U.S.S. Oklahoma
The U.S.S. OKLAHOMA was built at Camden, New Jersey, was launched in 1914, and was commissioned in 1916. The ship saw service in Ireland during World War I and escorted President Wilson home from the Versailles Conference in 1919. Over the next few years the ship served in both the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets. The OKLAHOMA's most notable action occurred during a Midshipman Cruise to Europe in 1936.
The OKLAHOMA was sent to Spain at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War with orders to evacuate American citizens. The ship rescued over 400 persons. On December 7, 1941, at the beginning of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the ship was moored outboard of the USS MARYLAND. The OKLAHOMA, hit by as many as 7 torpedoes, rolled over and sank in a few minutes. 429 of her officers and crew went down with the ship.
The OKLAHOMA was raised in 1943, decommissioned in 1944, and sank while being towed to the United States in 1947.
Text provided by the Oklahoma Museum of History
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