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| Click Here To Have The Boatswain "Pipe You Aboard"(wav file=84kb) |
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IF YOU HAVE ARRIVED LOCKED IN ANOTHER SITE'S FRAME, CLICK HERE TO BREAK FREE. |
| 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 Guestbook. It is always 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 Guest Book to see who else has come aboard. |
| 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. |
NEW: More about the Battleship CALIFORNIA BB-44.
Special Notice |
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USS CALIFORNIA (DLGN/CGN-36)THE LASTNuclear-Powered Guided Missile CruiserGOLDEN GRIZZLYBegins Permanent Hibernationwas held 28 August 1998 at 10:00 a.m. Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Bremerton, Washington Official Deactivation Date--1 October 1998 Decommission Date--9 July 1999 Guest speaker for the deactivation ceremony was Rear Admiral Floyd Miller (USN Ret.), (the first CO of the California). Listen to the speech in Streaming Audio The ship departed Sept. 1 for a farewell tour to San Diego (for four days) and Alameda (for another four days). It then steamed to Port Hadlock Pacific Ordinance Center to embark family and friends for the last voyage of the ship- Sept. 18, 1998 from Port Hadlock back to PSNS. The USS California, the fourth nuclear powered cruiser built by the Navy, was the first of a new class of nuclear-powered guided missile frigates constructed at Newport News, Virginia. Their designation was changed from Frigate (DLGN) to Cruiser (CGN) on 30 June 1975. She was the first of six ships to be named under the policy of assigning the names of States of the Union to major nuclear powered surface combatants. She was the last of these ships to remain in active service. According to Navy officials, ships with the least potential for future growth and are the least cost efficient to operate have been proposed for decommissioning. The high expense with overhauls and refueling, along with their high cost of supporting the necessary infrastructure, has made the nuclear cruisers a target for replacement. Nuclear-powered ships are placed in an "In Commission, In Reserve" status for the removal of the ship's nuclear core, the nuclear power plant, and inactivation. |
| Ironically, the same week that the LAST of the Nuclear Powered Surface Combatants are stricken from service, the NAVY Celebrates: |
| To see the fate of the CGNs: visit Don Shelton's PSNS Page |
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Photo of CGN-36 on her last day underway. She is transiting Rich Passage from Bremerton on her way to final offload. Date of photo is 14 September 1998. Contributed by: LT. Scott Nickell Last Ops Officer before deactivation |
| Current Ship's Status GONE | |
| -----Original Message----- From: ^FH Communications Sent: Thursday, March 22, 2001 1:30 PM Subject: ex-USS CALIFORNIA (CGN 36, RC #2), REACTOR COMPARTMENT TRANSPORT TO CLOSE ROADS March 22, 2001 General Delivery Message TO: All Fluor Hanford and Subcontractor Company Employees FROM: Stuart Arnold, WMP Program Manager, Navy Disposal Programs SUBJECT: ex-USS CALIFORNIA (CGN 36, RC #2), Reactor Compartment (rc)TRANSPORT TO CLOSE ROADS Following is a detailed timetable to help you plan alternate routes and minimize delays: On Sunday, March 25, 2001, at approximately 7:00 a.m., the transport trailer will pull onto Route 4S just south of the 300 Area and will travel north. The RC transport will be on Route 4S until it reaches the Wye Barricade at approximately 1:00 p.m. Traffic around the transport caravan will be restricted to one way and minor delays are expected. During this time traffic control will be provided and a pilot car will guide the traffic around the transport. Personnel are requested to use extreme caution and pay close attention to the directions of the traffic control personnel. After the RC transport reaches the Wye Barricade, it will travel on Route 2S and 11A until it reaches Trench 94 in the 200E Area. During this time Routes 2S and 11A will be closed. If the transporter does not reach 200 East before it gets dark then Routes 2S and 11A will be closed the following morning to complete the transport. There will also be delays on Tuesday, March 27, 2001, when the empty transport trailer returns to the Port of Benton: At approximately 12:00 PM, the transport trailer will pull onto Route 11A near Gate 810 in 200 East Area. It will travel on Routes 11A and 2S until it reaches the Wye Barricade. Traffic around the transport caravan will be restricted to one way and minor delays are expected. During this time traffic control will be provided and a pilot car will guide the traffic around the transport. Personnel are requested to use extreme caution and pay close attention to the directions of the traffic control personnel. After the trailer reaches the Wye Barricade, it will travel south on Route 4S to the 300 Area. Southbound traffic on Route 4S between the Wye Barricade and the 300 Area will be delayed several minutes as no Southbound traffic will be allowed to pass the trailer. It is suggested that you take Route 10 to Highway 240 as an alternate route to avoid any delays. Northbound traffic will not be affected. All personnel are requested to use extreme caution and pay close attention to the directions of the traffic control personnel. The road closures will ensure the health and safety of the personnel who use the roads. We apologize for any inconvenience to Hanford personnel, and thank you for the cooperation that makes the RC Disposal Program a safe and successful Hanford Site endeavor. | |
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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 |
 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! |
to come aboard since 19 August 1997.
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. |
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 Member |
Updated Mate's Log
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. |
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