USS Tennessee (BB-43) 1944 - Design and Construction

Design and Construction

The Tennessee's keel was laid down on 14 May 1917 at the New York Naval Shipyard. She was launched on 30 April 1919, sponsored by Miss Helen Lenore Roberts, daughter of Tennessee governor Albert H. Roberts, and commissioned on 3 June 1920, Captain Richard H. Leigh in command.

The Tennessee and her sister ship, the California, were the first American battleships built to a "post-Jutland" hull design. As a result of extensive experimentation and testing, her underwater hull protection was much greater than that of previous battleships, and both her main and secondary batteries had fire-control systems. The Tennessee class, and the three ships of the Colorado class that followed, were identified by two heavy cage masts supporting large optical fire-control systems. This feature was to distinguish the "Big Five" from the rest of the battleship force until World War II. Since the Tennessee's 14 in (360 mm) turret guns could be elevated as high as 30 degrees rather than only to the 15 degrees of the earlier U.S. Navy battleships, her heavy guns could fire an additional 10,000 yards (9,100 meters). Because the battleships were beginning to carry airplanes to spot long-range gunfire, Tennessee's ability to shoot "over the horizon" had a practical value.