{"nrhp_refnum":"82004893","name":"USS NORTH CAROLINA (BB-55) National Historic Landmark","other_names":["See Also:USS North Carolina (battleship)"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"W bank of the Cape Fear River","address_restricted":false,"city":"Wilmington","county":"New Hanover County","state":"NC","lat":34.23682847400005,"lon":-77.94255948699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-11-10","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1986-01-14","areas_of_significance":["Military"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"USS North Carolina (BB-55) is a World War II battleship permanently berthed on the west bank of the Cape Fear River at Wilmington, North Carolina. She was built by the New York Naval Shipyard, launched June 13, 1940 and commissioned April 9, 1941.","why_significant":"She was the first modern American battleship built after World War I and the lead ship of a new class combining speed, heavy armament and armor. She was the first new battleship to join the Pacific Fleet, and her anti-aircraft performance at the Eastern Solomons in 1942 helped establish the fast battleship's role as carrier escort. She earned 15 battle stars and has the best war record of any surviving American battleship in the Pacific.","narrative":"USS North Carolina is a 728-foot battleship berthed on the Cape Fear River at Wilmington, North Carolina, now used as a museum. Built at the New York Naval Shipyard, she was launched in June 1940 and commissioned in April 1941. She was the first modern American battleship constructed in two decades, built with welded construction, nine 16-inch guns and a streamlined flush deck. Her machinery was arranged in four separate spaces to protect it better. She entered Pearl Harbor in July 1942 as the first of the new battleships to join the Pacific Fleet. At the Battle of the Eastern Solomons that August she escorted the carriers Enterprise and Saratoga, and her heavy anti-aircraft fire showed the value of the fast battleship as a carrier protector. She served against Japan until the 1945 surrender and received 15 battle stars. The ship remains essentially unaltered since 1947, retaining her World War II integrity, and represents the American battleships that fought in the Pacific.","period_of_significance":"1941-1945","architect_builder":"Brooklyn Navy Yard","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Stated to be in excellent condition and essentially unaltered since being mothballed in 1947; the form lists present use as a museum and the property as occupied.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:57.609941-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/9/7188/47718809/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/82004893_NHL.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82004893/000c94e5c1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82004893/000c94e5c1-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Unknown authorUnknown author","credit_html":"Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USS_North_Carolina_(BB-55)_underway_at_sea_on_3_June_1946_(NH_97267).jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"03000344","name":"Wilmington Historic District (Boundary Increase)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/north-carolina/wilmington-historic-district-boundary-increase-03000344/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47718809","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_North_Carolina_(BB-55)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q727245"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/new-hanover-county/uss-north-carolina-bb-55-national-historic-landmark-82004893/"}