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USS Idaho (BB-42)
Encyclopedia
USS Idaho (BB-42), a , was the fourth ship of the United States Navy
to be named for the 43rd state
. Her keel was laid down by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation of Camden, New Jersey
. She was launched
on 30 June 1917 sponsored by Miss Henrietta Amelia Simons, granddaughter of Idaho
Governor Moses Alexander
; and commissioned
on 24 March 1919, Captain
Carl Theodore Vogelgesang
in command.
, and after returning to New York City
received President of Brazil
Epitácio Pessoa
for the voyage to Rio de Janeiro
. Departing on 6 July with her escort, the battleship arrived Rio on 17 July. From there she set course for the Panama Canal
, arriving Monterey, California
, in September to join the Pacific Fleet. She joined other dreadnoughts in training exercises and reviews, including a Fleet Review by President of the United States
Woodrow Wilson
on 13 September. In 1920, the battleship carried Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels
and the Secretary of the Interior
(either Franklin K. Lane or John B. Payne) on an inspection tour of Alaska
.
Upon her return from Alaska on 22 July 1920, Idaho took part in fleet maneuvers off the California
coast and as far south as Chile
. She continued this important training until 1925, taking part in numerous ceremonies on the West Coast during the interim. Two of the original 14 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns were removed in 1922. Idaho took part in the fleet review held by President Warren Harding in Seattle shortly before his death in 1923. The battleship sailed on 15 April 1925 for Hawaii
, participated in war games until 1 July, and then got underway for Samoa
, Australia, and New Zealand
. On the return voyage, Idaho embarked gallant Commander
John Rodgers
and his seaplane crew after their attempt to fly to Hawaii, arriving San Francisco, California
on 24 September.
For the next six years, Idaho operated out of San Pedro, California, on training and readiness operations off California and in the Caribbean Sea
. She sailed from San Pedro on 7 September 1931 for the East Coast, entering Norfolk Navy Yard on 30 September for modernization. The earlier 3 in (76.2 mm) anti-aircraft
guns were replaced by eight 5 in (127 mm)/25 cal guns. The veteran battleship also received better armor, "blister" antisubmarine protection, better machinery, and tower masts during this extensive overhaul, and was readied for many more years of useful naval service. After completion on 9 October 1934, the ship conducted shakedown in the Caribbean before returning to her home port, San Pedro on 17 April 1935.
As war clouds gathered in the Pacific, the fleet increased the tempo of its training operations. Idaho carried out fleet tactics and gunnery exercises regularly until arriving with the battle fleet at Pearl Harbor
on 1 July 1940. The ship sailed for Hampton Roads
on 6 June 1941 to perform Atlantic neutrality patrol, a vital part of US policy in the early days of the European fighting. She moved to Iceland
in September to protect American advance bases and was on station at Hvalfjörður
when the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
on 7 December catapulted America into the war.
, and arrived at San Francisco, California, via Norfolk, Virginia
, and the Panama Canal on 31 January 1942. She conducted additional battle exercises in California waters and out of Pearl Harbor until October 1942, when she entered Puget Sound Navy Yard to be regunned. The original secondary battery of 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns was removed to make room for anti-aircraft machine guns. Upon completion of this work, Idaho again took part in battle exercises, and sailed on 7 April 1943 for operations in the bleak Aleutian Islands. There she was flagship of the bombardment and patrol force around Attu
, where she gave gunfire support to the United States Army
landings on 11 May. During the months that followed, she concentrated on Kiska
, culminating in an assault on 15 August. The Japanese were found to have evacuated the island in late July, thus abandoning their last foothold in the Aleutians.
Idaho returned to San Francisco on 7 September to prepare for the invasion of the Gilbert Islands
. Moving to Pearl Harbor, she got underway with the assault fleet on 10 November and arrived off Makin Atoll on 20 November. She supported the fighting ashore with accurate gunfire support and antiaircraft fire, remaining in the Gilberts until sailing for Pearl Harbor on 5 December.
Next on the Pacific timetable was the invasion of the Marshall Islands
, and the veteran battleship arrived off Kwajalein
early on 31 January 1944 to soften up shore positions. Again, she hurled tons of shells into Japanese positions until 5 February, when the outcome was one of certain victory. After replenishing at Majuro
, she bombarded other islands in the group, then moved to Kavieng, New Ireland for a diversionary bombardment on 20 March.
