Ships
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Modern Era – May 20, 2016
ZUMWALT
On May 20, 2016, Bath Iron Works delivered USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000), the most advanced ship in the world. Zumwalt generates enough 4160 volt power to electrify a small city…
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Post War America
The Postwar Years
As WWII ended, BIW faced a familiar situation, as a sudden surplus of military and commercial ships led to an inevitable plunge in shipbuilding orders. Although construction of many wartime…
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Lead Shipyard for DDG-51 Destroyers
In 1985, BIW won the competition for detail design and construction of USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51), the Lead Ship for the Navy’s most capable class of AEGIS guided missile…
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Katahdin Serving Tray
A serving tray that depicts the harbor defense ram USS Katahdin, which launched in 1893 at Bath Iron Works. Courtesy of Maine Maritime Museum.
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Oliver Hazard Perry Ashtray
This ashtray depicts USS Oliver Hazard Perry (FFG-7), which launched at BIW in 1976. The ashtray was owned by Lt. Cmdr. Stanley L. French, USN (Ret.), who worked his way…
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Ranger Keel Lead Fragment
In the 1937 America’s Cup, Bath-built J-class racing yacht Ranger defeated the British challenger Endeavour II 4-0, winning by over 17 and 18 minutes in the first two races. Pictured…
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Modern Era
USS Mason Coin
This coin commemorates the last launch down inclined ways at Bath Iron Works. USS Mason (DDG 87) launched on June 23, 2001. Courtesy of Maine Maritime Museum.
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Into the Guided Missile Era and the 1960’s
BIW’s first ships of this era were the Dewey and Preble, hulls 333 and 334, ordered in late 1956. Members of the 10-ship Farragut class, these large destroyers were officially…
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Modern Era, Post War America
Modernization and Commercial Shipbuilding
In the late 1960s, the Navy adopted a new approach for the DX Program, a large class of destroyers meant to replace aging WWII-era ships in the fleet. Rather than…
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Notable Sea Trials of the Past
More than a century ago there was keen interest in a ship’s speed, and strong competition to build the fastest vessel – even if only a fraction of a knot…
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The DDG 51 Program and Today’s Shipyard
In 1991, BIW celebrated the delivery and commissioning of USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51), BIW Hull 450, the first of the Aegis destroyers. As shipbuilders took pride in delivery of…
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Great Depression and WW II
The Racing Sloop Ranger
The racing sloop Ranger, Hull 172, stands out among the list of trawlers and destroyers built at BIW in the late 1930’s. Ranger was built to defend the America’s Cup,…
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Modern Era – 1975
USS Belknap Collision
In November of 1975 Belknap was involved in a collision with the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy while the ships were maneuvering at night in the Mediterranean Sea. The damage…
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Great Depression and WW II
USS Buchanan (DD 131) in WWII
USS Buchanan, BIW Hull 78, launched on Jan. 2, 1919 and delivered 18 days later, was one of 11 Wickes and Clemson class “flush deck” destroyers built at BIW during…
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Great Depression and WW II
Career of the USS O’Bannon (DD-450)
USS O’Bannon, BIW Hull 191, was BIW’s second Fletcher-class destroyer, launched on Feb. 19, 1942, along with her sister ship Nicholas, Hull 190. The new destroyer was delivered in Boston…
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Great Depression and WW II, Modern Era, Post War America
Career of the USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58)
The future USS Samuel B. Roberts, BIW Hull 394, was launched on Dec. 8, 1984. At the time of her launch the frigate was probably most notable as BIW’s second-to-last…
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Post War America
Into the 1950s – Modernizing the Shipyard and Supporting the Fleet
After building a variety of experimental ships in the immediate post-WWII years, BIW won several contracts for larger groups of ships in the early 1950s. In an era of tight…
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From Frigates to Cruisers to Destroyers
As the FFG program wound down, the Navy was preparing for construction of the next large surface combatants, the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers. The Ticonderogas were a version of the…
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Great Depression and WW II
BIW Ships During the Pearl Harbor Attack
Bath Iron Works built several of the ships that played a role in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941: three Clemson-class destroyers USS Preble (DD-345), USS…
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Origin of the Serapis flag on the crest of the USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53)
During the Revolutionary War, U.S. Navy Captain John Paul Jones captured British frigate Serapis and sailed to the neutral Dutch port of Texel. Britain said Jones was a pirate since…
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Modern Era – 2015
BIW Operating Crew performs nighttime rescue of Captain in a medical emergency
On Dec. 7, 2015, the first of the Zumwalt-class destroyers left BIW for its initial sea trials, a memorable trip that made international headlines when five days in, the BIW…
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HSTC-1
Thirty seven years ago this month, BIW delivered HSTC-1 – at the time, the largest barge built in the United States. Built for the California & Hawaiian Sugar Co., the…
