 19th century, so known because its armoured deck offered protection for vital machine spaces from shrapnel caused by exploding shells above...
s and and the auxiliary cruiser .
Three attempts to sabotage the ship were discovered in 1904. On 31 March, rivets on the keel plates were found bored through. On 14 September, a 1⅜ in (3.5 cm) bolt was found driven into the launching way, where it protruded some 5 in (11 cm). Shortly after the Connecticut was launched on 29 September, a hole 1 in (2.5 cm) in diameter
Diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints are on the circle. The diameters are the longest chords of the circle...
was discovered drilled through a ⅝ in (1.6 cm) steel keel
Keel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
plate.It was estimated that drilling the hole would have taken 20 minutes. See: The ship's watertight compartments and pumps prevented her from sinking, and all damage was repaired. The incidents prompted the Navy to post armed guards at the shipyard, and an overnight watch was kept by a Navy tug manned by Marines
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
who had orders to shoot to kill any unauthorized person attempting to approach the ship.
As Connecticut was only 55% complete when she was launched, missing most of her upper works, protection, machinery and armament, it was two years before Connecticut was commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 29 September 1906. Captain William Swift
William Swift
William Swift was a rear admiral in the United States Navy, and briefly the Naval Governor of Guam in 1901. He was court-martialed in 1907 for the grounding of the battleship , and briefly suspended from duty...
was the first captain of the new battleship. Connecticut sailed out of New York for the first time on 15 December 1906, becoming the first ship in the US Navy to ever go to sea without a sea trial
Sea trial
A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft . It is also referred to as a "shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and can last from a few hours to many days.Sea trials are conducted to measure a vessel’s...
. She first journeyed south to the Virginia Capes
Virginia Capes
The Virginia Capes are the two capes, Cape Charles to the north and Cape Henry to the south, that define the entrance to Chesapeake Bay on the eastern coast of North America....
, where she conducted a variety of training exercises; this was followed by a shakedown cruise
Shakedown (testing)
A shakedown is a period of testing or a trial journey undergone by a ship, aircraft or other craft and its crew before being declared operational. Statistically, a proportion of the components will fail after a relatively short period of use, and those that survive this period can be expected to...
and battle practice off Cuba and Puerto Rico. During the cruise, she participated in a search for the missing steamer Ponce.Ponce was eventually found and towed back to port by a German freighter; the seven passengers were taken off by the Quebec liner Bermudian. See:
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
while entering the harbor at Culebra Island. The Navy did not release any information about the grounding until press dispatches from San Juan
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
carrying news of the incident reached the mainland on 23 January. Even then, Navy authorities in San Juan claimed to be ignorant of the situation, and, that same day, the Navy Department itself said that they only knew that Captain Swift thought she had touched bottom and that an examination of the ship's bottom by divers had revealed no damage. The Navy amended this the next day, releasing a statement that Connecticut had been only slightly damaged and had returned to her shakedown cruise. However, damage to the ship was much more serious than the Navy admitted; in contrast to an official statement saying that Connecticut had only "touched" the rocks, she actually had run full upon the reef when traversing "a course well marked with buoys" in "broad daylight" and did enough damage to probably require a dry dock
Dry dock
A drydock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform...
ing. This apparent attempt at a cover-up was enough for the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
to consider an official inquiry into the matter.
On 21 March, the Navy announced that Swift would be court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
ed for "through negligence, causing a vessel to run upon a rock" and "neglect of duty in regard to the above". Along with the officer of the deck at the time of the accident, Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
E. H. Yarnell, Swift faced a court martial of seven rear admirals, a captain, and a lieutenant. He was sentenced to one year's suspension from duty, later reduced to nine months; after about six months, the sentence was remitted on 24 October. However, he was not assigned command of another ship.
