 USSIllinois, the lead ship of the class | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders | |
| Operators |  United States Navy |
| Preceded by | Kearsarge class |
| Succeeded by | Maine class |
| Built | 1896–1901 |
| In commission | 1900–1920 |
| Completed | 3 |
| Retired | 3 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Pre-dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 375 ft 4 in (114.40 m)loa |
| Beam | 72 ft 3 in (22.02 m) |
| Draft | 23 ft 6 in (7.16 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 16knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) |
| Crew | 536 |
| Armament |
|
| Armor |
|
TheIllinois class was a group of threepre-dreadnought battleships of theUnited States Navy commissioned at the beginning of the 20th century. The three ships,Illinois,Alabama, andWisconsin, were built between 1896 and 1901. They were transitional ships; they incorporated advances over preceding designs, including the first moderngun turrets for themain battery, and newrapid-firing secondary guns, but they were also the last American battleships to feature dated technologies likefire-tube boilers andHarvey armor. They were armed with amain battery of four 13-inch (330 mm) guns in two twin turrets, supported by a secondary battery of fourteen 6 in (150 mm) guns. The ships had a designed speed of 16knots (30 km/h; 18 mph), though they exceeded that speed by a significant margin.
The three ships served in a variety of roles and locations throughout their career.Illinois served with theNorth Atlantic Squadron and theEuropean Squadron early in her career, whileWisconsin served as theflagship of thePacific Fleet and then in theAsiatic Fleet.Illinois andAlabama started the cruise of theGreat White Fleet in December 1907 from the east coast of the United States, though by the time they had rounded South America and stopped in California,Alabama was forced to leave the fleet due to machinery problems.Wisconsin joined the fleet there and continued on with it to the conclusion of its tour in February 1909. All three ships were modernized in 1909 and served in theAtlantic Fleet for a short time.
By 1912, all three ships had been reduced to the reserve fleet and were primarily employed astraining ships. They continued in this role duringWorld War I, training men to operate the machinery of warships and transports for the war effort. They were all decommissioned by 1920.Illinois was loaned to theNew York Naval Militia and was converted into a floating arsenal. RenamedPrairie State in 1941, she was eventually sold for scrapping in 1956.Wisconsin was broken up for scrap in 1922, whileAlabama was expended as atarget ship in September 1921 in bombing tests with theUS Army Air Service.
Design work on what became theIllinois class began on 25 March 1896, whenRear AdmiralJ. G. Walker convened a board to consider future battleship designs. At the time, the only modern battleship in service was the low-freeboardIndiana; the high-freeboard battleshipIowa and the low-freeboardKearsarge class were under construction. As the Navy had little experience with modern battleships, the question settled on whether to repeat one of the low-freeboard designs, which were suitable for coast defense, to build anotherIowa, or to request a new design altogether. The Walker Board determined that another coastal battleship design would be imprudent, since the United States had long coastlines and therefore the new ships would need to have betterseakeeping qualities than theIndiana orKearsarge designs.[1]
War games conducted by the fleet led the board to specify adraft of no more than 23 feet (7 m) to allow the ships to enter the comparatively shallow ports of the Gulf Coast. This limitation had a significant effect on the design; to meet it, weight would have to be kept to a minimum, which prevented copying theIowa design outright, unless the main armament was reduced from 13-inch (330 mm) to 12 in (305 mm) guns. The board was unwilling to make that concession, and so a new design would be required. In addition, the board had determined that the 8 in (203 mm) secondary gun was unnecessary, since though it could penetrate the thinnercasemate armor on enemy battleships, it could not deliver a high-explosive shell through the armor. Instead, the board decided that a new 6 in (152 mm)rapid-firing gun would be superior. It would also simplify the ammunition supply, since there would be only one secondary caliber.[1]
