Talk:USS California (BB-44)

Factual Error and Strange Emphasis

I'm no expert on the Inter-War U.S. Navy, but this statement certainly looks wrong: "In the mid- to late-1930s, California and the 14 Battleships of the United States Fleet were stationed in San Pedro, California." While it's true that the U.S. Navy's Battle Fleet was stationed there, and that accounts for most U.S. Navy battleships, it doesn't account for all of them. For example the USS Arkansas (BB-33) served mostly in the Atlantic with the Training Squadron. There may have been others as well.

Actually, that entire paragraph and the next have a weird emphasis. Entries for other U.S. Navy battleships of the period talk about what units they were assigned to, what cruises they went on, the exercises they participated in, and when they went in dry dock and what sort of changes were made (adding anti-aircraft guns for example). This devotes 90% of the space to a particular sports competition and the team the ship fielded, going down to individual members (wouldn't the Captain be more important?). Much of this reads more like trivia more appropriate to a yearbook than an encyclopedia. Then, at the very end, it notes that radar was added.

Hopefully someone who knows more than me can get this article back on track.Darkstar8799 (talk) 20:33, 7 December 2010 (UTC)

Neutrality

There is too much 'us against them' language in the article. Neutral information is preferred. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 157.157.186.230 (talk) 12:10, 28 May 2011 (UTC)

I agree. Reads like propaganda in parts, as if lifted verbatim from US Navy literature.Jlittlenz (talk) 01:17, 13 December 2011 (UTC)

Missing info

Lieutenant Commander Jackson C. Pharris won the Medal of Honor on the USS California for his actions during the attack. He is not mentioned with the others, and he also had a ship named after him.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson_C._Pharris

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Pharris_(FF-1094)2600:6C50:797F:DE8D:0:4070:8162:8F46 (talk) 20:54, 29 July 2018 (UTC)

GA Review

This review is transcluded from Talk:USS California (BB-44)/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Reviewer: Sturmvogel 66 (talk · contribs) 17:28, 2 March 2019 (UTC)

I'll get to this shortly.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 17:28, 2 March 2019 (UTC)

• Move the link for main battery to first use in the first paragraph of the design section.
  • Done
    • Fix the link.
      • Ha, I knew that would be a red link and meant to create the redirect afterward, but then I spaced, obviously
• Explain what caliber means.
  • The caliber note is there :P
    • Ah, carefully hidden in the cites. Perhaps a separate note instead? 'cause I certainly didn't think to look down there.
      • Fixed
• Explain further the background to Kiefer's achievement.
  • Made it a bit clearer
• the ships also stopped in Pago Pago Why "also"? No other stops listed.
  • Good point
• Link Haiti
  • Done
• Down to WW2, more later.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 16:10, 27 March 2019 (UTC)
  • I sit with bated breath ;) Parsecboy (talk) 15:39, 29 March 2019 (UTC)
    • And how does that worm taste?--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 19:58, 29 March 2019 (UTC)
      • Always nice to be reminded of my mental frailty! Parsecboy (talk) 20:28, 29 March 2019 (UTC)
• Standard series? Perhaps spelling out the link would make it less confusing?
  • See if what I added works
• When did she get the .50s? Provide a conversion and a link.
  • Good question - the Warship Profile on Tennessee says that she got them in c. 1935, but nothing on California - I'd assume at around the same time, but I don't know for certain.
• First lieutenant? Was that an USN term?
  • Yeah, it's a billet, not a rank
• Tell the reader what type of aircraft a Zero was.
  • Done
• Link drydock
  • Done
• Provide conversions for 40 and 20 mm
  • Done
• California replenished ammunition "her" ammunition
  • Done
• patrolled off the island, shelling Japanese forces on the island delete the reptitious "on the island"
  • Done
• fired a terrific barrage? link barrage
  • Done
• Temporary repairs were effected I know that we see this phrase a lot, but it's always struck me as sort of passive voice-y. Howzabout "made" instead?
  • Works for me
• remained in service for Not sure I'd call being part of the mothball fleet as being in service.--Sturmvogel 66 (talk) 21:57, 3 April 2019 (UTC)
  • Good catch. Thank Sturm. Parsecboy (talk) 13:18, 8 April 2019 (UTC)

Please expand reason for sinking

(copied from Help Desk) Dear Wikipedia,

Please edit the information on this ship to include this reason it sunk at Pearl Harbor, HI. Yes, it's electrical supply was down, but the reason it sunk was this. It was hit portside by two torpedoes causing it to capsize on that side. Lt. Pharris commanded for the starboard magazines to be flooded, which my dad did, with whoever assisted him. Here is the very sentence in Wikipedia on Lt. Jackson Pharris (Medal of Honor Recipient, USS California BB-44) which proves that this is true. It may have not been understood until now: "With water and oil rushing in where the port bulkhead had been torn up from the deck, with many of the remaining crewmembers overcome by oil fumes, and the ship without power and listing heavily to port as a result of a second torpedo hit, Lt. Pharris ordered the shipfitters to counterflood." I do not know what is meant by "ship fitters." My dad (Henry G. Thompson) was a Gunner's Mate, at that time and knew the ship well, having it being his home-ship for a little over 10 years.

Grammaglo52 (talk) 03:25, 11 November 2019 (UTC)Gloria (Thompson) Gold

@Grammaglo52: Thanks for your input. For your future reference, it's simpler for us if you put this sort of a request on the talk page of the affected article rather than here on the help desk, since items here get archived and disappear rapidly. I'll go ahead and handle that for you now in honor of Veteran's day, and then look at incorporating this into the article later. A Medal of Honor citation is unusual as a "reliable source" by our definition, but I think it's defensible. -Arch dude (talk) 04:43, 11 November 2019 (UTC)

It's not exactly clear what you want to have changed. The fact of the matter is that the pumps failed when the engines shut down, and it was that that caused the ship to slowly sink over the next three days; had the pumps remained in operation, California likely would have remained afloat. Parsecboy (talk) 17:12, 12 November 2019 (UTC)

Content for consideration

Seabee and ex Marine Lt. Wilfred L. Painter (CEC) was given the task of raising both the USS California and USS West Virginia (BB-48). The California was refloated and in dry dock in forty five days. For his leadership in the salvage of the two battleships Lt. Painter received the first of the five Legion of Merit medals he was awarded.Mcb133aco (talk) 00:10, 31 July 2021 (UTC)mcb133acoMcb133aco (talk) 00:10, 31 July 2021 (UTC)

References