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
after this, arriving on 16 April; when she arrived, Rear Admiral Robley D. Evans, commander of the Atlantic Fleet
United States Fleet Forces Command
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
, transferred his flag from to Connecticut, making her the flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of the fleet. President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
opened the Jamestown Exposition
Jamestown Exposition
The Jamestown Exposition was one of the many world's fairs and expositions that were popular in the United States in the early part of the 20th century...
on 25 April, and Connecticut was named as the official host of the vessels that were visiting from other countries. Sailors and marines from the ship took part in various events ashore, and foreign dignitaries, along with the governors of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
, were hosted aboard the ship on 29 April. Evans closed the Exposition on 4 May on the quarterdeck of Connecticut. On 10 June, Connecticut joined in the Presidential Fleet Review; she left three days later for an overhaul in the New York Naval Yard. After the overhaul, Connecticut conducted maneuvers off Hampton Roads and target practice off Cape Cod. She was ordered back to the New York Naval Yard once again on 6 September for a refit that would make her suitable for use as flagship of the Great White Fleet
Great White Fleet
The Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from 16 December 1907 to 22 February 1909 by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with...
.
Flagship of the Great White Fleet
Connecticut left the New York Naval Yard on 5 December 1907 and arrived the next day in Hampton Roads, where the Great White Fleet would assemble with her as their flagship. After an eight-day period known as "Navy Farewell Week" during which festivities were held for the departing sailors, and all 16 battleships took on full loads of coal, stores, and ammunition, the ships were ready to depart. The battleship captains paid their respects to President Theodore Roosevelt on the presidential yacht , and all the ships weighed anchor and departed at 1000. They passed in review before the President, and then began traveling south. After steaming past Cape HatterasCape Hatteras
Cape Hatteras is a cape on the coast of North Carolina. It is the point that protrudes the farthest to the southeast along the northeast-to-southwest line of the Atlantic coast of North America...
, the fleet headed for the Caribbean. They approached Puerto Rico on the 20th, caught sight of Venezuela on the 22nd, and later dropped anchor in Port of Spain
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
, the capital of Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
, making the first port visit of the Great White Fleet. With the torpedo boat
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
flotilla that had left Hampton Roads two weeks previously, and five colliers
Collier (ship type)
Collier is a historical term used to describe a bulk cargo ship designed to carry coal, especially for naval use by coal-fired warships. In the late 18th century a number of wooden-hulled sailing colliers gained fame after being adapted for use in voyages of exploration in the South Pacific, for...
to fill the coal bunkers of the fleet, Port of Spain had a total of 32 US Navy ships in the harbor, making it "[resemble] a U.S. Navy base".
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
on 29 December. A ceremonial Brazilian escort of three cruisers met the task force 12 nmi (13.8 mi; 22.2 km) outside of Rio, and "thousands of wildly cheering Brazilians lined the shore"; 10 days of ceremonies, games, and festivities followed, and the stopover was so successful that the visit was the cause of a major boost in US–Brazilian relations. The fleet left Rio on 22 January 1908, still heading south, this time bound for the coaling stop of Punta Arenas, Chile
Punta Arenas, Chile
Punta Arenas is a commune and the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antartica Chilena. The city was officially renamed Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to Punta Arenas...
.
Four cruisers from Argentina, San Martin, Buenos Ayres, 9 De Julio, and Pueyrredon, all under the command of Admiral Hipolito Oliva, sailed 300 nmi (345.2 mi; 555.6 km) to salute the American ships on their way to Chile. The fleet arrived at Punta Arenas on 1 February and spent five days in the town of 14,000. Heading north, they followed the coastline of Chile, passing in review of Chilean President Pedro Montt
Pedro Montt
Pedro Elías Pablo Montt Montt was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile from 1906 to his death from a probable stroke in 1910...
on 14 February outside of Valparaíso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
, and they were escorted to Callao
Callao
Callao is the largest and most important port in Peru. The city is coterminous with the Constitutional Province of Callao, the only province of the Callao Region. Callao is located west of Lima, the country's capital, and is part of the Lima Metropolitan Area, a large metropolis that holds almost...
in Peru by the cruiser Coronel Bolognesi on 19 and 20 February. Peru's president, José Pardo
José Pardo y Barreda
José Simón Pardo y Barreda was a Peruvian politician who twice occupied the Presidency of Peru, from 1904 to 1908 and 1915 to 1919....
, came aboard Connecticut during this time, as Rear Admiral Evans was quite ill and could not go ashore. After taking on coal, the ships steamed for Mexico on 29 February, passing in review of the cruiser Almirante Grau, which had Pardo embarked, before leaving.
