USS CALIFORNIA (BB-44)

USS **California** (BB-44) was a Tennessee-class battleship commissioned into the United States Navy in 1921. Serving as the flagship of the Pacific Fleet, she was moored at Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack on December 7, 1941, where she was heavily damaged and sank in shallow water. After extensive salvage and modernization, California returned to service in 1944, participating in major Pacific campaigns including Saipan, Guam, Leyte Gulf, and Okinawa, providing vital naval gunfire support. She earned seven battle stars during World War II before being decommissioned in 1947 and ultimately scrapped in 1959.