Construction
Maryland was one of four dreadnought battleships of the Colorado class to be constructed. Her keel was laid down on 24 April 1917 by Newport News Shipbuilding Company of Newport News, Virginia. She was launched on 20 March 1920, and sponsored by Mrs. E. Brook Lee daughter-in-law of U.S. Senator from Maryland Blair Lee; she was commissioned on 21 July 1921, with Captain C.F. Preston in command. She was the third ship named for the state of Maryland, the first Maryland was a sloop commissioned in 1799 and the second Maryland was an armored cruiser commissioned in 1905.
Maryland had an overall length of 624 feet (190 m). She had an extreme beam of 97.5 feet (29.7 m) and a mean draft of 30.5 feet (9.3 m). She displaced 32,000 tonnes (31,000 long tons; 35,000 short tons). Her armor was 18 inches (460 mm) at its maximum thickness. Her designed speed was 21 knots. Her crew complement consisted of 58 officers and 1,022 men.
Maryland's main battery consisted of eight 16 in (406 mm)/45 caliber Mark 6 in four double turrets (two in a superfiring pair forward, two in a superfiring pair mounted aft of the main superstructure) that were capable of firing 2,700 pounds (1,200 kg) armor-piercing (AP) Mark 8 shells. Her secondary battery consisted of twelve 5"/51 caliber guns as well as eight 3"/50 caliber guns. She was also armed with a pair of 21 inches (530 mm) submerged torpedo tubes. She was outfitted with a new type of seaplane catapult and the first 16 in (410 mm) guns mounted on a U.S. ship.
Read more about this topic: USS Maryland (BB-46)
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