Idaho returned to the New Hebrides
on 25 March, and after a short stay in Australia arrived Kwajalein with a group of escort carriers on 8 June. From there, the ships steamed to the Marianas
, where Idaho began a pre-invasion bombardment of Saipan
on 14 June. With the landing assault underway on 15 June, the battleship moved to Guam
for bombardment assignments. As the American fleet destroyed Japanese carrier air power in the Battle of the Philippine Sea
from 19-21 June, Idaho protected the precious transport area and reserve convoys. After returning to Eniwetok from 28 June to 9 July, the ship began preinvasion bombardment of Guam on 12 July, and continued the devastating shelling until the main assault eight days later. As ground troops battled for the island, Idaho stood offshore providing vital support until anchoring at Eniwetok on 2 August.
The ship continued to Espiritu Santo
and entered a floating dry dock on 15 August for repairs to her "blisters". After landing rehearsals on Guadalcanal
in early September, Idaho moved to Peleliu
on 12 September and began bombarding the island, needed as a staging base for the invasion of the Philippines
. Despite the furious bombardment, Japanese entrenchments gave assault forces stiff opposition, and the battleship remained off Peleliu until 24 September providing the all-important fire support for advancing Marines
. She then sailed for Manus
and eventually to Bremerton, Washington
, where she arrived for needed repairs on 22 October. The 5 in (127 mm)/25 cal guns were replaced by 10 5 in (127 mm)/38 cal guns in single enclosed mounts. This was followed by battle practice off California.
Idahos mighty guns were needed for the next giant amphibious assault on the way to Japan. She sailed from San Diego on 20 January 1945 to join a battleship group at Pearl Harbor. After rehearsals, she steamed from the Marianas on 14 February for the invasion of Iwo Jima
. As Marines stormed ashore on 19 February, Idaho was again blasting enemy positions with her big guns, and fired star shells at night to illuminate the battlefield. She remained off Iwo Jima until 7 March, when she underway for Ulithi
and the last of the great Pacific assaults - Okinawa.
Idaho sailed on 21 March as part of Rear Admiral Deyo's Gunfire and Covering Group and flagship of Bombardment Unit 4. She arrived offshore on 25 March and began silencing enemy shore batteries and pounding installations. The landings began on 1 April, and as the Japanese made a desperate attempt to drive the vast fleet away with kamikaze
attacks, Idahos gunners shot down numerous planes. In a massed attack on 12 April, the battleship shot down five kamikazes before suffering damage to her port blisters from a near-miss. After temporary repairs, she sailed 20 April and arrived at Guam five days later.
The veteran of so many of the landings of the Pacific quickly completed repairs and returned to Okinawa on 22 May to resume fire support. Idaho remained until 20 June, then sailed for battle maneuvers in Leyte Gulf
until hostilities ceased on 15 August.
Idaho made her triumphal entry into Tokyo Bay
with occupation troops on 27 August, and was anchored there during the signing of the surrender onboard the on 2 September. Four days later she began the long voyage to the East Coast of the United States, steaming via the Panama Canal to arrive at Norfolk on 16 October. She decommissioned on 3 July 1946 and was placed in reserve until sold for scrap on 24 November 1947 to Lipsett, Incorporated, of New York City.
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...
to be named for the 43rd state
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
. Her keel was laid down by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation of Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
. She was 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 30 June 1917 sponsored by Miss Henrietta Amelia Simons, granddaughter of Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
Governor Moses Alexander
Moses Alexander
Moses Alexander was the second elected Jewish governor of a US state , serving as the 11th Governor of Idaho from 1915 until 1919. He was Idaho's first and so far only Jewish Governor....
; and 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 24 March 1919, Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
Carl Theodore Vogelgesang
Carl Theodore Vogelgesang
Carl Theodore Vogelgesang was a United States Navy rear admiral and Navy Cross recipient. He was the first U.S...
in command.
Inter-War period
Idaho sailed on 13 April 1919 for shakedown training out of Guantanamo BayGuantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on of land and water at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the oldest overseas...
, and after returning to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
received President of Brazil
President of Brazil
The president of Brazil is both the head of state and head of government of the Federative Republic of Brazil. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the Brazilian Armed Forces...
Epitácio Pessoa
Epitácio Pessoa
Epitácio Lindolfo da Silva Pessoa was a Brazilian politician and jurist, and president of the republic between 1919 and 1922, when Rodrigues Alves could not take office due to illness after being elected in 1918...
for the voyage to Rio de Janeiro
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...
