The Battleship Texas is a museum located at Highway 134 in La Porte, Texas and is a few miles outside Houston on the Houston Ship Channel in the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site. The ship was commissioned in March 1914 and is the only surviving US ship from both World War I and World War II. In 1948 the ship became the first battleship memorial museum in the United States, and was presented to the State of Texas and commissioned as the flagship of the Texas Navy in that same year.
In 1947 the ship was offered to the state of Texas leaving the decision of where to house the ship with the Battleship Texas Commission. The San Jacinto Battleground was the chosen site as a constant reminder that Texans won their freedom from Mexico at the Battle of San Jacinto in 1836. In the financial year 2008 over 94,000 visited the ship, and it generated 57 percent of the total revenue at the San Jacinto State Historical Park.
When the ship was built nearly 100 years ago the cost was estimated to be almost $11 million, which would in today's terms be in excess of $200 million. It is 573 feet long and in 1945 when fully fitted and ready for battle the ship weighed nearly 30 tons and could travel at a maximum speed of 20.5 knots. During its sailing life the ship is believed to have traveled 728,000 miles, which is the equivalent of 29 times around the world at the equator.
At the French port of Cherbourg the ship was hit by a 280mm shell during a three hour battle. The Pilot House was wrecked and it damaged the Gunfire Control Booth injuring 11 crew, one of whom died shortly afterwards. Since its retirement in 1948 the ship has been open to the public and holds various events and programs throughout the year, including hard hat tours lasting three and a half hours for visitors 13 and above.
Sleep-overs can be arranged aboard the ship as an education program for organized groups of people aged seven years (or in the 1st grade) and older, with parents encouraged to attend as leaders. This educational experience includes knowledgeable guides leading guests around the battleship explaining its role in World Wars I and II and how it was involved in the evolution of naval aviation, radar, and other technologies. The guides will also explain about the five boxes of Fig Newton cookies in 1918 and Maggie being in the ship's Brig in 1931.
The education program will also provide participants with access to areas of the ship not normally afforded to members of the public. These include the 14 inch Gun Turret Interior and the Pilot House in the forward mast, which was the command center during World War II for the ship's six combat operations including the invasion of Normandy. Visitors will also see the Captain's cabin still filled with furnishings from the period of both World Wars.
