Service history USS Wyoming (BB-32)

1 service history

1.1 world war i
1.2 inter-war period
1.3 world war ii

service history

wyoming laid down @ william cramp , sons shipyard in philadelphia on 9 february 1910, , launched on 25 may 1911. completed year , 4 months later, on 25 september 1912. after commissioning, final fitting-out work completed @ new york navy yard on next 3 months. proceeded join rest of fleet @ hampton roads on 30 december, became flagship of rear admiral charles j. badger, commander of atlantic fleet. wyoming left hampton roads on 6 january 1913, bound caribbean. visited panama canal, nearing completion, , participated in fleet exercises off cuba. ship in port in chesapeake bay on 4 march.

wyoming steaming east river in 1912

wyoming took part in gunnery drills off virginia capes, , on 18 april, entered drydock @ new york navy yard repairs, lasted until 7 may. joined rest of fleet maneuvers off block island lasted 7–24 may. during maneuvers, ship s machinery proved troublesome, necessitated repairs @ newport 9–19 may. @ end of month, in new york harbor, participate in ceremonies dedication of monument armored cruiser maine, had been destroyed in havana harbor on 15 february 1898. on 4 june, wyoming steamed annapolis, took on crew of naval cadets naval academy summer midshipman cruise.

after returning cadets annapolis on 24–25 august, wyoming took part in gunnery , torpedo training on next few weeks. on 16 september, returned new york repairs, lasted until 2 october. ran full–power sea trials before proceeding virginia capes, participated in round of fleet maneuvers. next, departed european goodwill cruise on 26 october. toured mediterranean sea, stopping in valletta, malta, naples, italy, , villefranche, france. departed france on 30 november, , arrived in new york on 15 december. there, went dock @ new york navy yard periodic repairs, lasted until january 1914. on 6th, wyoming left hampton roads, took on coal in preparation annual fleet maneuvers in caribbean.

the exercises lasted 26 january 15 march, , fleet based out of guantanamo bay naval base in cuba. wyoming , rest of fleet proceeded tangier sound additional training, including gunnery drills. on 3 april, wyoming left fleet overhaul in new york, lasted until 9 may. returned hampton roads, took on contingent of troops , ferried them veracruz, arriving on 18 may. had intervened in mexican revolution , occupied veracruz safeguard american citizens there. wyoming cruised off veracruz autumn of 1914, @ point returned virginia capes exercises. on 6 october, entered new york repairs; work lasted until 17 january 1915.

wyoming proceeded hampton roads, , cuba, joined fleet annual maneuvers off cuba. these lasted until april, when returned us. participated in more exercises off block island on next several months, , on 20 december, returned new york overhaul. on 6 january 1916, emerged dry dock, , proceeded caribbean. on 16 january, reached culebra, puerto rico, visited port-au-prince, haiti on 27 january. entered port @ guantanamo next day, , took part in fleet maneuvers until 10 april, after returned new york. round of dockyard work took place 16 april 26 june. after returning service, wyoming took part in more maneuvers off virginia capes remainder of year. left new york on 9 january 1917, bound cuban waters exercises lasted through mid-march. left cuba on 27 march, , cruising off yorktown, virginia when declared war on germany on 6 april, formally entering world war i.

world war i

wyoming operated out of chesapeake bay area next 7 months, training engine-room personnel expanding american fleet. on 25 november, battleship division 9 (batdiv 9), @ time comprised wyoming, new york, delaware, , florida, departed us, bound britain. batdiv 9 reinforce british grand fleet @ base in scapa flow. american ships reached scapa on 7 december, became 6th battle squadron of grand fleet. american ships drilled british counterparts december 1917 february 1918.

battleship division 9 steaming scapa flow

on 6 february, wyoming , other american battleships undertook first wartime operation, escort convoy stavanger, norway, in company 8 british destroyers. on 7 february, lookouts on several ships, including wyoming, thought spotted german u-boats attacking ships torpedoes, though these proved incorrect reports. convoy reached norway 2 days later; return trip scapa flow took 2 days. wyoming patrolled in north sea next several months, watching sortie german high seas fleet. on 30 june, wyoming , rest of 6th battle squadron covered minelaying operation in north sea; operation lasted until 2 july. during operation, jumpy crewmen again incorrect reported u-boat sightings, , wyoming opened fire on supposed targets. on return voyage, 6th battle squadron joined convoy hz40, returning norway.

