You may have heard the phrase, “It’s hard to take a West Virginian down.” While I cannot necessarily attest to that, I can say that its even harder to take down our battleships, if the U.S.S. West Virginia is any indication. During the bombing of Pearl Harbor, a torpedo struck the ship and many others. After months underwater, she was salvaged and refitted, living on to rejoin the fight.

The U.S.S. West Virginia was a Colorado Class battleship built in 1920-21 in Newport News. She was was launched in November of 1921 and commissioned on December 7, 1923.
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In 1940, after winning four medals and participating in several tactical development operations, she was transferred to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii.
On December 7, 1941, Japanese bombers launched a surprise attack on the military base.
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The photograph above was taken from a Japanese plane during the attack. The explosion in the center is the first torpedo striking the U.S.S. West Virginia.

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Like many of the battleships at Pearl Harbor, the U.S.S. West Virginia took heavy damage. It was struck by six torpedoes and two bombs.
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The photograph above shows the U.S.S. West Virginia engulfed in smoke and flames. Eventually, she sunk to the bottom of the bay, seemingly lost forever. But she was not lost. In fact, she would fight many more battles against her Japanese attackers during the war.
After more than five months under the water, the ship was rescued from the bay floor on May 17, 1942, and repairs began.
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During the repairs, the bodies of 66 soldiers were discovered. They had apparently survived for nearly a week underwater inside trapped air bubbles in the lower decks - air bubbles which eventually dissipated.
Once repairs were complete, the U.S.S. West Virginia was recommissioned and rejoined the war. She went on to fight in the invasion of the Philippines, the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Battle of Iwo Jima, and the Battle of Okinawa.
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Then, on September 2, 1945 - less than a month after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki - the U.S.S. West Virginia was present for the official surrender of the Japanese army to American forces, ending World War II.

On January 9, 1947, after 26 years in service, the U.S.S. West Virginia was decommissioned. If you happen to be driving in the northern panhandle, you may find yourself on the U.S.S. West Virginia Memorial Highway, dedicated by Governor Cecil Underwood on the 59th anniversary of Pearl Harbor in 2000.
Her service may have ended, but her legacy lives on.

You can learn more details of the U.S.S. West Virginia’s incredible story here.

Have you heard of the U.S.S. West Virginia? Feel free to comment below and join the discussion.

To learn more about west Virginia, check out these 15 things you didn’t know about the history of the state.

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