USS Mississippi (BB-41) - Inter-War Period

Inter-War Period

On 19 July 1919, she left the Atlantic seaboard and sailed for the west coast. Arriving at her new base, San Pedro, California, she operated along the west coast for the next four years, entering the Caribbean during the winter months for training exercises. Two of the original 14 5 in (130 mm)/51 cal guns were removed in 1922.

In 1923 the Mississippi was used as part of a public exercise with members of Congress and reporters from the various newspaper, watched as the Mississippi sank the old Spanish-American War era battleship Iowa, which had been converted to a radio controlled target ship, with her cannons, in the Gulf of Panama.

During gunnery practice on 12 June 1924 off San Pedro, 48 of her men were asphyxiated as a result of an explosion in her Number Two main battery turret. On 15 April 1925, she sailed from San Francisco, California, for war games off Hawaii, and then steamed to Australia on a good will tour. She returned to the west coast on 26 September, and resumed operations there for the next four years. During this period, she frequently sailed into Caribbean and Atlantic waters for exercises during the winter months.

Mississippi entered Norfolk Navy Yard on 30 March 1931 for a modernization overhaul. This overhaul significantly changed the ship's profile by removing the original fore and aft lattice mast. The former was replaced with a tower. Modernization also included replacement of earlier 3 in (76 mm) anti-aircraft guns with eight 5 in (130 mm)/25 cal guns. She departed once again on training exercises in September 1933. Transiting the Panama Canal on 24 October 1934, she steamed back to her base at San Pedro. For the next seven years, she operated off the west coast, except for winter Caribbean cruises.