The board determined that the armor layout of theKearsarge design was sufficient and adopted it without change for the new ships. They discarded thesuperposed turrets of theKearsarges, though, by mounting most of the secondary guns in a batteryamidships. A new turret design for the main battery was adopted; instead of the old, roundMonitor-style turrets of earlier ships, theIllinois' design featured a balanced turret with sloped armor on the face. Since it was balanced, it would prevent the ship fromlisting when the battery was trained to eitherbroadside, as was the case with theIndianas.[2] TheUS Congress authorized three new battleships on 10 June 1896; theBureau of Construction and Repair issued its requests for tenders from the various American shipbuilding companies twelve days later. Contracts for the new ships, to be namedIllinois,Alabama, andWisconsin, were awarded on 28 August.[1]
The ships of theIllinois class were 368 feet (112 m)long at the waterline and 374 ft (114 m)long overall. They had abeam of 72 ft 3 in (22.02 m) and adraft of 23 ft 6 in (7.16 m). Theydisplaced 11,565long tons (11,751 t) as designed and up to 12,250 long tons (12,450 t) atfull load. As built, they were fitted with heavymilitary masts, but these were replaced bycage masts in 1909. They had a crew of 40 officers and 496 enlisted men. The crew increased to 690–713 later in her career. Steering was controlled with a singlerudder, and the ships had a turning radius of 362 yards (331 m) at a speed of 12knots (22 km/h; 14 mph). The ships' transversemetacentric height was 2.7 feet (0.82 m).[3][4]
The ships were powered by two-shafttriple-expansionsteam engines rated at 10,000indicated horsepower (7,500 kW). Steam was provided by eight coal-firedfire-tube boilers that were trunked into a pair offunnels that were arranged side-by-side. They were the last ships of the US Navy to use fire-tube boilers; subsequent designs changed to more efficient and lighterwater-tube boilers. The engines generating a top speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph), though they exceeded their rated performance on trials, withIllinois reaching 17.45 knots (32.32 km/h; 20.08 mph) on 12,757 ihp (9,513 kW). The ships could store up to 1,270 long tons (1,290 t) of coal, which allowed them to steam for 4,190nautical miles (7,760 km; 4,820 mi) at a cruising speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[3][5][4]
The ships were armed with amain battery of four13 in (330 mm)/35 caliber guns[a] guns in two twingun turrets on thecenterline, one forward and aft.[3] These guns fired a 1,130-pound (510 kg) shell with a 500 lb (230 kg)brown powder charge, though this was replaced with a 180 lb (82 kg)smokeless powder charge, which produced amuzzle velocity of 2,000 feet per second (610 m/s).[6] The gun had a range of 12,500 yards (11,400 m), though Navy regulations prescribed opening fire at 8,000 yards (7,300 m); even this was beyond the range at which gunners at the time could reliably hit. At a range of 2,000 yards (1,800 m), the shells could penetrate 20 inches (510 mm) of steel. The gun was slow-firing, requiring 320 seconds between shots.[7] The guns were mounted in Mark IV turrets, which had a range of elevation of 15 degrees to -5 degrees. The turrets required the guns to return to 2 degrees for loading. Ammunition storage was 60 shells per gun.[8]
Thesecondary battery consisted of fourteen6 in (152 mm)/40 caliber Mark IV guns, which were placed incasemates in thehull. They fired a 105 lb (48 kg) shell at a muzzle velocity of 2,150 ft/s (660 m/s).[3][9] For close-range defense againsttorpedo boats, they carried sixteen57 mm (2.2 in) 6-pounder guns mounted in casemates along the side of the hull and six37 mm (1.5 in) 1-pounder guns. These guns fired 6.03 lb (2.74 kg) and 1.088 lb (0.494 kg) shells, respectively.[3][10] As was standard forcapital ships of the period, theIllinois class carried four18 in (457 mm)torpedo tubes in above-water, hull mounted torpedo launchers.[3] They were initially equipped with the Mark II Whitehead design, which carried a 140-pound (64 kg)warhead and had a range of 800 yards (730 m) at a speed of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph).[11]