Arriving in Mexico on 20 March, the fleet underwent three weeks of target practice. Rear Admiral Evans was relieved of command during this time, as he was completely bedridden and in constant pain, so on 30 March, Connecticut set sail north at full speed. She was met two days later by the schooner , which took the admiral to a hospital. Connecticut traveled back south to rejoin the fleet, and Rear Admiral Charles M. Thomas took Evans's place on Connecticut as the commander of the fleet, which continued its journey north, bound for California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Golden Gate
The Golden Gate is the North American strait connecting San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean. Since 1937 it has been spanned by the Golden Gate Bridge...
on 6 May, although he was still in pain. Over one million people watched the 42-ship fleet sail into the bay.The Great White Fleet was joined by various Pacific Fleet warships and a torpedo boat flotilla for their entrance into the harbor, making the conglomerate of ships the "most powerful concentration of naval might yet gathered in the Western Hemisphere". See: Albertson (2007), p. 47. After a grand parade through San Francisco, a review of the fleet by Secretary of the Navy Victor H. Metcalf
Victor H. Metcalf
Victor Howard Metcalf was an American politician; he served in President Theodore Roosevelt's cabinet an Secretary of Commerce and Labor, and then as Secretary of the Navy.-Biography:...
, a gala reception, and a farewell address from Evans (who was retiring due to his illness and his age), the fleet left San Francisco for Seattle, with Rear Admiral Charles Stillman Sperry
Charles Stillman Sperry
Rear Admiral Charles Stillman Sperry was an officer in the United States Navy.Born in Brooklyn, New York, Sperry graduated from the Naval Academy in 1866. In November 1898 he became commanding officer of Yorktown, and later served as senior officer of the Southern Squadron on the Asiatic Station...
as commander. The ships all underwent refits before the next leg of the voyage. The fleet left the West Coast again on 7 July, bound for Hawaii, which it reached on 16 July.
Leaving Hawaii on 22 July, the ships next stopped at Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, and Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. High seas and winds hampered the ships for part of the voyage to New Zealand, but they arrived on 9 August; festivities, parades, balls, and games were staples of the visits to each city. The highlight of the austral visit was a parade of 12,000 U.S. Navy, Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, and Commonwealth
Commonwealth
Commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has sometimes been synonymous with "republic."More recently it has been used for fraternal associations of some sovereign nations...
naval and military personnel in front of 250,000 people.
After stopping at Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
in the Philippines, the fleet set course for Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Japan. They encountered a typhoon on the way on 12 October, but no ships were lost; the fleet was only delayed 24 hours. After three Japanese men-of-war and six merchantmen escorted the Americans in, festivities began. The celebrations culminated in the Uraga
Uraga
is a subdivision of the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is located on the south eastern side of the Miura Peninsula, at the northern end of the Uraga Channel, at the entrance of Tokyo Bay.-History:...
, where Commodore
Commodore (rank)
Commodore is a military rank used in many navies that is superior to a navy captain, but below a rear admiral. Non-English-speaking nations often use the rank of flotilla admiral or counter admiral as an equivalent .It is often regarded as a one-star rank with a NATO code of OF-6, but is not always...
Matthew C. Perry had anchored a little more than 50 years prior. The ships then departed on 25 October. After three weeks of exercises in the Philippines' Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, the ships sailed south on 1 December for Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
; they did not stop there, however, passing outside the city on 6 December. Continuing on, they stopped at Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
for coal from 12–20 December before sailing on for the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. It took three days for all 16 battleships to traverse the canal, even though it was closed to all other traffic. They then headed for a coaling stop at Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, after which the fleet split up into individual divisions to call on different ports in the Mediterranean. The First Division, of which Connecticut was a part, originally planned to visit Italy before moving on to Villefranche
Villefranche-sur-Mer
Villefranche-sur-Mer is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera.-Geography:...
, but Connecticut and were quickly dispatched to southern Italy on a humanitarian mission when news of an earthquake reached the fleet. Seamen from the ships helped clear debris and unload supplies from the U.S. Navy refrigerated supply ship ; Admiral Sperry received the personal thanks of King Victor Emmanuel III
Victor Emmanuel III of Italy
Victor Emmanuel III was a member of the House of Savoy and King of Italy . In addition, he claimed the crowns of Ethiopia and Albania and claimed the titles Emperor of Ethiopia and King of Albania , which were unrecognised by the Great Powers...
for their assistance.