. Departing on 6 July with her escort, the battleship arrived Rio on 17 July. From there she set course for the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
, arriving Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
, in September to join the Pacific Fleet. She joined other dreadnoughts in training exercises and reviews, including a Fleet Review by President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
on 13 September. In 1920, the battleship carried Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels was a newspaper editor and publisher from North Carolina who was appointed by United States President Woodrow Wilson to serve as Secretary of the Navy during World War I...
and the Secretary of the Interior
United States Secretary of the Interior
The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...
(either Franklin K. Lane or John B. Payne) on an inspection tour of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
.
Upon her return from Alaska on 22 July 1920, Idaho took part in fleet maneuvers off the 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...
coast and as far south as Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. She continued this important training until 1925, taking part in numerous ceremonies on the West Coast during the interim. Two of the original 14 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns were removed in 1922. Idaho took part in the fleet review held by President Warren Harding in Seattle shortly before his death in 1923. The battleship sailed on 15 April 1925 for Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
, participated in war games until 1 July, and then got underway for Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
, Australia, and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. On the return voyage, Idaho embarked gallant Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
John Rodgers
John Rodgers (naval officer, World War I)
John Rodgers was an officer in the United States Navy and an early aviator.-Biography:Rodgers was the great-grandson of Commodores Rodgers and Perry. He was born in Washington, D.C. and graduated from the Naval Academy in 1903...
and his seaplane crew after their attempt to fly to Hawaii, arriving San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
on 24 September.
For the next six years, Idaho operated out of San Pedro, California, on training and readiness operations off California and in the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
. She sailed from San Pedro on 7 September 1931 for the East Coast, entering Norfolk Navy Yard on 30 September for modernization. The earlier 3 in (76.2 mm) anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
guns were replaced by eight 5 in (127 mm)/25 cal guns. The veteran battleship also received better armor, "blister" antisubmarine protection, better machinery, and tower masts during this extensive overhaul, and was readied for many more years of useful naval service. After completion on 9 October 1934, the ship conducted shakedown in the Caribbean before returning to her home port, San Pedro on 17 April 1935.
As war clouds gathered in the Pacific, the fleet increased the tempo of its training operations. Idaho carried out fleet tactics and gunnery exercises regularly until arriving with the battle fleet at Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
on 1 July 1940. The ship sailed for Hampton Roads
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...
on 6 June 1941 to perform Atlantic neutrality patrol, a vital part of US policy in the early days of the European fighting. She moved to Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
in September to protect American advance bases and was on station at Hvalfjörður
Hvalfjörður
Hvalfjörður is situated in the west of Iceland between Mosfellsbær and Akranes. The fjord is approximately 30 km long and 5 km wide....
when the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
on 7 December catapulted America into the war.
World War II
Idaho and sister ship departed Iceland two days after Pearl Harbor to join the Pacific FleetUnited States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
, and arrived at San Francisco, California, via Norfolk, Virginia
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....
, and the Panama Canal on 31 January 1942. She conducted additional battle exercises in California waters and out of Pearl Harbor until October 1942, when she entered Puget Sound Navy Yard to be regunned. The original secondary battery of 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns was removed to make room for anti-aircraft machine guns. Upon completion of this work, Idaho again took part in battle exercises, and sailed on 7 April 1943 for operations in the bleak Aleutian Islands. There she was flagship of the bombardment and patrol force around Attu
Attu Island
Attu is the westernmost and largest island in the Near Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, making it the westernmost point of land relative to Alaska and the United States. It was the site of the only World War II land battle fought on the incorporated territory of the United States ,...
, where she gave gunfire support to the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
landings on 11 May. During the months that followed, she concentrated on Kiska
Kiska
Kiska is an island in the Rat Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska located at . It is about long and varies in width from - Discovery :...
, culminating in an assault on 15 August. The Japanese were found to have evacuated the island in late July, thus abandoning their last foothold in the Aleutians.
Idaho returned to San Francisco on 7 September to prepare for the invasion of the Gilbert Islands
Gilbert Islands
The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...
. Moving to Pearl Harbor, she got underway with the assault fleet on 10 November and arrived off Makin Atoll on 20 November. She supported the fighting ashore with accurate gunfire support and antiaircraft fire, remaining in the Gilberts until sailing for Pearl Harbor on 5 December.
