A formidable battleship that survived both world wars is getting a new home—and officials at the Battleship Texas Foundation hope to attract a lot more visitors to an amazing relic of American military history. Built in 1912, the USS Texas, widely known as Battleship Texas, supported the D-Day landings in World War II and took part in battles including Okinawa and Iwo Jima. Last year, it was moved from its longtime home near Houston to undergo repairs ahead of a planned move to the Pier 21 tourist attraction in Galveston. Texas owns the 533-foot ship, but the foundation is responsible for operating and maintaining it.
Battleship Texas Foundation president and CEO Tony Gregory says the ship only had 80,000 to 90,000 visitors a year at the San Jacinto Monument 25 miles east of Houston, far below what's needed for it to be self-sustaining, Bloomberg reports. The foundation hopes to triple those numbers with the move to a more accessible location. "Where we're going now is the location that will give us the greatest chance of success," he says. The foundation is trying to raise $15 million toward renovations and a visitor center. Texas is contributing $60 million for repairs.
NBC-DFW reports that the historic vessel, currently in dry dock in Galveston, was in such rough shape before the move that Texas had considered scrapping the ship. It had been kept afloat by pumps as it took on 2,000 gallons of water a minute. Foundation execs say it is undergoing "major surgery" in dry dock in Galveston and they hope to have it afloat as a museum in 2025. "Where else can a child go and put their hands physically on something that served in both of the World Wars?" says Matt Pham, the foundation's vice president of development. "It serves as that resounding and lasting connection to that generation, to the sacrifice that they made." (More Texas stories.)
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