USS Ohio (BB-12)

USS Ohio (BB-12) was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the United States Navy and the lead ship of her class. Commissioned in 1904, she served as a front-line unit in the Great White Fleet's circumnavigation of the globe and later performed training duties during World War I. The ship was decommissioned in 1922 and subsequently sold for scrap under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty.

Design and description

The design for the Maine class was a direct development of the preceding Illinois-class battleship, featuring a similar main battery of four 12-inch guns in twin gun turrets. Primary improvements included a more powerful secondary battery of sixteen 6-inch guns and the adoption of Niclausse boilers for her propulsion system. Her armor layout utilized Harvey armor, with a main belt armor that tapered from 11 inches amidships to 8 inches at the ends, designed to protect against the armor-piercing shells of the era. The ship's superstructure was arranged with two military masts and a single funnel, a configuration typical for American battleships of the period designed by the Naval War College and the Bureau of Construction and Repair.

Construction and commissioning

The contract for Ohio was awarded to the Union Iron Works shipyard in San Francisco under the authorization of the United States Congress on 4 May 1898. Her keel was laid down on 22 April 1899, and she was launched on 18 May 1901, sponsored by Miss Helen Deschler. Following fitting-out, the battleship was placed in full commission on 4 October 1904 under the command of Captain Leavitt C. Logan. Her initial assignment was with the Asiatic Squadron, departing San Francisco Bay for service in the Far East.

Service history

After a period of training and port visits in the Philippines and Japan, Ohio returned to the West Coast of the United States in 1907. She was then assigned as the flagship of the Third Division of the Great White Fleet for its historic circumnavigation, departing Hampton Roads under the command of President Theodore Roosevelt. The fleet made numerous diplomatic calls, including stops in Trinidad, Rio de Janeiro, Punta Arenas, Callao, San Diego, Los Angeles, Monterey, and Seattle, before crossing the Pacific Ocean to New Zealand, Australia, the Philippines, Japan, and China. Following the fleet's triumphant return to Hampton Roads in 1909, Ohio entered the Atlantic Fleet for routine exercises.

During World War I, Ohio served as a gunnery training ship based at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis and later at the Norfolk Navy Yard. In 1919, she was briefly used as a transport ship for the American Expeditionary Forces returning from France. Her final active service was as a submarine tender for Submarine Division 2 of the Pacific Fleet, operating from the Puget Sound Navy Yard.

Decommissioning and fate

Ohio was decommissioned at Puget Sound on 31 May 1922. Her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 27 January 1923. In compliance with the Washington Naval Treaty, which limited global capital ship tonnage, the battleship was sold for scrap on 24 March 1923 to the Moore Shipbuilding Company of Oakland, California.

Category:Maine-class battleships Category:Ships built in San Francisco Category:1901 ships