Next on the Pacific timetable was the invasion of the Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
, and the veteran battleship arrived off Kwajalein
Kwajalein
Kwajalein Atoll , is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands . The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island. English-speaking residents of the U.S...
early on 31 January 1944 to soften up shore positions. Again, she hurled tons of shells into Japanese positions until 5 February, when the outcome was one of certain victory. After replenishing at Majuro
Majuro
Majuro , is a large coral atoll of 64 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. The atoll itself has a land area of and encloses a lagoon of...
, she bombarded other islands in the group, then moved to Kavieng, New Ireland for a diversionary bombardment on 20 March.
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
on 25 March, and after a short stay in Australia arrived Kwajalein with a group of escort carriers on 8 June. From there, the ships steamed to the Marianas
Mariana Islands
The Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...
, where Idaho began a pre-invasion bombardment of Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
on 14 June. With the landing assault underway on 15 June, the battleship moved to Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
for bombardment assignments. As the American fleet destroyed Japanese carrier air power in the Battle of the Philippine Sea
Battle of the Philippine Sea
The Battle of the Philippine Sea was a decisive naval battle of World War II which effectively eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invasion of the Mariana Islands during the Pacific War...
from 19-21 June, Idaho protected the precious transport area and reserve convoys. After returning to Eniwetok from 28 June to 9 July, the ship began preinvasion bombardment of Guam on 12 July, and continued the devastating shelling until the main assault eight days later. As ground troops battled for the island, Idaho stood offshore providing vital support until anchoring at Eniwetok on 2 August.
The ship continued to Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....
and entered a floating dry dock on 15 August for repairs to her "blisters". After landing rehearsals on Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
in early September, Idaho moved to Peleliu
Peleliu
Peleliu is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu forms, along with two small islands to its northeast, one of the sixteen states of Palau. It is located northeast of Angaur and southwest of Koror....
on 12 September and began bombarding the island, needed as a staging base for the invasion of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Despite the furious bombardment, Japanese entrenchments gave assault forces stiff opposition, and the battleship remained off Peleliu until 24 September providing the all-important fire support for advancing 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...
. She then sailed for Manus
Manus Island
Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest island of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth largest island in Papua New Guinea with an area of 2,100 km², measuring around 100 km × 30 km. According to the 2000 census, Manus Island had a...
and eventually to Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 38,790 at the 2011 State Estimate, making it the largest city on the Olympic Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerton Annex of Naval Base Kitsap...
, where she arrived for needed repairs on 22 October. The 5 in (127 mm)/25 cal guns were replaced by 10 5 in (127 mm)/38 cal guns in single enclosed mounts. This was followed by battle practice off California.
Idahos mighty guns were needed for the next giant amphibious assault on the way to Japan. She sailed from San Diego on 20 January 1945 to join a battleship group at Pearl Harbor. After rehearsals, she steamed from the Marianas on 14 February for the invasion of Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
. As Marines stormed ashore on 19 February, Idaho was again blasting enemy positions with her big guns, and fired star shells at night to illuminate the battlefield. She remained off Iwo Jima until 7 March, when she underway for Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
and the last of the great Pacific assaults - Okinawa.
Idaho sailed on 21 March as part of Rear Admiral Deyo's Gunfire and Covering Group and flagship of Bombardment Unit 4. She arrived offshore on 25 March and began silencing enemy shore batteries and pounding installations. The landings began on 1 April, and as the Japanese made a desperate attempt to drive the vast fleet away with kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
attacks, Idahos gunners shot down numerous planes. In a massed attack on 12 April, the battleship shot down five kamikazes before suffering damage to her port blisters from a near-miss. After temporary repairs, she sailed 20 April and arrived at Guam five days later.
The veteran of so many of the landings of the Pacific quickly completed repairs and returned to Okinawa on 22 May to resume fire support. Idaho remained until 20 June, then sailed for battle maneuvers in Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf is a body of water immediately east of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, adjoining the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, at . The Gulf is bounded on the north by the island of Samar, which is separated from Leyte on the west by the narrow San Juanico Strait, and on the south by...
until hostilities ceased on 15 August.
Idaho made her triumphal entry into Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
with occupation troops on 27 August, and was anchored there during the signing of the surrender onboard the on 2 September. Four days later she began the long voyage to the East Coast of the United States, steaming via the Panama Canal to arrive at Norfolk on 16 October. She decommissioned on 3 July 1946 and was placed in reserve until sold for scrap on 24 November 1947 to Lipsett, Incorporated, of New York City.