SAN PEDRO, Calif. (CNS)—Federal legislation was introduced on Sept. 24 to designate the Battleship USS Iowa Museum in San Pedro as the National Museum of the Surface Navy.
“This resolution honors the men and women who have served and continue to serve in the surface forces of the United States by designating this museum as a monument to their sacrifice,” said Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragan (D-San Pedro), who introduced the measure with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.).
“I can think of no better place to honor their legacy than the USS Iowa—a ship that has been serving America since 1943.”
In a video posted on Facebook, retired Rear Adm. Mike Shatynski, the museum’s board chairman, said, “Every Navy community, Navy air, the submarines, the Navy Seals, have a national museum, but not our oldest community in the Navy. There’s no better place than aboard this ship.”
The battleship was commissioned in 1943 and was in Tokyo Bay 75 years ago this month for the surrender of the Japanese and the end of World War II, Shatynski said, noting that the USS Iowa has been open as a museum for eight years.
Feinstein said in a written statement that the battleship’s “second life as a museum in the Port of Los Angeles has taught millions of Americans how vital a surface navy is to our national defense.”