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, where they found a conglomerate of warships from many different nations awaiting them "with decks manned and horns blaring": the battleships and with the cruiser and the Second Cruiser Squadron represented Great Britain's Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, battleships and with cruisers , and represented the Imperial Russian Navy
Imperial Russian Navy
The Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...
, and various gunboats represented France and the Netherlands. After coaling for five days, the ships got under way and left for home on 6 February 1909.
After weathering a few storms, the ships met nine of their fellow U.S. Navy ships five days out of Hampton Roads: four battleships ' onMouseout='HidePop("84740")' href="/topics/Old_Point_Comfort">Old Point Comfort
Old Point Comfort
Old Point Comfort is a point of land located in the independent city of Hampton. It lies at the extreme tip of the Virginia Peninsula at the mouth of Hampton Roads in the United States....
, ending a 46729 nmi (53,774.9 mi; 86,542.1 km) trip. Roosevelt boarded the ship after she anchored and gave a short speech, saying, "You've done the trick. Other nations may do as you have done, but they'll follow you."
Pre-World War I
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
. For the rest of 1909, the battleship conducted training and participated in ceremonial observances, such as the Hudson-Fulton Celebration
Hudson-Fulton Celebration
The Hudson-Fulton Celebration from September 25 to October 9, 1909 in New York and New Jerseywas an elaborate commemoration of the 300th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s discovery of the Hudson River and the 100th anniversary of Robert Fulton’s first successful commercial application of the paddle...
. In early January 1910, Connecticut left for Cuban waters and stayed there until late March when she returned to New York for a refit. After several months conducting maneuvers and battle practice off the New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
coast, she left for Europe on 2 November to go on a midshipman training cruise. She arrived in Portland
Isle of Portland
The Isle of Portland is a limestone tied island, long by wide, in the English Channel. Portland is south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. A tombolo over which runs the A354 road connects it to Chesil Beach and the mainland. Portland and...
, England on 15 November and was present during the 1 December birthday celebration of Queen Alexandra
Alexandra of Denmark
Alexandra of Denmark was the wife of Edward VII of the United Kingdom...
, the queen mother
Queen mother
Queen Mother is a title or position reserved for a widowed queen consort whose son or daughter from that marriage is the reigning monarch. The term has been used in English since at least 1577...
. Connecticut next visited Cherbourg, France, where she welcomed visitors from the town and also hosted commander-in-chief of the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
Vice-Amiral Laurent Marin-Darbel, and a delegation of his officers. While there, a boat crew from Connecticut engaged a crew from the French battleship in a rowing race; Connecticuts crew won by twelve lengths. Connecticut departed French waters for Guantánamo Bay, Cuba on 30 December, and stayed there until 17 March, when she departed for Hampton Roads.
Connecticut was the leader of the ships that passed in review during the Presidential Fleet Review in New York on 2 November; she then remained in New York until 12 January 1912, when she returned to Guantánamo Bay. During a March overhaul at the Philadelphia Naval Yard, the battleship relinquished her role as flagship to the armored cruiser . After the overhaul's completion, Connecticuts activities through the end of 1912 included practicing with torpedoes in Fort Pond Bay
Fort Pond Bay
Fort Pond Bay is a bay off Long Island Sound at Montauk, New York that was site of the first port on the end of Long Island. The bay has a long naval and civilian history.-New-York Province and the American Revolution:...
, conducting fleet maneuvers, and battle practice off Block Island
Block Island
Block Island is part of the U.S. state of Rhode Island and is located in the Atlantic Ocean approximately south of the coast of Rhode Island, east of Montauk Point on Long Island, and is separated from the Rhode Island mainland by Block Island Sound. The United States Census Bureau defines Block...
and the Virginia Capes. Stopping in New York, Connecticut conducted training exercises in Guantánamo Bay from 13 February to 20 March; during this time (on the 28th), she once again became the Atlantic Fleet flagship for a brief and final time when she served in the interim as Rear Admiral Charles J. Badger
Charles J. Badger
Charles Johnston Badger was an admiral in the United States Navy. His active-duty career included service in the Spanish-American War and World War I.-Biography:...
transferred his flag from to . After taking on stores in Philadelphia, Connecticut sailed for Mexico and arrived on 22 April; she was to patrol the waters near Tampico and Vera Cruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, protecting American citizens and interests during disturbances there and in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
.
