USS Maryland (BB-46)

[Robert9670]

USS Maryland (BB-46) was a Colorado - class battleship, and the third ship to be named in honor of the seventh state.  Maryland was ordered on December 5, 1916 and laid down on April 24, 1917.  Maryland was launched on March 20, 1920 and was commissioned on July 21, 1921.  Maryland would sail to Australia, New Zealand and Brazil as the flagship of the fleet during the 1920s.  During the late 1920s and 1930s, Maryland conducted tireless training operations to maintain readiness.  During the 1930s, she would conduct numerous patrols.  In 1940, Maryland changed her base of operations to Pearl Harbor.  On December 7, 1941 Maryland was moored along Ford Island in Battleship Row, with Oklahoma to port, connected by lines and a gangway.  To her fore was California, and Tennessee and West Virginia were astern.  Nevada and Arizona were further aft.  Many of Maryland's crew were preparing for shore leave or eating breakfast when the Japanese attack began.  As the first Japanese aircraft appeared and explosions rocked the outboard battleships, Maryland's bugler blew general quarters.

 

Seaman Leslie Short, who was addressing Christmas cards near his machine gun, quickly brought the first of his ship's guns into play, and shot down one of two torpedo bombers which had just released against Oklahoma.  Since Maryland was inboard of Oklahoma, and thus protected from the initial torpedo attack, Maryland was able to bring all of her anti-aircraft guns into action.  The devastating initial attack sank Oklahoma however, and she capsized quickly.  Many of Oklahoma's surviving men climbed aboard Maryland to assist her with anti-aircraft defenses.  Maryland would not escape the attack unscathed, however.  She was struck by two bombs which detonated low on her hull, the first bomb struck the forecastle awning and made a hole about 12 ft (3.7 m) by 20 ft (6.1 m).  The second bomb exploded after entering the hull at the 22 ft (6.7 m) water level at Frame 10.  This hit caused flooding and increased the draft forward by 5 ft (1.5 m).  Maryland continued to fire however, and after the attack, sent firefighting parties to assist her sister ships, especially attempting to rescue survivors from the capsized Oklahoma.  The men continued to man the AA defenses in case the Japanese returned to attack again.  In all, only two officers and two men were killed in the attack.

 

The Japanese erroneously announced that Maryland had been sunk, but on December 30, Maryland entered Puget Sound Navy Yard for repairs just behind Tennessee.  While there, two of her original twelve 5 in/51 cal guns were removed and the 5 in/25 cal guns were replaced by an equal number of 5 in/38 cal dual-purpose guns.  Over the course of several months, Maryland was repaired and overhauled and she received new fighting equipment.  Maryland's repairs were finally completed on February 26, 1942.  She was sent back into action in June 1942, being the first ship damaged at Pearl Harbor to return to duty.  Maryland played a supporting role in the Battle of Midway, and stood by on security, awaiting call from other ships if she was needed.  In late 1942, Maryland and her sister-ship Colorado steamed for the Fiji Islands and patrolled against Japanese incursion.  The two battleships would conduct frequent sweeps for Japanese forces during this duty.

 

Maryland would participate in the Battle of Tarawa in November 1943, and she helped soften up Japanese defenses ahead of the landings.  As the Marines landed, Maryland provided cover fire and helped eliminate several enemy machine gun nests.  Her scout plane began to cover the progress of the Marines' assault, with Maryland providing fire support.  The plane was damaged and the pilot wounded in this action.  In December 1943, Maryland returned to Pearl Harbor, and after a brief stopover there, she departed for San Francisco for repairs.  In January 1944, Maryland participated in the Battle of Kwajalein Atoll, providing fire support.  She fired so much during the course of the battle that the liners in the guns of Turret No. 1 were damaged, putting it out of action for the rest of the day.  On February 15, 1944 she departed with a task unit of carriers and destroyers for Bremerton Naval Yard where she underwent another overhaul, with her guns being replaced.

 

Maryland participated in the Battle of Saipan, and bombarded the island's defenses ahead of the assault.  Once the invasion of Saipan commenced on June 15, Maryland provided fire support for the landing forces.  Maryland was damaged on June 22 when a Mitsubishi G4M3 "Betty" medium bomber flew low over the still-contested Saipan hills and found Maryland and Pennsylvania.  The Japanese plane dropped a torpedo which struck Maryland and opened a large hole in her portside bow.  The attack killed two men.  In 15 minutes Maryland was underway for Eniwetok, and from there she steamed for Pearl Harbor, escorted by two destroyers.  With an around-the-clock effort by the shipyard workers, Maryland was repaired in 34 days, and she departed on August 13, 1944.  On September 15, 1944 Maryland was among the ships which provided fire support to the Marines landing on Peleliu.  During the invasion of the Philippines in October, Maryland bombarded Leyte ahead of the invasion scheduled for October 20.  After the beaches were secured, she took up position to guard against Japanese counterattack by sea.  On October 24, Maryland, California, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, and West Virginia, along with several cruisers, destroyers, and PT boats were sent to protect Surigao Strait.  On October 25, as the Japanese battleships Fuso and Yamashiro, the heavy cruiser Mogami, and four destroyers advanced into the strait, the waiting American ships launched a deadly ambush on the two Japanese battleships, and pounded them with torpedoes and gunfire.  Torpedoes launched by the destroyers sank Fuso, and continued attacks sank Yamashiro.  After the battle Maryland patrolled the southern approaches to Surigao Strait until October 29, then departed for the Admiralty Isles for brief replenishment.  On November 16, she resumed patrol duty around Leyte, protecting the landing forces from continued Japanese air attacks.  On November 29, Maryland was struck by a kamikaze aircraft as she was covering Denver.  The aircraft crashed into Maryland between Turret No. 1 and Turret No. 2, piercing the forecastle, main, and armored decks, causing extensive damage and setting Maryland alight.  31 men were killed and 30 were wounded in the attack, and the medical department was destroyed.  Maryland reached Pearl Harbor on December 18, and was extensively repaired and refitted over the next several months.