on 14 october, new york collided u-boat , sank it. collision nevertheless damaged screws, forced rodman transfer flag new york wyoming while former in dock repair. on 21 november, after armistice germany ended war, wyoming , allied fleet of 370 warships met high seas fleet in north sea , escorted internment in scapa flow. on 12 december, wyoming, flagship of rear admiral william sims, new batdiv 9 commander, left britain france. there, rendezvoused off brest, france george washington, carrying president woodrow wilson peace negotiations in paris. wyoming returned britain 2 days later before departing us, arriving in new york on 25 december. remained there through new year, , on 18 january 1919, became flagship of batdiv 7, flying flag of rear admiral robert coontz.

inter-war period

wyoming transiting panama canal on 26 july 1919

on 1 february, wyoming steamed out of new york join annual fleet maneuvers off cuba, before returning new york on 14 april. on 12 may, left port guide group of navy curtiss nc flying boats made first aerial transatlantic crossing. battleship in port 31 may. took on crew of midshipmen training cruise off chesapeake bay , virginia capes. after finishing cruise, wyoming entered dry dock @ norfolk navy yard on 1 july modernization service in pacific. secondary battery reduced sixteen 5-inch guns. after emerging shipyard, became flagship of batdiv 6 of newly designated pacific fleet. on 19 july, wyoming , rest of pacific fleet departed east coast, bound pacific. ships transited panama canal later month, , reached san diego, california on 6 august.

on 9 august, wyoming moved san pedro, based next month. went puget sound navy yard overhaul lasted until 19 april 1920. on 4 may, in san pedro , resumed normal routine of fleet maneuvers off california coast. on 30 august, wyoming left california hawaii, participated in more training exercises through september. returned san diego on 8 october more maneuvers off west coast. ship left san francisco on 5 january 1921 cruise central , south american waters; trip culminated in valparaíso, chile, reviewed president of chile arturo alessandri palma on 8 february. wyoming returned north, arriving in puget sound repairs on 18 march.

on 2 august, wyoming in balboa in canal zone, picked rear admiral rodman , commission traveling peru new york. arrived in new york on 19 august , rejoined atlantic fleet. there, became flagship of admiral hilary p. jones, commander of atlantic fleet. wyoming spent next 3 , half years on normal routine of winter fleet exercises off cuba, followed summer maneuvers off east coast of us. throughout period, served flagship of vice admirals john mcdonald, newton mccully, , josiah mckean in scouting fleet. in summer of 1924, conducted midshipman training cruise europe, , stopped in torbay, great britain, rotterdam in netherlands, gibraltar, , azores. in january , february 1924, navy conducted fleet problem ii, iii, , iv concurrently. during fp iii maneuvers, wyoming, sister arkansas, , 2 florida-class battleships stood in new colorado-class battleships. during fp iv portion of maneuvers, wyoming served in blue force, represented navy. attacked black aircraft, umpires judged wyoming s anti-aircraft fire , escort fighters provided langley have defended fleet.

on 14 february 1925, wyoming again passed through panama canal return pacific. there, joined fleet exercises off california. proceeded hawaii, remained late april june. visited san diego on 18–22 june, , returned east coast via panama canal, arriving in new york on 17 july. cruise cuba , haiti followed, after wyoming returned new york navy yard overhaul lasted 23 november 26 january 1926. during period, then-commander william f. halsey, jr. came aboard ship s executive officer; served on wyoming until 4 january 1927.

wyoming underway in march 1930

wyoming returned routine of winter maneuvers in caribbean , training cruises in summer. in late august, ship went philadelphia extensive modernization. old coal-fired boilers replaced new oil-fired models , anti-torpedo bulges added improve resistance underwater damage. work completed 2 november, after wyoming conducted shakedown cruise cuba , virgin islands. in philadelphia on 7 december, , 2 days later, returned post flagship of scouting fleet, flying flag of vice admiral ashley robertson.

wyoming spent next 3 years in scouting fleet. conducted training cruises naval reserve officer training corps (nrotc) cadets various universities, including yale, harvard, georgia tech, , northwestern. these cruises went throughout atlantic, including gulf of mexico, azores, , nova scotia. while on 1 of these cruises in november 1928, wyoming picked 8 survivors wrecked steamship ss vestris; took them norfolk on 16 november. on 19 september 1930, wyoming transferred scouting force batdiv 2, became flagship of rear admiral wat t. cluverius. served here until 4 november, when withdrawn front-line service , became flagship of training squadron, flying flag of rear admiral harley h. christy. thereafter, conducted training cruise gulf of mexico.

