Highlighting the history of the Battleship North Carolina on its 80th birthday :: WRAL.com – WRAL.com

The battleship celebrates its 80th birthday on Friday --the US Navy commissioned it on April 9th, 1941.

>> IT HAS BEEN >>> THERE IS A VERY BIG BIRTHDAY TOMORROW BUT THE HUGE BATTLESHIP NORTH CAROLINA TURNS 80 YEARS OLD. THE NAVY COMMISSIONED IT ON APRIL 9, 1941. >> TONIGHT WE FIND OUR TAR HEEL TRAVELER IN WILMINGTON. >> COMMISSIONED IN 1941 IN WILMINGTON SINCE 1961, THE BATTLESHIP NORTH CAROLINA ATTRACTS ABOUT A QUARTER MILLION VISITORS A YEAR. >> IT IS A SYMBOL AND IT IS A HUGE SYMBOL. 729 FEET LONG, 45,000 TONS AND IT IS A LIVING RELIC. IT IS A LIVING PIECE OF HISTORY THAT WAS THERE. IT WAS IN ALL THE MAJOR BATTLES OF WORLD WAR II IN THE PACIFIC. >> 15 MAJOR BATTLES. >> OKINAWA, IWO JIMA, SHE WAS THERE. SHE SUFFERED CASUALTIES, SHE WAS HIT BY ENEMY FIRE. >> AND IT STRUCK BY A JAPANESE TORPEDO. >> FOR MEN WERE KILLED DOWN BELOW. >> ONE WAS SEEN FLYING THROUGH THE AIR AND WAS LOST AT SEA. >> BELOW DECK. >> IT IS ALL BUSINESS. >> THE SLEEPING COMPARTMENTS. >> NOT A LOT OF PRIVACY. >> IT WAS PROBABLY 90 DEGREES BELOW SHIP WHILE IT SAILED THE SOUTH PACIFIC. >> VERY SWEATY, HARD WORK. >> THESE 10 MEN DIED IN BATTLE ABOARD THE BATTLESHIP AND THEIR NAMES ARE LISTED. >> THE OVER 10,000 N. CAROLINIANS WHO PERISHED IN WORLD WAR II. >> THE SHIPS HALL OF HONOR. >> SHE IS DESIGNED TO FIGHT AND WIN. SHE IS DESIGNED TO TAKE HITS AND KEEP FIGHTING. >> 16 INCH GUNS. >> THEY COULD HURL A SHELL THE WEIGHT OF A SMALL CAR BEING SENT 20 MILES DOWNRANGE WITH PRETTY GOOD ACCURACY. >> THE SHIP WAS HIGH-TECH FOR IT'S TIME. >> THIS SHIP SHOT DOWN 24 JAPANESE AIRPLANES THAT ARE CONFIRMED THAT SHE ACTUALLY SHOT DOWN MANY MORE THAN THAT. >> THE BATTLESHIP'S ARRIVAL IN WILMINGTON OCTOBER 1961. THE SHIP WOULD HAVE BEEN SCRAPPED IF NOT FOR THE STATES VIGOROUS EFFORTS TO SAVE IT. >> THERE WAS THE FAMOUS CAMPAIGN FOR THE SCHOOLCHILDREN TO CONTRIBUTE THEIR NICKELS, DIMES AND QUARTERS AND THOSE KIDS RAISED TO SOMETHING LIKE $375,000 WHICH IN 1960 WAS REAL MONEY. AS THEY SWUNG HER AROUND, HER STERNNESS SMACKED INTO A FLOATING RESTAURANT CALLED THE ARK. >> ANOTHER CASUALTY THOUGH THE ARK SURVIVED. >> I THINK IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT THAT THINGS LIKE THIS STILL EXIST. HISTORY SADLY MOST PEOPLE HAVE FORGOTTEN. >> THE BATTLESHIP NORTH CAROLINA IS A SIGNIFICANT REMINDER. >> THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO KNOW ABOUT THIS BATTLESHIP IS IT IS THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA'S WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL.

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Highlighting the history of the Battleship North Carolina on its 80th birthday :: WRAL.com - WRAL.com