USS Wisconsin (BB-64)

Wisconsin at sea, c. 1990
History
United States
Namesake	State of Wisconsin
Ordered	12 June 1940
Builder	Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Laid down	25 January 1941
Launched	7 December 1943
Commissioned	16 April 1944
Decommissioned	1 July 1948
Recommissioned	3 March 1951
Decommissioned	8 March 1958
Recommissioned	22 October 1988
Decommissioned	30 September 1991
Stricken	17 March 2006
Identification	Hull number: BB-64
Motto	"Forward for Freedom"
Nickname(s)	"Big Wisky"
Honors and awards	6 Battle Stars
Status	Museum ship at Nauticus
Badge
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Iowa-class battleship
Displacement	57,216 long tons (58,134 t) (full load)
Length	887 ft 3 in (270.4 m) (o/a)
Beam	108 ft 2 in (33 m)
Draft	37 ft 9 in (11.5 m) (full load)
Installed power	8 × Babcock & Wilcox boilers 212,000 shp (158,000 kW)
Propulsion	4 × geared steam turbines 4 × screw propellers
Speed	32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Range	15,000 nmi (28,000 km; 17,000 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement	117 officers, 1,804 enlisted men (designed)
Sensors and processing systems	1 × SK-2 early-warning radar 2 × SG surface-search radars 2 × Mk-8 fire-control radars 4 × Mk-12 fire-control radars 4 × Mk-22 height-finder radars 1 × Mk-27 fire-control radar
Armament	3 × triple 16 in (406 mm) guns 10 × twin 5 in (127 mm) DP guns 20 × quadruple 40 mm (1.6 in) AA guns 49 × single 20 mm (0.8 in) AA guns
Armor	Waterline belt: 12.1 in (307 mm) Bulkheads: 14.5 in (368 mm) Barbettes: 11.6–17.3 in (295–439 mm) Turrets: 19.5 in (495 mm) Decks: 4.75–6.2 in (121–157 mm)
General characteristics (1988)
Complement	1,515 officers and enlisted men
Sensors and processing systems	1 × AN/SPS-49 early-warning radar 1 × AN/SPS-67 surface-search radar 2 × Mk-13 fire-control radars 4 × Mk-25 fire-control radars
Electronic warfare & decoys	AN/SLQ-32 EW suite AN/SLQ-25 Nixie torpedo decoy 8 × chaff rocket launchers
Armament	3 × triple 16 in (406 mm) guns 6 × twin 5 in (127 mm) DP guns 8 × quadruple BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles 4 × quadruple RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles 4 × single 20 mm Phalanx CIWS
USS Wisconsin (BB-64)
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Virginia Landmarks Register
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Location	1 Waterside Dr., Norfolk, Virginia
Coordinates	36°50′54″N 76°17′43″W / 36.84833°N 76.29528°W / 36.84833; -76.29528
Built	1941
Architect	Bureau of Construction and Repair
Architectural style	Iowa-class battleship
NRHP reference No.	12000178[1]
VLR No.	122-5414
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	28 March 2012
Designated VLR	15 December 2011[2]

USS Wisconsin (BB-64) is an Iowa-class battleship built for the United States Navy (USN) in the 1940s and is currently a museum ship. Completed in 1944, the ship was assigned to the Pacific Theater during World War II, where she participated in the Philippines campaign and the Battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The battleship shelled the Japanese home islands shortly before the end of the war in September 1945. During the Korean War, Wisconsin shelled North Korean targets in support of United Nations and South Korean ground operations, after which she was decommissioned. She was reactivated in 1986; after a modernization program, she participated in Operation Desert Storm in January – February 1991.

Wisconsin was last decommissioned in September 1991 after spending a total of 14 years in active service. In that time, the ship earned six battle stars for service in World War II and Korea, as well as a Navy Unit Commendation for service during the January/February 1991 Gulf War. Wisconsin was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 17 March 2006, and was later donated for permanent use as a museum ship. As of 2024^[update], Wisconsin is a museum ship operated by Nauticus in Norfolk, Virginia.