Indiana-class battleship

The Indiana class was a class of three pre-dreadnought battleships launched in 1893. These were the first battleships built by the United States Navy comparable to contemporary European ships, such as the British HMS Hood. Authorized in 1890 and commissioned between November 1895 and April 1896, these were relatively small battleships with heavy armor and ordnance that pioneered the use of an intermediate battery. Specifically intended for coastal defense, their freeboard was insufficient to deal well with the waves of the open ocean. The turrets lacked counterweights, and the main belt armor was placed too low to be effective under most conditions.

Quick facts: Class overview, General characteristics [3] [... ▼

USS Indiana – the lead ship of the class
Class overview
Builders	William Cramp & Sons (Indiana and Massachusetts) Union Iron Works (Oregon)[1]
Operators	United States Navy
Preceded by	USS Texas
Succeeded by	USS Iowa
Cost	$6,000,000 Indiana (BB-1) and Massachusetts (BB-2)[2] $6,500,000 Oregon (BB-3)[2]
In commission	20 November 1895 – 4 October 1919
Planned	3
Completed	3
Retired	3
Preserved	0
General characteristics [3] [4][5][6]
Type	Pre-dreadnought battleship
Displacement	10,288 long tons (10,453 t; 11,523 short tons) (standard)
Length	350 ft 11 in (106.96 m) (overall) 358 ft (109 m) (waterline)
Beam	69 ft 3 in (21.11 m) (wl)
Draft	27 ft (8.2 m)
Installed power	4 × double ended Scotch boilers later replaced by 8 × Babcock & Wilcox boilers 9,000 ihp (6.7 MW) (design) 9,700–11,000 ihp (7.2–8.2 MW) (trial)
Propulsion	2 sets vertical inverted triple expansion reciprocating steam engines 2 × screws
Speed	15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph) (design) 15.6–16.8 kn (28.9–31.1 km/h; 18.0–19.3 mph) (trial)
Range	4,900 nmi (9,100 km; 5,600 mi) (BB-1 & 2)[lower-alpha 1] 5,600 nmi (10,400 km; 6,400 mi) (BB-3)[lower-alpha 1]
Complement	32 officers 441 men
Armament	4 × 13 in (330 mm)/35 caliber guns (2x2) 8 × 8 in (203 mm)/35 cal guns (4x2) 4 × 6 in (152 mm)/40 cal guns 20 × 6-pounder 57 mm (2.2 in) guns 6 × 1-pounder 37 mm (1.5 in) guns 6 × 18 inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes[lower-alpha 2]
Armor	Harvey and NS Belt: 4–18 in (102–457 mm) Turrets (main): 15 in (381 mm) Barbettes (main): 17 in (432 mm) Turrets (secondary): 5–8 in (127–203 mm) Barbettes (secondary): 8-in Conning tower: 9 in (229 mm)

The ships were named Indiana, Massachusetts, and Oregon and were designated Battleship Number 1 through 3. All three served in the Spanish–American War, although Oregon—which was stationed on the West Coast—had to cruise 14,000 nautical miles (26,000 km; 16,000 mi) around South America to the East Coast first. After the war, Oregon returned to the Pacific and participated in the Philippine–American War and Boxer Rebellion, while her sister ships were restricted to training missions in the Atlantic Ocean. After 1903, the obsolete battleships were decommissioned and recommissioned several times, the last time during World War I when Indiana and Massachusetts served as training ships, while Oregon was a transport escort for the Siberian Intervention.

In 1919, all three ships were decommissioned for the final time. Indiana was sunk in shallow water as an explosives test target a year later and sold for scrap in 1924. Massachusetts was scuttled off the coast of Pensacola in 1920 and used as an artillery target. The wreck was never scrapped and is now a Florida Underwater Archaeological Preserve. Oregon was initially preserved as a museum, but was sold for scrap during World War II. The scrapping was later halted and the stripped hulk was used as an ammunition barge during the battle of Guam. The hulk was finally sold for scrap in 1956.