what old us navy ship should have been preserved and why?

Question

for ships built up until 1945. Our naval heritage is ill represented, we have the (est yrs) USS Constitution (1797) the USS Olympia (1892) the USS Texas (1914) and a few dozen from WWII. so what ship do you think should have been saved from the breakers? can you think of 3 or four? no choices are wrong if legitimate navy ships that where scrapped not sunk in battle or lost a sea. my first choice is the ACR-3 USS Brooklyn (1896-1921) to me the most beautiful and yet powerful cruiser of the Spanish American war that was the flag ship and prime combatant at the Battle of Santiago Cuba 3 July 1898. USS Oregon is a close 2nd, she was a museum piece but later scrapped also. 3rd would be either the USS Hartford or Kersarge of civil war fame for WWII I think the USS Nevada and USS Lexington, sad they used the hero of Pearl harbor (made a dash up the channel), and the lady lex for a-bomb experiments.

Answer 1

USS Enterprise(CV-6)- The only Yorktown Class Aircraft Carrier that survive World War Two. The Greatest Carrier of WWII

USS Saratoga (CV-3)- The only Lexington Class Aircraft Carrier that survive World War Two. Sank during the Bikini Atoll test.( Lady Lex, THE FIRST LEXINGTON CV-2, was sunk at the Coral Sea)

I would also agree on the USS Brooklyn from the Spanish-American War

I would also have to say the USS Augusta, A Northampton Class Heavy Cruiser that was also the Ship that Truman was on when he gave the final green light to drop the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima.

rawbert: Arizona never sank a second time. It was sunk on Dec, 7 1941, they later cut off the super structure off ,and later on place a memorial over it.

Thanks Paul for correcting the two first guys.

Also the CV-16 was know as "The Blue Ghost."

Answer 2

The USS Enterprise (CV-6) earned 20 battle stars in WWII, more than any other ship. She is also the only ship outside the Royal Navy to earn their highest reward, the British Admiralty Pennant. She fought in every major action except for the Battle of the Coral Sea (because she was returning from the Doolittle Raid against Japan). She received heavy damage on numerous occasions and at one point was the ONLY operational USN carrier in the Pacific. The only other ship in USN history with as long or illustrious of a carreer was USS Constitution.

I'd like to clear up some other answers.......

I don't know where Rawbert gets his info from, but it's incredibly wrong. The USS Arizona was sunk at her moorings at Pearl Harbor, was never raised, and the Arizona War Memorial was built over top of the sunken hull.

USS Lexington (CV-2) was sunk at the Battle of the Coral Sea. USS Lexington (CV-16) served until 1991. Neither was sunk at the Bikini Atoll nuclear tests (CV-3, USS Saratoga, was sunk at Bikini Atoll).

Answer 3

Lady Lex IS preserved.
in Corpus Chisti Texas.

http://www.usslexington.com/

While I was in the Navy, Lady Lex was serving as the Training Carrier at Pensacola Fl. She is now a Museum Ship in Corpus Christi Texas. Many of the scenes in the Movie "Pearl Harbor" that was of the planes taking off from the Jap Carriers were shot using the Lady Lex.

I don't know where you got your info that Lexington was used as an Atomic test target but that simply is not true.

Personally I think at least one ship of every class of ships should be preserved as part of our naval heritage. Preferably the lead ship or "Nameship" of each class unless another ship in the class has some greater specific historical event.

UPDATE:
Rawbert...
your history of the arizona is just as wrong as the askers history of the Lexington.

I guess you never heard of the Arizon Memorial. the centerpiece of the memorials to the Pearl Harbor Attack.
get a clue please before you answer next time to avoid making yourself look stupid.

http://www.arizonamemorial.org/locations/arizona-memorial-location.html

Arizona was sunk at pearl by an arial bomb the penitrated several decks and exploded her forward magazine. she sunk where she was moored on battleship row. She was NEVER raised or sent to San Francisco. She was never sunk twice. Almost half the sailors killed in the Pearl attack were killed on the Arizona. She remains undisturbed as the tomb of those that were killed that day.

Please learn a little history before opening your mouth

Answer 4

I would have to say the WW2 carrier USS Enterprise. Survivor of Midway, and countless other battles.
Second would be a tie, between the carrier USS Saratoga and the USS Nevada.

Answer 5

Rawbert - Im not sure your history on the Arizona is all there. It sits where it sank.

I would say the Cruiser Texas (it was a nuke) and a beautiful ship in it's own right. I chased her all over the pacific - i found her on her last voyage at the fueling pier in Pearl. Man what a ship

EDIT - sorry I missed the 1945 ;-P

Answer 6

USS Myles C Fox DD829. It was the best duty I had in the Navy.

Answer 7

It would have been nice to save the USS Arizona. It was sank in Pearl Harbor during WWII. It was raised and had minor repairs. Then it was shipped off to San Francisco to have it completed fixed but sank again. The only ship I know of to sink twice during WWII.

Answer 8

It is possible. It would probably be purchased from another country, so you are getting it 3rd hand. There was a WWII minesweeper that had been demilitarized and was up for sale about 20 years ago. The US tracks sales of submarines, because they don't want them to end up in the hands of drug smugglers.