SoDaks representing, 73 years ago today

Artwork by John Hamilton from his publication, “War at Sea.” Courtesy of the U.S. Navy Art Gallery:

89-20-Z: U.S. Navy battleships firing guns on the Japanese mainland, July 1945.

“Believed to detail the first naval gunfire bombardment of the Japanese mainland on July 14, 1945, by Task Unit 34.8.1. (TU 34.8.1) ships included the battleships: USS South Dakota (BB-57), USS Indiana (BB-58), Massachusetts (BB-59) along with the heavy cruisers: USS Quincy, USS Chicago, and nine destroyers.”

The tale of U.S. battleships at sea in WWII is often focused on the bookends of Pearl Harbor vets and the Iowa-class, with the four ships of the South Dakota class often forgotten (although two endure as floating museum ships), so it is nice to see them remembered.

Great painting.

Here is a Kodachrome of the actual event:

Official U.S. Navy photo 80-G-K-6035 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command