after returning philadelphia on 1 january 1931, wyoming placed on reduced commission. under terms of london naval treaty signed previous year, wyoming demilitarized. during demilitarization process, anti-torpedo bulges, side armor, , half of main battery guns removed. in service may, , on 29th, took on crew of midshipmen annapolis training cruise europe, began on 5 june. while en route on 15 june, wyoming rescued disabled submarine o-12 , took under tow queenstown, northern ireland. while in europe, stopped in copenhagen, denmark, greenock, scotland, cadiz, spain, , gibraltar. ship in hampton roads on 13 august; while on cruise, wyoming reclassified ag-17 , reflect new role training ship.

wyoming in 1935, after conversion training ship

wyoming spent next 4 years conducting training cruises midshipmen , nrotc cadets various destinations, including european ports, caribbean, , gulf of mexico. on 18 january 1935, carried 2nd battalion, 4th marine regiment, norfolk puerto rico amphibious assault exercises. on 5 january 1937, ship left norfolk , steamed pacific via panama canal. took part in more amphibious assault exercises , gunnery drills @ san clemente island. on 18 february, during exercises, 5-inch shrapnel shell exploded being loaded 1 of guns. blast killed 6 marines , wounded eleven. wyoming steamed san pedro , transferred wounded marines hospital ship relief.

on 3 march, wyoming left los angeles, bound atlantic. reached norfolk on 23 march, served temporary flagship rear admiral wilson brown, commander of training squadron, 15 april 3 june. on 4 june, left port conduct goodwill cruise kiel, germany, arriving on 21 june. there, visited admiral graf spee. left germany on 29 june, stopping in torbay, britain, , funchal, madeira, , arrived in norfolk on 3 august. wyoming resumed training ship duties naval , merchant marine reserve units. returned norfolk navy yard overhaul lasted 16 october 14 january 1938.

wyoming performed typical routine of training cruises in atlantic through 1941. cruises included european trip in 1938; took midshipmen le havre, france, copenhagen, , portsmouth. after outbreak of world war ii in europe in september 1939, wyoming assigned naval reserve force in atlantic, alongside battleships new york, arkansas, , texas , aircraft carrier ranger. wyoming became flagship of rear admiral randall jacobs, commander of training, patrol force on 2 january 1941. in november, wyoming became gunnery training ship. first cruise in new role began on 25 november; cruising off platt s bank when received word of japanese attack on pearl harbor on 7 december.

world war ii

wyoming in april 1944

following united states entrance world war ii, wyoming performed normal duties gunnery training ship operational training command, united states atlantic fleet starting in february 1942. operated in chesapeake bay area, , frequent sightings of ship steaming around bay earned nickname chesapeake raider . wyoming busy, training thousands of anti-aircraft gunners on weapons ranging light .50 caliber (12.7 mm) guns medium-caliber 5-inch guns rapidly expanding american fleet. in war, navy briefly considered converting wyoming battleship configuration, decided against plan.

these duties continued throughout rest of war. wyoming modernized @ norfolk navy yard 12 january 3 april 1944; reconstruction removed last of 3 12-inch gun turrets, , replaced them 4 twin , 2 single enclosed mounts 5-inch/38 caliber guns. new fire control radars installed; these modifications allowed wyoming train anti-aircraft gunners modern equipment use while in combat fleet. in service in chesapeake bay 10 april. on course of war, wyoming trained estimated 35,000 gunners on 7 different types of guns: 5-inch, 3-inch, 1.1-inch, 40-millimeter, 20-millimeter, .50 caliber, , .30 caliber (7.62 mm) weapons. due extensive use gunnery training ship, claimed distinction of firing more ammunition other ship in fleet during war.

wyoming, 30 april 1945

wyoming finished gunnery training duties in chesapeake area on 30 june 1945, when left norfolk new york navy yard, further modifications. work completed 13 july, after left casco bay. there, joined composite task force 69 (ctf 69), under command of vice admiral willis a. lee. wyoming tasked developing tactics more engage japanese kamikaze suicide aircraft. gunners conducted experimental gunnery drills towed sleeves, drone aircraft, , radio-controlled targets. on 31 august, ctf 69 renamed operational development force, united states fleet.

wyoming continued in unit through end of war, , began used test new fire control equipment. in summer of 1946, then-ensign jimmy carter, future president of united states, came aboard part of final crew of old battleship. on 11 july 1947, wyoming put norfolk , decommissioned there on 1 august. crew transferred ex-battleship mississippi (ag-128), serving in gunnery training unit. wyoming stricken naval vessel registry on 16 september, , sold scrapping on 30 october. arrived on 5 december in new york, dismantled lipsett, incorporated.