The Order of AHEPA will welcome guests to the Battleship New Jersey during the fourth day of the 104th Supreme Convention, Thursday, July 30th. The event is sure to be a hit, highlighting our Nation’s military in a captivating and unique way on the 250th anniversary of our country’s founding.
The USS New Jersey (BB-62) is widely considered the greatest battleship in U.S. Navy history, holding the record as the most decorated battleship ever built. Commissioned in 1943, the “Big J” earned a staggering 19 Battle and Campaign stars, seeing combat in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Persian Gulf.
Overlooking the Delaware River and Penn’s Landing, the USS New Jersey (BB-62), “Big J” or “Black Dragon” earned more battle stars for combat actions than the other three completed Iowa-class battleships, and was the only U.S. battleship providing gunfire support during the Vietnam War.
During World War II, New Jersey shelled targets on Guam and Okinawa, and screened aircraft carriers conducting raids in the Marshall Islands. During the Korean War, it was involved in raids up and down the North Korean coast, after which it was decommissioned into the United States reserve fleet. It was briefly reactivated in 1968 and sent to Vietnam to support U.S. troops before returning to the mothball fleet in 1969. Reactivated once more in the 1980s, it participated in U.S. operations during the Lebanese Civil War.
Big J was decommissioned for the last time in 1991 (after serving a total of 21 years in the active fleet), having earned a Navy Unit Commendation for service in Vietnam and 19 battle and campaign stars for combat operations during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Lebanese Civil War, and service in the Persian Gulf. It began its career as a museum ship on October 15, 2000.
AHEPA is proud to honor America, celebrating our Nation’s 250th Anniversary at pivotal historical sites such as where the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were debated and signed, where the Liberty Bell was rung, and finally, aboard BB-62, The Black Dragon.