The Nevada class battleships carried the U.S. Navy's first triple gun turrets, a feature that would be seen in all but a few of its future battleship designs. Even more significantly, they introduced the so-called "all or nothing" armor scheme, in which protection of vital areas was optimized against heavy caliber guns, leaving other parts of the ship essentially unprotected. This reflected a growing awareness that improved gunfire controls would drive battleship engagements out to long ranges, where smaller guns would only serve to defend against torpedo and air attack. Thus, armor intended to counter those guns would be, at best, a waste of valuable weight. The basic concept of the Nevadas' armor system was ultimately adopted by all naval powers.

These were also the Navy's first to have oil as their primary fuel and the last to have two propellers. Oklahoma represented the final use of reciprocating machinery. They originally were completed with a very large battery of five-inch guns to defend against enemy destroyers. However, several of those weapons, mounted near the bow and stern in very wet positions, were removed within a few years.

The Nevadas were active in the Atlantic before and during the First World War, deploying to the European war zone in 1918 to help protect Allied supply lines. Their service continued after the "Great War", though by the early 1920s they were the oldest of the Nation's main Battle Fleet units. Both were extensively modernized in 1927-29, receiving greater elevation for their heavy guns, modern gunfire controls in new tripod masts, and two catapults for scouting and observation airplanes. Their 5"/51 anti-destroyer guns were moved to dryer locations in the superstructure and a battery of 5"/25 anti-aircraft guns was added. Protection against shellfire, bombs and torpedoes was improved, increasing their width to nearly 108 feet.

Both ships were sunk in the 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, with Nevada's experience proving that the watertight integrity of older warships was unlikely to be satisfactory. Oklahoma was a total loss, but Nevada was salvaged and again modernized during 1942, exchanging her old secondary battery for a new one of twin-mounted 5"/38 guns, plus many 40mm and 20mm anti-aircraft machineguns. She served in both the European and Pacific theaters, providing gunfire support for amphibious operations. Nevada's final mission was as a target for nuclear and conventional weapons in 1946-48.

The Nevada class numbered two ships, both built in east coast private shipyards:


Nevada (BB-36), built by the Fore River Shipbuilding Company, Quincy, Massachusetts. Keel laid in November 1912; launched in July 1914; completed in March 1916.

Oklahoma (BB-37), built by the New York Shipbuilding Company, Camden, New Jersey. Keel laid in October 1912; launched in March 1914; completed in May 1916.

Nevada class "as-built" design characteristics:


Displacement: 27,500 tons (normal)

Dimensions: 583' (length overall); 95' 3" (extreme beam)

Powerplant: 26,500 horsepower geared steam turbines in Nevada; 24,800 horsepower triple-expansion steam reciprocating engines in Oklahoma. Both had two propellers and a 20.5 knot maximum speed

Armament (Main Battery): Ten 14"/45 guns in two triple and two (superfiring) twin turrets

Armament (Secondary Battery): Twenty-one 5"/51 guns in single casemate mountings (ten guns on each side of the ship, plus one in the stern); soon reduced to twelve 5"/51 guns. In the late 1920s, eight 5"/25 anti-aircraft guns were added.