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| Click Here To Have The Boatswain "Pipe You Aboard" |
| The purpose of this page is to preserve and present historical information that would otherwise be left in attics and closets or lost with the passing of those who retain them as memories. |
| Long prior to commissioning, while CALIFORNIA was still a shell being assembled at Newport News, Virginia, Navy men were assigned to her for training and to assure quality construction. They followed her through commissioning, testing, and multiple cruises from the Caribbean to Northern Europe to the Mediterranean. They were the heart of the ship. The Plank Owners |
| Everyone is asked to please Sign the Deck Log. It is nice to know who visits. If you served aboard the California, I will add your name to the Mates Log |
| You can also view the Deck Log to see who has recently signed in. |
| I hope that you will enjoy your visit to the USS CALIFORNIA and will come back often. All former crew members are invited to EMAIL ME scanned photos of the Golden Grizzly and her crew and any "Sea Stories" that you would like to see included on this site. I am still seeking the biographies of several of the men who served as her XO's. |
ATTENTION SHIPMATES |
| A CPO Mess has been constructed at a Fishing Lodge in NC. All California Sailors are invited to visit the mini-museum of California History. And all California CPO's are invited to join the Mess. |
| NEW Join the USS California Discussion Forum for Chat, Ship's Store, Photo's, Sea Stories, and more. |
| The USS CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION (founded many years ago the Crew of the battleship CALIFORNIA) invites and encourages all former crew members of BOTH BB-44 AND DLGN/CGN-36 to join the Association and join us at 25th reunion to be held Sept. 26-30, 2001 in Denver Colorado. Follow this link to Join the USS CALIFORNIA Association or to learn more about the reunion. This is your opportunity to help preserve the history of the USS CALIFORNIAs and renew old friendships as well as make new ones. |
| The last Command of CGN-36 has expressed an interest in forming an independant CGN-36 ASSOCIATION. Keep a eye on http://www.usscalifornia.org for developments. |
ATTENTION PLANK OWNER CPO's |
USS CALIFORNIA PLANK OWNER
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 30 January 2008 US NAVY Names the Next USS CALIFORNIA (SSN 781) Now under construction at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding Newport News (formerly Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co.) The new GOLDEN GRIZZLY is going to need a diving mask and snorkel! |
PLANKOWNER |
| A "Plank Owner" is an individual who was a member of the crew of a ship when that ship was placed in commission. In earlier years, this applied to a first commissioning; since then, it has often been applied to one who was part of a recommissioning crew as well. "Plank Owner" is not an official Navy term, and has consequently been variously defined by different Navy units. |
| Plank Owner certificates are procured by and issued to crew members of the ship being commissioned; they are not officially issued by the Navy. Some ships' crews design their own, while others purchase them from commercial sources. Perhaps the best-known of these are the ones sold by the United States Naval Institute. These color certificates can be obtained as blanks; if the purchaser wishes to provide the necessary information, they can be filled in for an additional charge. |
| In the case of ships with wooden decks, if the veteran has a Plank Owner certificate or statement of service showing that he was on the ship when it was commissioned, the veteran can write to the Naval Historical Center's Curator Branch, and request a piece of deck planking. If the veteran meets the above criteria and the Curator Branch has possession of deck planking, the plank owner or his widow can receive a small section of the deck. |
| For more recent ships with metallic decks, the Navy is regretfully unable to issue deck sections. The CALIFORNIA issued sections of redwood planks to the Plank Owners at the time of the commissioning. |
This site was built and is maintained by Rich Schetroma
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 Member |
DISCLAIMER |
| This is a personal web site and is not associated with the US Government, Department of Defense, or the Department of the Navy. All information within is non-classified material, easily obtainable from various sources and, despite the varying information concerning ship's specifications available, are accurate AS BUILT specifications listed in the Commissioning Ceremony Booklet . All opinions herein, are my own and do not reflect the views of any government agency. |