George von Lengerke Meyer
George von Lengerke Meyer was a Massachusetts businessman and politician who served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, as United States ambassador to Italy and Russia, as United States Postmaster General from 1907 to 1909 during the administration of President Theodore Roosevelt and...
on the 25th, Connecticut left for Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
, Italy, where she remained until 30 November. The battleship departed Italy for Vera Cruz and arrived on 23 December. She took refugees from Mexico to Galveston and carried officers of the Army and representative from the Red Cross back in the opposite direction.
On 29 May 1914, while still in Mexico, Connecticut relinquished the duty of flagship to , but remained in Mexico until 2 July, when she left for Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
. Arriving there on 8 July, Connecticut embarked Madison R. Smith
Madison R. Smith
Madison Roswell Smith was a United States Representative from Missouri.-Biography:Born on a farm near Glenallen, Missouri, Smith attended public schools and Central College in Fayette, Missouri. He taught school and studied law, being admitted to the bar in 1874...
, the US minister to Haiti, and took him to Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
, arriving five days later. Connecticut remained in Haiti for a month, then left for Philadelphia on 8 August and arrived there on 14 August.
Connecticut then went to Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
and the Virginia Capes for battle practice, after which she went into the Philadelphia Naval Yard for an overhaul. After more than 15 weeks, Connecticut emerged on 15 January 1915 and steamed south to Cuba, where she conducted training exercises before returning to Philadelphia. She remained there until 31 July, when she embarked 433 men from the Second Regiment, First Brigade, of the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
for transport to Port-au-Prince, where they were put ashore on 5 August as part of the US occupation of Haiti. Connecticut delivered supplies to amphibious troops in Cap-Haïtien
Cap-Haïtien
Cap-Haïtien is a city of about 190,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the Department of Nord...
on 5 September and remained near Haiti for the next few months, supporting landing parties ashore, including detachments of Marines and sailors from Connecticut under the command of Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
Smedley Butler
Smedley Butler
Smedley Darlington Butler was a Major General in the U.S. Marine Corps, an outspoken critic of U.S. military adventurism, and at the time of his death the most decorated Marine in U.S...
. After departing Haiti, Connecticut arrived in Philadelphia on 15 December and was placed into the Atlantic Reserve Fleet
United States Navy reserve fleets
The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and sufficiently working as to be reactivated quickly in an...
.
World War I
As part of the US response to Germany's unrestricted submarine warfare, Connecticut was recommissioned on 3 October 1916. Two days later, Admiral Herbert O. DunnHerbert O. Dunn
Herbert Omar Dunn was a Rear Admiral of the United States Navy.-Biography:In 1877, as a cadet, Dunn sailed on the sloop-of-war on a voyage to the South Atlantic....
made her the flagship of the Fifth Battleship Division, transferring his flag from Minnesota. Connecticut operated along the East Coast and in the Caribbean until the United States entered World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
on 6 April 1917. For the duration of the war, Connecticut was based in York River, Virginia. More than 1,000 trainees—midshipmen and gun crews for merchant ships—took part in exercises on her while she sailed in Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
and off the Virginia Capes.
Inter-war period
At the close of the war, Connecticut was assigned to the Cruiser and Transport ForceCruiser and Transport Force
The Cruiser and Transport Service was a unit of the United States Navy's Atlantic Fleet during World War I that was responsible for transporting American men and materiel to France.- Composition :...
for transport duty, and from 6 January-22 June 1919 she made four voyages to return troops from France. On 6 January, she left Hampton Roads for Brest, France
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, where she embarked 1,000 troops. After bringing them to New York (arriving on 2 February), Connecticut traveled back to Brest and picked up the 53rd Pioneer Regiment, a company of Marines, and a company of military police
Military police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
, 1,240 troops in all. These men were delivered to Hampton Roads on 24 March. After two months, Connecticut made another run overseas: following a short period of liberty in Paris for her crew, she embarked 891 men variously from the 502nd Army Engineers, a medical detachment, and the Red Cross. They were dropped off in Newport News on 22 June. On 23 June 1919, after having returned over 4,800 men, Connecticut was reassigned as flagship of the Second Battleship Squadron of the Atlantic Fleet, under the command of Vice Admiral Hilary P. Jones
Hilary P. Jones
Hilary Pollard Jones, Jr. was an officer in the United States Navy during the Spanish-American War and World War I. During the early 1920s, he served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet....
