U.S. Department of Defense
11/07/2024 | News release | Archived content
Ship in Dry Dock Damaged During Pearl Harbor Attack Quickly Refloated
The battleship USS Pennsylvania was in dry dock for maintenance at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on Dec. 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked just after 8 a.m.
USS Pennsylvania
The battleship USS Pennsylvania sails the Atlantic Ocean near New York, May 31, 1934.
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USS Pennsylvania
Commissioned: 1916
Place Built: Newport News Shipbuilding, Va.
Early Cruises: The battleship did not participate in World War I but did serve in the Atlantic and Pacific fleets on routine training exercises leading up to World War II.
Decommissioned: 1946
Legacy: The battleship's bell is on display at Pennsylvania State University and two of the ship's 14-inch guns are at the Pennsylvania Military Museum in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania. The Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Pennsylvania was commissioned in 1989 and is still in service.
The ship's crew, who had been on shore, were quickly called back to the ship to man anti-aircraft guns and fight fires.
Multiple Japanese bombers targeted the ship, resulting in damage, fires and the loss of 32 sailors and Marines.
Pearl Harbor
Wrecked destroyers, cruisers and battleships are shown in Dry Dock No. 1 at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, Hawaii, soon after the end of the Japanese air attack on Dec. 7, 1941.
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Following the attacks, repairs were quickly made, and on Dec. 12, 1941, the ship was refloated and steamed to Hunter's Point, San Francisco, California, for repairs that were completed on Jan. 12, 1942.
World War II battles the Pennsylvania participated in were the Aleutian Islands, Marshalls and Marianas campaigns and operations in the Philippines.
On Aug. 12, 1945, the battleship was seriously damaged by a Japanese aerial torpedo off the island of Okinawa and was the last major Navy ship to be hit during World War II.
Battleship Formation
The battleship USS Pennsylvania leads other battleships and cruisers in Lingayen Gulf, Philippines, Jan. 1, 1945.
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In 1946, the Pennsylvania was designated as a target ship for the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll. Two atomic explosions failed to sink the ship, which was then towed to Kwajalein, where it was scuttled in 1948.
Guns Blazing
The battleship USS Pennsylvania shells Guam, July 21, 1944.
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