On Oct. 27, 1943, a new keel was laid inside the basin of Newport News Shipbuilding’s Shipway 11. This new carrier in the making was going to be a giant, but she still lacked a name, merely the hull number CVB-41. Construction proceeded briskly, thanks to welding and the fabrication of modular sub-assemblies. By January 1944, the foundations and watertight confines of the machinery spaces were established, and one year later, the armored hangar deck took shape.
The fast-paced, seven-day-a-week progress on CVB-41 culminated on March 20, 1945 with the launching ceremony for the newly named USS Midway. Pleasant weather greeted the attendees as the bow towered over a special barge floated into place to support the christening party. The ship’s sponsor was Barbara Cox Ripley, daughter of James M. Cox, a candidate for president in 1920, whose running mate was Franklin D. Roosevelt. Also present on the ceremonial barge was Lt. George Gay, the sole survivor of Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) from the Battle of Midway in 1942.
Three ceremonial ribbons connecting the hull to the dock were cut, symbolizing the release from the land, and at 9:43 a.m., Mrs. Ripley smashed a bottle of champagne against the hull. Later that day, tug boats carefully nestled the Navy’s newest carrier alongside the outfitting pier.
Though Allied armies were rolling into Germany, fighting still raged on Iwo Jima and the assault on Okinawa was in the offing. There was every expectation that World War II would continue well into 1946. Combat damage resulting from the kamikaze onslaught in the western Pacific revealed a marked disparity between the wooden decked U. S. carriers and the armored British flattops. American carriers struck by the Kamikaze suicide air attacks required extensive repairs to return to service, while the British Navy’s Illustrious-class carriers stood up well. The new armored flight-deck on Midway could very well undergo such a trial in the expected invasion of Japan.
To get the newest carrier and her large air group up to shape quickly, the Navy turned to two combat veterans. Capt. Joseph Bolger had taken the carrier USS Intrepid (CV-11) back into combat after battle repairs in 1944 and fought through campaigns in the western Pacific until Kamikaze damage forced the Intrepid’s return to California in early 1945. Before winter had ended, men were already assembling in Boston to attend various training schools, while a nucleus crew of veterans joined Capt. Bolger in Norfolk.
In keeping with the notion that Midway was a big step forward in carrier aviation, her air group sported a new designation, CVBG-74. Forming at the naval auxiliary air facility at Otis Field near Cape Cod, CVBG-74 comprised 96 F4U Corsairs and 46 SB2C Helldiver bombers. This massive unit came under the leadership of colorful Cmdr. John “Tommy” Blackburn, who had led the celebrated Fighter Squadron 17 (VF-17). Known as the “Jolly Rogers,” the seasoned pilots of Fighting 17 had already fought in intensive air combat in the South Pacific.
As the fitting out process at Newport News proceeded swiftly, America’s armed services braced for an anticipated invasion of Japan. Meanwhile, a drastic alternative to ending the war took shape in the New Mexico desert and in Washington, D.C. The prospect of unleashing atomic weaponry to avert a costly assault became undeniable to the new Truman administration, and after an ultimatum and two atomic bombings, Japan accepted terms for surrender on Aug. 14, 1945.
While the Allied world reveled in the victory, men still received orders to Norfolk to man Midway. More than 2,100 officers and sailors comprised the ship’s company, while another 1,300 joined with air group.
Finally, on Sept. 10, 1945, Midway cast off from the outfitting pier and cruised across Hampton Roads to the Norfolk Navy Yard for her commissioning later that afternoon. Rows of sailors, Marines and officers stood before a delegation of dignitaries including the president of Newport News Shipbuilding, Homer Ferguson; the ship’s sponsor, Mrs. Ripley; Navy Under Secretary Artemis Gates; and Rear Adm. Walden Ainsworth, Commandant of the 5th Naval District.
In ritual fashion, Adm. Ainsworth accepted Midway from Mr. Ferguson and presented her to Capt. Bolger to assume command. Upon reading his orders, Bolger directed his executive officer, Cmdr. Rudolph Bauer, to “set the watch.” The USS Midway’s near half-century career had just begun.
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