.
San Pedro Bay (California)
San Pedro Bay is an inlet on the Pacific Ocean coast of southern California, United States. It is the site of the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach, which together form the fifth-busiest port facility in the world and easily the busiest in the Western Hemisphere...
(Los Angeles and Long Beach
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
). After visiting all four, the squadron made their way back through the canal and headed for home. However, the port engine of Connecticut gave out three days after transiting the canal, requiring New Hampshire to tow the battleship into Guantánamo Bay. The pair arrived on 28 August. The midshipmen were debarked there, and Vice Admiral Jones transferred his flag from Connecticut to his new flagship, . The Navy repair ship was dispatched from New York on 1 September to tow Connecticut to Philadelphia; they arrived at the Navy Yard there on 11 September.
On 21 March 1921, Connecticut again became the flagship of the Second Battleship Squadron when Rear Admiral Charles Frederick Hughes
Charles Frederick Hughes
Charles Frederick Hughes was an admiral in the United States Navy and served as Chief of Naval Operations.-Biography:...
took command. The ships of the squadron departed Philadelphia on 7 April to perform maneuvers and training exercises off Cuba, though they returned to take part in the Presidential Review in Hampton Roads on 28 April. After participating in Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
celebrations on Memorial Day
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
, Connecticut and her squadmates departed on a midshipman cruise which took them to Europe. On 28 June, Connecticut hosted a Norwegian delegation that included King Haakon VII
Haakon VII of Norway
Haakon VII , known as Prince Carl of Denmark until 1905, was the first king of Norway after the 1905 dissolution of the personal union with Sweden. He was a member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg...
, Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Norway
The Prime Minister of Norway is the political leader of Norway and the Head of His Majesty's Government. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Stortinget , to their political party, and ultimately the...
Otto Blehr
Otto Blehr
Otto Albert Blehr was a Norwegian attorney and politician representing the Liberal Party. He served as Prime Minister of Norway from 1902 to 1903 during the Union between Sweden and Norway and from 1921 to 1923 following the Dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden.He served as...
, the Minister of Defence, and the First Sea Lord of the Royal Norwegian Navy
Royal Norwegian Navy
The Royal Norwegian Navy is the branch of the Norwegian Defence Force responsible for naval operations. , the RNoN consists of approximately 3,700 personnel and 70 vessels, including 5 heavy frigates, 6 submarines, 14 patrol boats, 4 minesweepers, 4 minehunters, 1 mine detection vessel, 4 support...
. After arriving in Portugal on 21 July, the battleship hosted the Civil Governor of the Province of Lisbon and the Commander-in-Chief of the Portuguese Navy
Portuguese Navy
The Portuguese Navy is the naval branch of the Portuguese Armed Forces which, in cooperation and integrated with the other branches of the Portuguese military, is charged with the military defence of Portugal....
. Six days later, Connecticut hosted the Portuguese president, António José de Almeida
António José de Almeida
António José de Almeida, GCTE, GCA, GCC, GCSE, , son of José António de Almeida and wife Maria Rita das Neves, was a Portuguese political figure...
. The battleship squadron departed for Guantánamo Bay on 29 July and, after arrival there, remained for gunnery practice and exercises. Connecticut, leaving the rest of the squadron, departed for Annapolis and disembarked her midshipmen on 30 August, then proceeded to Philadelphia.
Connecticut departed Philadelphia for California on 4 October for duty with the Pacific Fleet. After touching at San Diego on the 27th, she arrived on 28 October at San Pedro, where Rear Admiral H.O. Stickney
Herman Osman Stickney
Herman Osman Stickney was a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy who served in various capacities, including as Commander, Pacific Fleet at the end of his military career...
designated her the flagship of Pacific Fleet Training. For the next few months, Connecticut cruised along the West Coast, taking part in exercises and commemorations. Under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty
Washington Naval Treaty
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...
, which set tonnage limits for its signatory nations, the Navy designated Connecticut for scrapping. Getting under way for her final voyage on 11 December, she made a five-day journey to the Puget Sound Navy Yard, where she was decommissioned on 1 March 1923. On 1 November, the ex-Connecticut was sold for scrap to Walter W. Johnson of San Francisco for the sum of $42,750.