(Info from PatriotsPoint.org)
Now harbored along the coast of Charleston, the USS Yorktown was the 10th aircraft carrier to ever serve in the United States Navy. While under construction as Bon Homme Richard, the Essex-class carrier was renamed in honor of the USS Yorktown (CV-5) that was sunk at the epic Battle of Midway in June 1942. Built in a record 16 ½ months at Newport News, Virginia, the USS Yorktown was commissioned on April 15, 1943. World War II’s famous “Fighting Lady” would participate significantly in the Pacific offensive that began in late 1943 and ended with the defeat of Japan in 1945. The USS Yorktown received the Presidential Unit Citation and earned 11 battle stars for service in World War II.
In the 1950s, the Yorktown was modernized to operate jet aircraft as an attack carrier (CVA). In 1957, she was re-designated as an anti-submarine aircraft carrier (CVS) and would later earn five battle stars for service off Vietnam (1965-68). The ship also notably recovered the Apollo 8 astronauts and capsule in December 1968.
The USS Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970 and placed in reserve. In 1975, the historic ship was towed from Bayonne, New Jersey, to Charleston to become the centerpiece of Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum.
The ship operates year-round as a public museum but has been temporarily transformed into a wrestling venue each of the past two years and also previously hosted college basketball games. In 2012, the Yorktown was the venue for the Carrier Classic on Veterans Day weekend, hosting the women from Notre Dame and Ohio State and the men from Ohio State and Marquette. The women’s game was completed earlier in the day, but the men’s game was canceled due to condensation on the court.
