×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Small Arms Warships & Submarines Military Ranks Military Pay Scale (2024) Special Forces

USS Alabama (BB-8)


Pre-Dreadnought Battleship


United States | 1900



"USS Alabama BB-8 ended her days as a target under the bombs of the United States Army Air Service in 1921."

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one sea-going vessel design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for USS Alabama (BB-8).
8 x Fire-tube boiler units feeding 2 x Vertical triple-expansion steam engines developing 10,000 horsepower to 2 x Shafts under stern.
Propulsion
16.0 kts
18.4 mph
Surface Speed
Structure
The bow-to-stern, port-to-starboard physical qualities of USS Alabama (BB-8).
536
Personnel
Complement
374.9 ft
114.27 meters
O/A Length
72.4 ft
22.07 meters
Beam
25.0 ft
7.62 meters
Draught
11,565
tons
Displacement
Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of USS Alabama (BB-8).
4 x 13" (330mm) /35 caliber main guns
14 x 6" (152mm) /40 caliber guns
16 x 2.2" (6-pdr; 57mm) guns
4 x 1.5" (1-pdr; 37mm) guns
4 x 18" (460mm) torpedo tubes
Ships-in-Class (3)
Notable series variants as part of the USS Alabama (BB-8) family line as relating to the Illinois-class group.
USS Illinois (BB-7); USS Alabama (BB-8); USS Wisconsin (BB-9)
Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 11/20/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

USS Alabama (BB-8) was a turn-of-the-century "Pre-Dreadnought" battleship constructed for the United States Navy (USN) during the pre-World War 1 (1914-1918) period. The type served as the second entry into the three-strong Illinois-class of fighting ships led by USS Illinois (BB-7) and bookended by USS Wisconsin (BB-9). USS Alabama was laid down by William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia on December 1st, 1896 and launched to sea on May 18th, 1898, being formally commissioned for service into the USN on October 16th, 1900.

As completed, USS Alabama was given a full displacement rating of 12,450 tons with an overall length reaching 374 feet, a beam of 72.2 feet, and a draught of 23.5 feet. Power was derived from 8 x Fire-tube boiler units feeding 2 x Vertical triple-expansion steam engines developing 10,000 horsepower to 2 x Shafts under stern. This gave the warship a straight-line speed of 16 knots.

Aboard was an operating crew numbering 536 personnel.

Armament consisted of 4 x 13" (330mm) /35 caliber main guns supported by 14 x 6" (152mm) /40 caliber secondary guns and 16 x 6-pounder (57mm) tertiary guns. Beyond this were 6 x 1-pounder (37mm) guns and 4 x 18" (450mm) torpedo tubes.

Armor protection reached up to 16.5" at the belt, 14" at the turrets, 15" at the barbettes, 6" at the casemate, and 10" at the conning tower.

All told, the warship was well-armored and armored with useable ocean-going speeds and a large crew.

The aforementioned "Pre-Dreadnought" classification stemmed from the Alabama being a "mixed-gun" warship design appearing before the British-originated HMS Dreadnought splashed onto the naval scene. HMS Dreadnought appeared in 1906 and completely redrew the accepted scheme for frontline / capital battleships, namely due to her uniformed main battery as well as full reliance on steam power - proving both powerful and fast by standards of the day while being relatively well-armored for survivability. The appearance of this particular warship spurred Europe into a naval arms race which preceded (and contributed greatly to) World War 1.

The Illinois-class was conceived of as an interim measure while work was underway on more advanced, modern designs. As a result, the three warships included a mix of then-modern, as well as earlier, qualities including fire-tubed boiler units and dated armor protection schemes. More modern features included new gun turret designs and vastly improved performance specs - making their investment worthwhile heading into the new century.

During her early going, USS Alabama took part in peacetime training in North Atlantic Waters for the period of seven years and made stops to allied ports across Europe and the Mediterranean. With the "Great White Fleet" arranged to showcase American naval power to the world, Alabama became part of this formidable flotilla as it traversed the globe from December of 1907 to February of 1909 - however, issues with her machinery forced her to remain stateside, unable to complete the journey.

From 1909 until 1912, the warship was given an extensive refit / modernization to keep her a viable floating deterrent for the foreseeable future. In the post-rebuild years, she was assigned as a training platform for the Atlantic Reserve Fleet and remained at this post at the outbreak of World War 1 in Europe during July 1914.

USS Alabama did not see combat action in The Great War and thus managed to survive the period unscathed. Her sea-going tenure ended on May 7th, 1920 when she was formally decommissioned from service. After being struck from the Naval Register, she was stripped of her war-making usefulness and subsequently used as a bomb target for U.S. Army Air Service aviators in September of 1921. What remained of her following this was sold for scrap in March of 1924 - an unceremonious finale to a critical USN warship of the pre-war period.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.
Operators
Global operator(s) of the USS Alabama (BB-8). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national naval warfare listing.
National flag of the United States

[ United States ]
1 / 2
Image of the USS Alabama (BB-8)
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.
2 / 2
Image of the USS Alabama (BB-8)
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Going Further...
USS Alabama (BB-8) Pre-Dreadnought Battleship appears in the following collections:
HOME
NAVAL WARFARE INDEX
WARSHIPS BY COUNTRY
SHIPBUILDERS
COMPARE WARSHIPS
SHIPS BY CONFLICT
SHIPS BY TYPE
SHIPS BY DECADE
WWI NAVAL WARFARE
Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Scale Military Ranks of the World U.S. Department of Defense Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols Breakdown U.S. 5-Star Generals List WWII Weapons by Country World War Next

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons. Special Interest: RailRoad Junction, the locomotive encyclopedia.


©2024 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2024 (21yrs)