Battleships USS New Jersey and Richelieu Hampton Roads 7 December 1943
USS New Jersey at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
USS New Jersey and USS Hancock move through rough weather in the Pacific on November 1944
USS New Jersey
Anti-aircraft gun Bofors 40mm on quadruple mount
Launch of USS New Jersey
USS New Jersey Ulithi Atoll
A port side view of the USS New Jersey
USS New Jersey at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Launching Battleship USS New Jersey, 7 December 1942
An American battleship of the Iowa class, also known as the “Big J” The second ship of the U.S. Navy to be named in honor of the state of New Jersey. The ship received the largest number of battle stars for combat missions of all Iowa-class battleships and was the only battleship to provide gunfire support to U.S. troops during the Vietnam War.
During the Second World War “New Jersey” fired at the targets on Guam and Okinawa, and also provided cover for the aircraft carriers during the fighting in the Marshall Islands . During the Korean War, “New Jersey” performed patrol duty off the coast of North Korea, and after returning to the United States, she was withdrawn to the reserve and transferred to the United States Reserve Fleet, better known as the mothball fleet. However, soon after, in 1968, he was briefly reinstated and sent to Vietnam with the task of supporting US infantry with artillery fire. In 1969, he was again withdrawn to the reserves. She was again returned to service in the 1980s as part of the Navy’s 600-ship plan, when she was modernized and adapted to carry missiles. In 1983, battleship participated in an American military operation during the Lebanese Civil War.
For the last time USS “New Jersey” was withdrawn from service in 1991 with the achievement of nineteen battle stars for combat missions during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the civil war in Lebanon and service during the Gulf War, and the Navy Unit Commendation. After a brief stay in reserve, the unit was transferred to the Home Port Alliance in Camden, New Jersey, where she has served as a museum ship since 15 October 2001.