Editing Indiana-class battleship (section)

== Ships in class ==

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="margin-right: 0;"
! scope="col" | Name
! scope="col" style="width:  4em;" | Hull
! scope="col" style="width: 12em;" | Builder
! scope="col" style="width:  9em;" | Laid down
! scope="col" style="width:  9em;" | Launched
! scope="col" style="width:  9em;" | Commissioned
! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Fate
|-
! scope="row" | {{USS|Indiana|BB-1|2}}
| BB-1
| [[William Cramp & Sons]]
| {{dts|7 May 1891}}
| {{dts|28 February 1893}}
| {{dts|20 November 1895}}
| Sunk in explosive tests; hulk sold for scrap 1924
|-
! scope="row" | {{USS|Massachusetts|BB-2|2}}
| BB-2
| [[William Cramp & Sons]]
| {{dts|25 June 1891}}
| {{dts|10 June 1893}}
| {{dts|10 June 1896}}
| Sunk as gunnery target 1921; now an artificial reef
|-
! scope="row" | {{USS|Oregon|BB-3|2}}
| BB-3
| [[Union Iron Works]]
| {{dts|19 November 1891}}
| {{dts|26 October 1893}}
| {{dts|16 July 1896}}
| Initially preserved as a museum; sold for scrap 1956
|}

=== ''Indiana'' (BB-1) ===

[[File:Indiana post war.jpg|thumb|alt=''Indiana'' painted wartime gray is anchored. On the background a second ship is visible|{{USS|Indiana|BB-1|2}} after the Spanish–American War, {{USS|Iowa|BB-4|2}} in the background]]

{{Main|USS Indiana (BB-1)}}

Commissioned in 1895, ''Indiana'' did not participate in any notable events until the outbreak of the [[Spanish–American War]] in 1898, when ''Indiana'' was part of the [[North Atlantic Squadron]] under Rear Admiral [[William T. Sampson]].{{sfn|DANFS Indiana (BB-1)}} His squadron was ordered to the Spanish port of [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]] in an attempt to intercept and destroy [[Admiral]] [[Pascual Cervera y Topete|Cevera]]'s Spanish squadron, which was en route to the Caribbean from Spain. The harbor was empty, but ''Indiana'' and the rest of the squadron bombarded it for two hours before realizing their mistake. Three weeks later news arrived that [[Commodore (United States)|Commodore]] [[Winfield Scott Schley|Schley]]'s [[Flying Squadron (US Navy)|Flying Squadron]] had found Cervera and was now blockading him in the port of [[Santiago de Cuba]]. Sampson reinforced Schley two days later and assumed overall command.{{sfn|Graham|Schley|1902|p=203}} Cervera saw that his situation was desperate and attempted to run the blockade on 3{{nbsp}}July 1898. ''Indiana'' did not join in the chase of the fast Spanish [[cruiser]]s because of her extreme eastern position on the blockade{{sfn|DANFS Indiana (BB-1)}} and low speed caused by engine problems,{{sfn|Graham|Schley|1902|pp=304 & 317}} but was near the harbor entrance when the Spanish [[destroyer]]s [[Spanish destroyer Pluton|''Pluton'']] and [[Spanish destroyer Furor|''Furor'']] emerged. Together with the battleship {{USS|Iowa|BB-4|2}} and [[armed yacht]] {{USS|Gloucester|1891|2}} she opened fire, destroying the lightly armored enemy ships.{{sfn|DANFS Indiana (BB-1)}}

After the war, ''Indiana'' returned to training exercises before being decommissioned in 1903. The battleship was recommissioned in January 1906 to function as a training vessel until she was decommissioned again in 1914. Her third commission was in 1917 when ''Indiana'' served as a training ship for gun crews during [[World War I]]. She was decommissioned for the final time on 31 January 1919, shortly after being reclassified ''Coast Battleship Number 1'' so that the name ''Indiana'' could be assigned to the newly authorized—but never completed—battleship {{USS|Indiana|BB-50|3}}. She was sunk in shallow water as a target in underwater explosion and aerial bombing tests in November 1920. Her hulk was sold for scrap on 19 March 1924.{{sfn|DANFS Indiana (BB-1)}}

=== ''Massachusetts'' (BB-2) ===
{{Main|USS Massachusetts (BB-2)}}
[[File:USS Massachusetts (BB-2) sinking 1921.jpg|thumb|left|alt=A sinking stripped battleship seen from a birds eyes view|{{USS|Massachusetts|BB-2|2}} being scuttled off the coast of [[Pensacola]]]]

Between being commissioned in 1896 and the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in 1898, ''Massachusetts'' conducted training exercises off the eastern coast of the United States.{{sfn|DANFS Massachusetts (BB-2)}} During the war, she was placed in the Flying Squadron under Commodore [[Winfield Scott Schley]]. Schley went searching for Cervera's Spanish squadron and found it in the port of Santiago. The battleship was part of the blockade fleet until 3{{nbsp}}July, but missed the [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba]], because she had steamed to [[Guantánamo Bay]] the night before to resupply coal.{{sfn|Graham|Schley|1902|p=300}} The next day, the battleship came back to Santiago, where she and ''Texas'' fired at the [[Spanish cruiser Reina Mercedes|Spanish cruiser ''Reina Mercedes'']], which was being scuttled by the Spanish in a failed attempt to block the harbor entrance channel.{{sfn|Graham|Schley|1902|pp=471–472}}

