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Timeline

1941

January 6: Battleship keel-laying ceremony at the Brooklyn Navy Yard

1944

January 29: Battleship christened at launch by Margaret Truman
June 11: Ship commissioned as the USS Missouri.
August: Missouri underway on Shakedown cruise
November: En route to Pacific
December 24: Moored at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

1945

February: USS Missouri underway with Task Group 58.2 in support of air strikes against Tokyo
February - March: Missouri provides support for the land invasion of Iwo Jima
March: Underway in Task Group 58.4 for air strikes against Kyushu
March - May: Underway in Task Group 58.4 in support of the Invasion of Okinawa
April 11: Struck by a kamikaze with minimal damage; pilot's body found among the wreckage
April 12: The Japanese pilot receives a military burial at sea
May - June: Underway with Task Group 38.4 in support of the Invasion of Okinawa
July: Underway with Task Unit 34.8.2 in bombardment of Hokkaido and Honshu
September 2: Japan formally surrenders to the Allied Powers aboard USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay, ending World War II
October - November: Participates in Navy Day celebrations in New York
December: Dry-docked at Brooklyn Navy Yard

1946

March - May: Participates in Mediterranean goodwill cruise including visit to Istanbul
June - October: USS Missouri alternately moored or underway for training exercises
October 27: Moored at Pier Ninety, New York City, for Navy Day celebration
November - December: Participated in cold-weather exercises in Davis Strait, Greenland

1947

January - August: USS Missouri alternately moored or underway for training exercises in Caribbean
September: Enroute from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Norfolk Naval Shipyard with President Harry S. Truman and his family aboard
September 11: Crew members hold a “Crossing the Line” initiation for President Truman
September - December: Dry-docked at the Brooklyn Navy Yard

1948

January - May: USS Missouri alternately moored or underway for training exercises
June - August: Underway for midshipman training cruise to Europe and Caribbean
August - October: Alternately moored and underway for training exercises
November: Participated in cold-weather exercises near Davis Strait, Greenland
December 4: President Truman, Missouri Governor Philip Matthew Donnelly and Secretary of the Navy John L. Sullivan aboard for presentation of the Missouri's silver service by the State

1949

January - March: USS Missouri alternately moored or underway for training exercises in Caribbean
April - May: Underway for Naval Reservist’s training cruise in Caribbean
May - July: Underway for midshipman training cruise to Europe and Caribbean
August – September: Underway for second midshipman training cruise in Caribbean

1950

January 17: USS Missouri runs hard aground off Virginia
February: Refloated and dry-docked for repairs following grounding
May – July: Underway for midshipman cruise
August 19: Departed Norfolk Naval Shipyard for first Korean War deployment
September – October: Provided shore bombardment support for UN Forces at Inchon
December: Provided shore bombardment support during UN evacuation at Hungnam

1951

January - March: USS Missouri underway in operating area off the coast of Korea, providing shore bombardment support for UN forces ashore
May 31 – July 27: Underway for midshipman training cruise to Europe and Caribbean
July 27 – September 3: Underway for second midshipman training cruise to Caribbean

1952

January – March: USS Missouri alternately moored or underway for training exercises
June – August: Underway for midshipman cruise to Europe and Caribbean
September 11: Underway for second Korean War deployment
October 25 – December 31: Underway along the coast of Korea, conducting shore bombardment operations in support of UN forces ashore

1953

January 1 – March 25: Underway along the coast of Korea, conducting shore bombardment operations in support of UN forces ashore
March 26: After completing his final mission, Captain Edsall dies of a heart attack while entering port at Sasebo, Japan
June - August: Underway for midshipman cruise, visiting Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Colon, Panama; and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

1954

June-August: Underway for midshipman cruise with visits to Lisbon, Portugal; Cherbourg, France; and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

1955

February 26: Decommissioned and placed in mothballs at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Washington

1971

USS Missouri named to the National Register of Historic Places in the State of Washington

1984-86

Ship modernized and re-activated

1986

May 10: USS Missouri re-commissioned
September - December: Underway for historic around the world cruise

1987

September-November: Underway in the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Earnest Will

1991

January: Underway in the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Desert Shield
January 17: First battleship to fire Tomahawk missiles as Operation Desert Storm begins
December 7, 1991: Participates in Operation Remembrance in Hawaii, the 50th Anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack

1992

March 31: Decommissioned for the second and final time.

1995

USS Missouri removed from the Navy's ship registry

1996

USS Missouri Memorial Association, Inc. is selected for donation of the decommissioned battleship

1998

June 21: Missouri arrives off Waikiki

1999

January 29: The Battleship Missouri Memorial opens to the public on Battleship Row, Ford Island, Pearl Harbor