Launched in May 1908, and commissioned 4 January 1910, USS Michigan BB-27 was the second of the two ship South Carolina-class of dreadnought battleships. Armed with a main battery of eight 12-inch (305 mm) guns in superfiring twin gun turrets; they were the first dreadnoughts built for the US Navy. In April 1914 she took part in the United States occupation of Veracruz during the Mexican Civil War. On 21 September, 1914 during gunnery training, the shell in the left gun in Michigan’s forward superfiring turret exploded. The gun was severed where it exited the turret and fragments from the shell damaged the forecastle deck and the superstructure. One man was injured by a piece of debris. After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Michigan was employed as a convoy escort and training ship. In January 1918, her forward cage mast collapsed in heavy seas, killing six men. The ship conducted training cruises in 1920 and 1921, but her career was cut short by the Washington Naval Treaty signed in February 1922, which mandated the disposal of Michigan and South Carolina. Michigan was decommissioned in February 1923 and broken up for scrap the following year.

US Battleship USS Michigan BB-27
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