During the next seven years, ''Massachusetts'' cruised the Atlantic coast and eastern Caribbean as a member of the North Atlantic Squadron and then served for a year as a training ship for [[USNA|Naval Academy]] midshipmen until she was decommissioned in January 1906. In May 1910, she was placed in reduced commission as a training ship again before entering the [[Atlantic Reserve Fleet]] in September 1912, where she stayed until being decommissioned in May 1914. ''Massachusetts'' was recommissioned in June 1917 to serve as a training ship for gun crews during World War I. She was decommissioned for the final time on 31 March 1919, after being redesignated ''Coast Battleship Number 2'' two days earlier so her name could be reused for {{USS|Massachusetts|BB-54|3}}. On 6{{nbsp}}January 1921 she was scuttled off the coast of [[Pensacola]] and used as an artillery target for [[Fort Pickens]]. The Navy attempted to sell her for scrap, but no buyer could be found and in 1956 the ship was declared the property of the state of Florida.{{sfn|DANFS Massachusetts (BB-2)}} The wreck is currently one of the [[Florida Underwater Archaeological Preserves]] and serves as an artificial reef.{{sfn|Museums in the Sea}}

=== ''Oregon'' (BB-3) ===
{{Main|USS Oregon (BB-3)}}

''Oregon'' served for a short time with the [[Pacific Station]] before being ordered on a voyage around South America to the East Coast in March 1898 in preparation for war with Spain. She departed from [[San Francisco]] on 19 March, and reached [[Jupiter Inlet]] on 24 May, stopping several times for additional coal on the way. A journey of over 14,000 nautical miles was completed in 66 days, which was considered a remarkable achievement at the time.{{sfn|Reilly|Scheina|1980|pp=66–67}} The ''[[Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships]]'' describes the effect of the journey on the American public and government as follows: "On one hand the feat had demonstrated the many capabilities of a heavy battleship in all conditions of wind and sea. On the other it swept away all opposition for the construction of the [[Panama Canal]], for it was then made clear that the country could not afford to take two months to send warships from one coast to the other each time an emergency arose."{{sfn|DANFS Oregon (BB-3)}} After completing her journey, ''Oregon'' was ordered to join the blockade at Santiago as part of the North Atlantic Squadron under Rear Admiral Sampson. She took part in the [[Battle of Santiago de Cuba]], where she and the cruiser {{USS|Brooklyn|CA-3|2}} were the only ships fast enough to chase down the [[Spanish cruiser Cristobal Colon|Spanish cruiser ''Cristobal Colon'']], forcing its surrender.{{sfn|Graham|Schley|1902|pp=339 & 345}} Around this time, she received the nickname "Bulldog of the Navy", most likely because of her high bow wave—known as "having a bone in her teeth" in nautical slang—and perseverance during the cruise around South America and the battle of Santiago.{{sfn|Lomax|2005}}

[[File:USS Oregon in dry dock, 1898.jpg|thumb|alt=''Oregon'' seen from behind in drydock|{{USS|Oregon|BB-3|2}} in drydock in 1898, showing her starboard bilge keel and pudgy underwater shape]]

After the war, ''Oregon'' was refitted in [[New York City]] before she was sent back to the Pacific, where she served as a [[guard ship]] for two years. She served for a year in the [[Philippines]] during the [[Philippine–American War]] and then spent a year in China at [[Wusong]] during the [[Boxer Rebellion]] until May 1901, when she was ordered back to the United States for an overhaul. In March 1903, ''Oregon'' returned to Asiatic waters and the ship remained in the Far East, returning only shortly before decommissioning in April 1906. ''Oregon'' was recommissioned in August 1911, but saw little activity and was officially placed on reserve status in 1914. On 2 January 1915, the ship was returned to full commission and sailed to [[San Francisco]] for the [[Panama–Pacific International Exposition]]. A year later, she was back to reserve status, only to be returned to full commission in April 1917 when the United States joined World War I. ''Oregon'' acted as one of the escorts for transport ships during the [[Siberian Intervention]]. In June 1919, she was decommissioned, but a month later she was temporarily recommissioned as the reviewing ship for President [[Woodrow Wilson]] during the arrival of the Pacific Fleet at [[Seattle]]. In October 1919, she was decommissioned for the final time. As a result of the [[Washington Naval Treaty]], ''Oregon'' was declared "incapable of further warlike service" in January 1924. In June 1925, she was loaned to the [[Government of Oregon|State of Oregon]], who used her as a floating monument and museum in [[Portland, Oregon|Portland]].{{sfn|DANFS Oregon (BB-3)}}

In February 1941, ''Oregon'' was redesignated {{USS|Oregon|IX-22|1}}. Due to the outbreak of [[World War II]], it was decided that the scrap value of the ship was more important than her historical value, so she was sold. Her stripped hulk was later returned to the Navy and used as an ammunition barge during the [[battle of Guam (1944)|battle of Guam]], where she remained for several years. During a typhoon in November 1948, she broke loose and drifted out to sea. She was located {{cvt|500|mi}} southeast of Guam and towed back. She was sold on 15 March 1956 and scrapped in Japan.{{sfn|DANFS Oregon (BB-3)}}