History with ‘Hud’: How the Battleship North Carolina’s 1961 arrival kept Wilmington’s economy afloat
WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — This week marks 62 years since the Battleship North Carolina arrived in Wilmington on October 2, 1961. The majestic ship had a major role in World War Two, and went on to play a big part in saving the Port City’s declining economy.
For decades, Wilmington’s economy was dominated by the ship building industry and local railroad. But when the war ended in 1945, the need for new ships was essentially eliminated. The Atlantic Coast Railroad continued to support the economy, but when the company moved to Florida in 1960, Wilmington quickly found itself on the downturn.
The city needed a big-time solution to fix their monetary issues and they eventually found it in one of the most powerful battleships ever built.
The USS North Carolina was launched in 1941, traveling more than 300,000 miles while fighting in every major naval offensive in the Pacific area of operations, earning 15 battle stars along the way. The ship even survived a torpedo strike in September of 1942.
Following its service in World War Two, the ship found itself sitting dormant in New Jersey for more than a decade and headed for the scrapyard. But North Carolinians were determined not to let that happen.
Pushback from residents led to a statewide campaign in 1958 to save the historic ship and bring it back to its namesake state. 700,000 school children gave at least a dime to the effort, helping to raise $330,000, more than enough needed to save the battleship and bring it home. But its placement in Wilmington was far from a guarantee to begin with.
Morehead City, Swansboro, Southport and Carolina beach were also in the running to become the ship’s new home. But it was determined Wilmington’s location upriver and away from the ocean would provide the vessel extra protection from hurricanes.
The journey to the port city began from New Jersey in September of 1961 when the USS North Carolina left dry dock and made its way down the east coast. The ship arrived to the mouth of the Cape Fear River on October 1st. But bad weather delayed the progression of the mighty ship, and its wasn’t until the following day conditions improved to allow tug boats to pull the ship 27 miles upriver to its final destination.
Not surprisingly, the arrival was quite the spectacle. An estimated 125,000 people lined the banks of the Cape Fear River to watch the ship slowly float by, with children skipping school and people hanging out of downtown windows just to catch a glimpse.
The journey to in front of downtown was uneventful. But as the ship was being maneuvered into place by the eleven tug boats which pulled it upstream, issues began to unfold. The Cape Fear River was only 500 feet wide, with the battleship measuring 728 feet. As such, it was a tight squeeze to spin the ship into position, and not everything made it through unscathed.
A floating seafood restaurant named the Fergus’ Ark floated at the base of Princess Street at the time, since its opening in 1952. As the ship moved into position, it came into contact with the floating business, causing more than $10,000 in damage. Despite the mishap, the battleship was eventually ushered into its current spot at high tide on October 3, 1961.
The ship opened with great fanfare to the public on October 14th, with admission costing 50 cents for adults and 25 cents for children. An official dedication ceremony was held in April of 1962, with visitor number growing year after year ever since.
More than 15 million people from around the world have made their way to Wilmington to explore the decks of the historic battleship, helping keep afloat an economy that was at one time at risk of sinking.
