You see it long before you pull into the parking lot. It’s impossible not to. Standing alongside the pier at the Port of Los Angeles, the USS Iowa battleship San Pedro location looks less like a museum and more like a floating steel mountain. Honestly, the scale of the thing is disorienting. When you’re standing on the pier, looking up at those 16-inch guns, you realize that each one of those barrels weighs about as much as a space shuttle. It’s massive.
It’s loud, too. Not the ship itself—it's been silent for decades—but the environment. The harbor is a chaos of shipping containers, screaming gulls, and the low thrum of tugboats. Yet, once you step onto the teak deck of the "Big Stick," the world changes. You aren't just in San Pedro anymore. You’re standing on the same wood where President Franklin D. Roosevelt sat in his custom bathtub, plotting the end of World War II.
People usually come here for the guns. I get it. They’re the stars of the show. But if you only look at the weaponry, you’re basically reading the cover of a 45,000-ton book and skipping the actual story.
The Bathtub and the Near-Miss: Why the USS Iowa is Weird
Most battleships are pretty standard in their layout, but the USS Iowa battleship San Pedro has some quirks that make it unique among the four Iowa-class ships. The most famous one is the bathtub.
Back in 1943, FDR needed to get to the Tehran Conference to meet with Churchill and Stalin. Since he used a wheelchair and couldn't exactly navigate the steep ladders and cramped showers of a standard warship, the Navy installed a bathtub specifically for him. It’s the only bathtub ever installed on a commissioned U.S. Navy battleship for a president. It’s still there. Seeing a porcelain tub inside a vessel designed to trade blows with the Japanese Imperial Navy is, frankly, bizarre.
But the trip wasn't all bubbles and diplomacy.
👉 See also: Jannah Burj Al Sarab Hotel: What You Actually Get for the Price
While the Iowa was transporting the President, a fellow escort ship, the USS William D. Porter, accidentally fired a live torpedo right at her. Imagine that. The flagship of the fleet, carrying the Commander-in-Chief, is suddenly in the crosshairs of its own destroyer. The Iowa had to take evasive maneuvers, and FDR actually asked his Secret Service detail to move his wheelchair to the railing so he could watch the torpedo approach. Luckily, it detonated in the ship's wake.
The "Willie Dee" (the Porter) was greeted by a very unhappy crew when they finally reached port. Legend has it that for years afterward, other ships would greet the Porter with the signal: "Don't shoot, we're Republicans!"
Engineering the "Big Stick"
The tech inside this ship is 1930s and 40s genius. No computers. No GPS. Just gears, cams, and analog "fire control" computers that used mechanical differentials to calculate where a shell would land 20 miles away.
Think about that for a second.
You’re on a platform that is pitching and rolling in the ocean. Your target is 20 miles away, over the horizon. You have to account for wind, the rotation of the earth (the Coriolis effect), and even the temperature of the gunpowder. The USS Iowa battleship San Pedro houses these mechanical brains in the "plotting room" deep below the waterline. If you take the "Engineering Tour," you can see these machines. They look like something out of a steampunk novel. They worked better than the early digital computers that replaced them.
✨ Don't miss: City Map of Christchurch New Zealand: What Most People Get Wrong
The armor is another story. The "citadel" of the ship is a box of steel designed to keep the most vital parts safe. We're talking about Class A armor plate that is over a foot thick. It wasn't just slapped on the outside, either. It was integrated into the hull structure. When the Iowa was built, she was designed to be fast enough to keep up with carriers but heavy enough to survive a slugfest with the biggest ships in the world.
The Tragedy of Turret Two
It’s not all "USA" chants and cool machinery. There’s a heavy vibe in certain parts of the ship, particularly around Turret Two.
In April 1989, during a training exercise off the coast of Puerto Rico, an explosion ripped through the center gun room of Turret Two. It killed 47 sailors instantly. It remains one of the most controversial and heartbreaking moments in Navy history. Initially, the Navy tried to blame a specific sailor, Clayton Hartwig, suggesting he had sabotaged the gun in a "suicidal" act. It was a mess.
