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USS Iowa Attraction
San Pedro
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Updated
May 17, 2012 |
The ship
is due to arrive in the Port of Los Angeles this summer,
with a grand opening for the public set for July 7. A
store has been set up at 437 W. Sixth St in San Pedro
and will serve as a base of operations until the ship
is open.
The USS Iowa Battleship Museum
will be located at Berth 87 in the Port of Los
Angeles (summer of 2012). On September 6 2011, the USS
Iowa was awarded to Pacific Battleship Center for placement
at the Port of Los Angeles. After rehabilitation in Northern
California the ship will be towed to and berthed in the
Port of Los Angeles adjacent to the World Cruise Center.
Commissioned in 1943, the three football fields long
warship is the namesake of the Iowa class battleships
launched by the United States during World War II. The
others – the USS Missouri, USS New Jersey and
USS Wisconsin – are all currently floating museums.
Nicknamed the “Big Stick,” the Iowa was
used to shuttle President Franklin D. Roosevelt across
the Atlantic Ocean.
This huge battleship will be ab interactive naval museum
that honors and illustrates the contributions of the USS
Iowa and its crew at important moments in American history.
San Diego has the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier and now
Los Angeles will its very own navel attraction with the
USS Iowa.
Nearly
every
part of the ship will eventually be open to the public,
including the command center, top decks, powder magazine
rooms, and the historic wardroom that carried President
Franklin Roosevelt across the Atlantic for meetings
with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
The USS Iowa is scheduled to be towed to Los Angeles
sometime between December and January and could be open
by the summer of 2012.
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USS Iowa Battleship |
The USS Iowa will be open to the public for
guided tours, special events, and educational programs.
A second phase of the project will include, a 33,800 square
foot, two story landside Visitor Center which includes a
museum and education center featuring historic artifacts,
educational programs and food and ticketing areas.
Iowa will be docked at Berth 87 in the North Harbor section
of the Port of Los Angeles. Berth 87 is currently used periodically
for cruise ship docking. Berth 87 is located within the
San Pedro Waterfront (SPW) Project area. The purpose of
the SPW Project is to create an active public waterfront
in downtown San Pedro.
The USS Iowa will be presented as a “living”
ship which provides “at sea” experiences. Auditory
and visual backgrounds, interactive exhibits, and commemorative
information will help visitors to understand the history
and function of the battleship.
The USS Iowa is expected to draw over 400,000 visitors a
yeat to the San Pedro waterfront and be a boom to the surrounding
area. Already in place is the San
Pedro Trolley Car, SS Lane Victory and the Los Angeles
Maritime Museum. With the USS Iowa and all the other nearby
attractions San Pedro will be a wonderful place for a Southern
California Day Trip.
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USS IOWA firing all 15 of its guns |
Future location of USS Iowa |
The Los Angeles-based nonprofit
Pacific Battleship Center has raised
over $9 million to move and restore the ship, including
$3 million from the state of Iowa. The group took out another
$5 million in loans and raised the rest through donations
in order to bring the "Big Stick" to its new home
in San Pedro.
The USS Iowa Battleship will be located at Berth 87 in the
Port of Los Angeles, near the Vincent Thomas Bridge. The
ship is scheduled to be open to the public mid year 2012.
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USS
Midway Historic aircraft carrier located
downtown San Diego. Print at home tickets. |
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