- Kearsarge class battleship
Kearsarge-class battleships were battleships built for the
United States Navy at the beginning of the 20th century. Its first ship, the USS|Kearsarge|BB-5|6, was commissioned in 1900. The lead ship of this class, USS "Kearsarge", was the only United States battleship not named for a state.hip history
This class of battleships was the first in the U.S. Navy to carry the unusual double-decker
turret layout both forward andaft . This arrangement suffered from firing interference between the 13 inch primary guns and the 8 inch secondary guns, and was not used frequently afterwards. Also, this class is distinguishable as the last to sport so-called "cheesebox" turret shapes. These turrets were descendants of the first-generation USS|Monitor| design byJohn Ericsson during theAmerican Civil War . These "cheesebox" turrets mounted their guns far in the back of the turret, requiring a large vulnerable opening to accommodate gun elevation and severely limiting the maximum elevation of the weapons. Subsequent ships used box-shaped "British-style" turrets, which were far easier to protect and far more efficient.Both ships of this class were removed from the Navy as fighting vessels by the
Washington Naval Treaty , after which USS|Kentucky|BB-6|2 was scrapped, and "Kearsarge" was converted into a floating shipyard crane.Ships in class
USS|Kearsarge|BB-5|6
* Designation: BB-5 (AB-1 from
5 August 1920 )
* Laid down:30 June 1896
* Launched:24 March 1898
* Commissioned:20 February 1900
* Operations:North Atlantic Fleet ,Great White Fleet ,World War I training operations
* Victories: None
* Fate: Decommissioned10 May 1920 for conversion to a crane ship, renamed "Crane Ship 1"6 November 1941 USS|Kentucky|BB-6|6
* Designation: BB-6
* Laid down:30 June 1896
* Launched:24 March 1898
* Commissioned:16 May 1900
* Operations:Asiatic Fleet ,Great White Fleet ,World War I training operations
* Victories: None
* Fate: Decommissioned29 May 1920 and sold for scrap23 January 1924 See also
*
List of battleships of the United States Navy
*List of ship launches in 1898
*List of ship commissionings in 1900
*List of ship decommissionings in 1920
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