 

Maryland departed on March 4, 1945 and joined the 5th Fleet and TF 54, which was preparing for the invasion of Okinawa.  The fleet departed for Okinawa on March 21.  During the Battle of Okinawa, Maryland provided fire support for the US Tenth Army until April 7, when she steamed north with TF 54 to intercept a Japanese surface force, which included the battleship Yamato.  However, the Yamato and several of her escorting ships were sunk by planes from the Fast Carrier Task Force.  At dusk, a kamikaze loaded with a 250 kg bomb struck Maryland on the top of Turret No. 3 from starboard.  The resulting explosion wiped out the 20mm gun mounts and caused a large fire.  Ammunition from the 20mm guns ignited from the heat and caused further casualties.  10 men were killed, 37 were injured, and 6 were missing following this attack.  Maryland remained on station for the next week and continued to provide fire support despite several more air raids.  Turret No. 3 was damaged but still usable, but remained silent for the remainder of the mission.  On April 14, Maryland departed the firing line at Okinawa and escorted several retiring transports.  They steamed via the Mariana Islands and Guam to Pearl Harbor, and Maryland reached Puget Sound Navy Yard on May 7, for extensive overhaul.  All of her 5 in guns were removed and replaced by sixteen 5 in/38 cal guns in new twin mounts.  Turret No. 3 was repaired and the crew quarters were improved.  Repairs were completed in August, and Maryland left for tests and training runs just as Japan surrendered, ending the war.

 

Maryland participated in Operation Magic Carpet, and during the remaining months of 1945, she made five voyages between the west coast and Pearl Harbor, returning more than 8,000 servicemen to the United States.  Maryland arrived at Seattle on December 17, completing her Operation Magic Carpet duty.  She entered Puget Sound Naval Shipyard on April 15, 1946 and was placed in commission in inactive reserve on July 16.  Maryland would never again receive the call to duty, and she was decommissioned on April 3, 1947 at Bremerton.  She remained there as a unit of the Pacific Reserve Fleet.  On July 8, 1959, Maryland was sold for scrap.  Maryland would receive 7 battle stars for her World War II service.

 

USS Maryland (BB-46) underway in 1935

 

Career

 

Name:  USS Maryland

 

Namesake:  Maryland

 

Ordered:  December 5, 1916

 

Laid Down:  April 24, 1917

 

Launched:  March 20, 1920

 

Commissioned:  July 21, 1921

 

Decommissioned:  April 3, 1947

 

Nickname:  "Old Mary" and "Fighting Mary"

 

Honors and awards:  7 battle stars

 

Fate:  Sold for scrap

 

General characteristics

 

Class and type:  Colorado - class battleship

 

Displacement:  32,600 long tons (33,100 t)

 

Length:  624 ft (190 m)

 

Beam:  97 ft 6 in (29.72 m)

 

Draft:  30 ft 6 in (9.30 m)

 

Speed:  21.17 knots (24.36 mph, 39.21 km/h)

 

Complement:  1,080 officers and men

 

Armament:  

   8 x 16 in (410 mm)/45 cal guns

   12 x 5 in (130 mm)/51 cal guns

   4 x 3 in (76 mm)/50 cal guns

   2 x 21 in (530 mm) torpedo tubes

 

Armor:  

Belt:  8-13.5 in (20-34 cm)

Barbettes:  13 in (33 cm)

Turret face:  18 in (46 cm)

Turret sides:  9-10 in (23-25 cm)

Turret top:  5 in (13 cm)

Turret rear:  9 in (23 cm)

Conning tower:  11.5 in (29 cm)

Decks:  3.5 in (8.9 cm)

 

Aircraft carried:  4 x floatplanes

 

Aviation facilities:  2 x catapults

 

Sources used:  Wikipedia

[Robert9670]

Hull of Maryland under construction c. 1917

 

Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes (at left) and Admiral Hilary P. Jones, Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet on board Maryland in August 1922 during her cruise to Rio de Janeiro to participate in the Brazilian Centennial Exposition

[Robert9670]

Maryland alongside the capsized Oklahoma during the attack on Pearl Harbor, as West Virginia burns in the background

 

Aftermath of the Pearl Harbor attack, with Maryland near the top of the photo, shown with several other sunken battleships

[Robert9670]

Maryland in February 1942, after the completion of her repairs

[Robert9670]

Maryland in March 1944

 

Maryland in 1944

[Robert9670]

Maryland in Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, July 10, 1944, showing torpedo damage she sustained during the Battle of Saipan

[Robert9670]

Maryland at sea in early 1945

 

Maryland in Puget Sound Navy Yard in August 1945, after the end of World War II

[cmcpaulinc]

Wow, she's been through alot in her years. can't wait to proudly sail er across the sea  :tongue:

[Haguro]

(+1) Robert.

 

Nice find on the torpedo damage.  Looks big enought to drive a car through.

[Wunderwaffen1945]

nice photos

[Sampsonite]

USS Maryland from deck of USS Virginia

Nice posting! I added this one for you....

[Krieg]

HOLY COW that's a big torpedo hole  :Smile_amazed:

[Robert9670]

I'd like to use the Colorado - class battleship in-game, maybe on the test server.

[Robert9670]

Rear Admiral Harry W. Hill on board USS Maryland during Tarawa bombardment, 1943

http://www.navsource...s/01/014625.jpg

[Robert9670]

Maryland in April 1944

http://www.navsource...s/01/014603.jpg