All three ships were protected withHarvey armor; they were the last ships of the US Navy to rely entirely on Harvey steel. The ships' mainarmored belt was 16.5 in (419 mm) thick over the magazines and the machinery spaces and reduced to 9.5 in (241 mm) on the lower edge. It gradually reduced to 4 in (102 mm) toward the bow. Transversebulkheads that were 12 in (305 mm) thick connected both ends of the central belt and the main batterybarbettes. The ships' armored deck was 2.75 in (70 mm) thick on the flat portion, with 3 in (76 mm) thick sloped sides forward; the sloped sides aft were 5 in (127 mm) thick. Theconning tower had 10 in thick sides with a 2 in (51 mm) thick roof.[4]
The main battery gun turrets had 14-inch (356 mm) thick faces and 3 in (76 mm) thick roofs, and the supporting barbettes had 15 in (381 mm) of armor plating on their exposed sides. The portion of the barbettes that were behind the belt armor were reduced to 10 in (254 mm). Armor that was 6 in (152 mm) thick protected the secondary battery, and the lower half of the casemate armor was backed by coal bunkers, which increased the level of protection. Anti-splinter bulkheads that were 1.5 in (38 mm) thick were placed between each of the secondary guns to reduce the possibility of one shell from disabling multiple guns.[4]
| Name | Builder[3] | Laid down[3] | Launched[3] | Commissioned[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| USS Illinois (BB-7) | Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Company | 10 February 1897 | 4 October 1898 | 16 September 1901 |
| USS Alabama (BB-8) | William Cramp & Sons | 2 December 1896 | 18 May 1898 | 16 October 1900 |
| USS Wisconsin (BB-9) | Union Iron Works | 9 February 1897 | 26 November 1898 | 4 February 1901 |
From their commissioning,Alabama andIllinois served with theNorth Atlantic Squadron. Both ships made visits to Europe during their early careers, andIllinois served as theflagship of the European Squadron for a short time in 1902. She accidentally ran aground outsideOslo, Norway, in 1902 and returned to the North Atlantic Squadron in January 1903.Wisconsin, having been built on the west coast of the United States, instead served in thePacific Fleet as its flagship. In 1903, she was transferred to theAsiatic Fleet, and remained there until late 1906 when she returned to California.[b]
Illinois andAlabama steamed with theGreat White Fleet on its world cruise that started in December 1907.Wisconsin joined the fleet after it had rounded South America in July 1908;Alabama had to leave the fleet owing to engine damage that required repairs.[b]Alabama was detached along with the battleshipMaine; the two ships continued the journey independently and on a greatly shortened itinerary. The rest of the ships then crossed the Pacific and stopped in Australia, the Philippines, and Japan before continuing on through the Indian Ocean. They transited theSuez Canal and toured the Mediterranean before crossing the Atlantic, arriving bank in Hampton Roads on 22 February 1909 for anaval review with PresidentTheodore Roosevelt.[15]
The three ships were modernized after their return in 1909; from 1912, they were placed in reserve commission and employed astraining ships formidshipmen from theUS Naval Academy andnaval militia units. They continued in this role throughWorld War I, which the United States entered on 6 April 1917. The ships trainedengine room personnel, armed guards for merchant ships, and other specialties.[b] Following the German surrender in November 1918, most of the battleships of the Atlantic Fleet were used as transports to ferry American soldiers back from France. TheIllinois-class ships were not so employed, however, owing to their short range and small size, which would not permit sufficient additional accommodations.[16]
TheIllinois-class ships served with the fleet only briefly after the war, still as training ships. By 1920, they had all been decommissioned.Wisconsin was sold for scrapping in January 1922 andbroken up for scrap.Illinois was instead converted into a floating armory for theNew York Naval Militia; renamedPrairie State in 1941, she served in this role until 1956, when she too was sold for scrap.Alabama met a more spectacular end as atarget ship for bombing experiments conducted with theUS Army Air Service in September 1921.[b] She was hit with several bombs, includingwhite phosphorus weapons and 2,000-pound (910 kg)armor-piercing bombs, before eventually foundering.[17]
