USS Iowa
Kearsage-class
Illinois-class
Part of the Kearsage-class consisting of the Kearsage and Kentucky designed for coastal defence purposes, preceded by the USS Iowa and succeeded by the Illinois-class. Building authorized on 2 March 1895, contract awarded on 2 January 1896, laid down at Newport News Shipbuilding Company, Newport News, Virginia, USA on 30 June 1896, launched by Christine Bradley on 24 March 1898, commissioned on 15 May 1900, decommissioned on 28 August 1909, modernisation completed in 1911, recommissioned on 23 June 1915, training ship 1917-1918, decommissioned on 29 May 1920, stricken on 27 May 1922 and sold to Dravo Corporation to be broken up on 24 March 1923. Building costs 4.998.119,43 US dollars.
Displacement 10.470 tons and as dimensions 114,0 (over all) x 22,009 x 7,16 metres or 375.4 x 72.2½ x 23.6 feet. The very low freeboard caused seriously in bad weather conditions while her guns could not be used then. The machinery consisted of 2 vertical triple expansion steam engines and Scotch 5 boilers supplying via 2 shafts 10.000(design)-12.179 (trials) ihp allowing a speed of 16 (design)-16.897 knots. The crew numbered 586-587 men (included 38 officers). The armour consisted of a 12,7cm/5”-41,9cm/15.6” thick belt, 25,4cm/10” (forward)-30,5cm/12” (aft) thick bulkheads, 12,7cm/5” (aft)-7cm/2.75” (flat on belt) thick deck with the barbettes, main gun turrets, secondary gun turrets and conning tower protected by respectively 31,8/12.5”-38,1cm/15”, 15”/38,1cm-43,2cm/17”, 15,2cm/6”-27,9cm/11” and 25,4cm/10”. The armament consisted of 2x2-33cm/13” /35 cal guns, 4-20,3cm/8” 35 /cal guns, 14-12,7cm/5” /40 cal guns, 20-5,7cm/2.2”/6pd guns, 8-3,7cm/1.5”/1pd guns, 4-0,76cm/.30” machineguns and 4-45,7cm/18” torpedo tubes.