Later, independent investigations—including work by the Sandia National Laboratories—found that the explosion was likely caused by an "overram" of the powder bags. Basically, the gunpowder was pushed too hard and too fast into the breech, causing it to ignite prematurely. The Navy eventually apologized to Hartwig's family, but the scars are still there. When you walk past Turret Two at the USS Iowa battleship San Pedro, you’ll see the memorial. It’s a somber reminder that these ships, even in "peacetime," are incredibly dangerous places to work.
Visiting the USS Iowa Battleship San Pedro Today
If you’re planning to go, don’t just show up at noon and expect to see it all in an hour. You won't. The ship is 887 feet long. That’s nearly three football fields.
🔗 Read more: Ilum Experience Home: What Most People Get Wrong About Staying in Palermo Hollywood
- Wear the right shoes. I cannot stress this enough. Flip-flops are a terrible idea. You’ll be climbing "ladders" (Navy-speak for very steep stairs) and walking on uneven steel and wood. Wear sneakers with good grip.
- The "Ladders" are no joke. If you have mobility issues, the main deck is accessible, but the lower decks and the bridge are a workout. If you're claustrophobic, some of the engine room tours might feel a bit tight.
- Check the weather. San Pedro can be beautiful, but the sea breeze can get chilly, and the sun reflecting off the gray paint of the ship will bake you if you aren't wearing sunscreen.
- The App is actually good. Use the museum’s app for the self-guided tour. It’s got augmented reality features that show what the ship looked like during active service.
The ship moved to San Pedro in 2012. Before that, she was part of the "mothball fleet" in Suisun Bay. She was rusting away, destined for the scrap heap or a watery grave as an artificial reef. The Pacific Battleship Center stepped in and saved her. Now, she serves as a community hub. They do outdoor movie nights on the fantail and overnight stays for youth groups. It’s a second life for a ship that was built for destruction.
Why it Still Matters
In a world of drones and stealth fighters, a battleship seems like a relic. And it is. The era of the battleship ended the moment a plane dropped a bomb on a ship it couldn't see. But there’s something about the USS Iowa battleship San Pedro that keeps people coming back.
It’s the craftsmanship. It’s the sheer audacity of building something this big out of nothing but steel and rivets. It’s the stories of the kids—and they were mostly kids, 18 and 19 years old—who lived in these cramped berthing areas, eating "SOS" on toast while the world was on fire.
The ship is currently undergoing constant restoration. Teak decks rot. Steel rusts. The salt air of San Pedro is a constant enemy. Every ticket bought goes toward keeping this thing afloat. It’s an expensive, never-ending battle against entropy.
Actionable Tips for Your Trip
- Arrive Early: The parking lot at the Los Angeles World Cruise Center can get chaotic if a cruise ship is in port. Aim for an 10:00 AM arrival.
- Choose Your Tour Wisely: The "General Admission" gets you through the main highlights, but the "Engine Room" or "Gunner's Tour" are where the real nerds go. These often require advance booking.
- Eat Locally: Don't just eat at the harbor. Head into San Pedro proper. Go to Chori-Man for incredible artisan chorizo or J. Trani’s for classic Italian. San Pedro has a deep Croatian and Italian heritage that shows in the food.
- Visit the Lane Victory: If you still have energy, the SS Lane Victory is a Merchant Marine ship just down the road. It’s much smaller but equally fascinating and offers a different perspective on maritime history.
- Look for the "Vicky" the Dog: Keep an eye out for mentions of Vicky, the ship's mascot during WWII. She was a little Terrier who had her own set of bunk straps and even met the President.
The USS Iowa isn't just a museum; it's a living record of 20th-century engineering and human experience. Whether you're a history buff or just someone who likes seeing "big stuff," it's worth the drive to San Pedro. Just remember to watch your head on the bulkheads—those steel door frames don't move for anyone.
Stop by the museum office or check their website before you head out to see if there are any special events. Sometimes they open up sections of the ship that are normally off-limits, like the laundry or the bakery. Seeing where 2,000 men got their bread every day gives you a much better sense of the "floating city" aspect than the guns ever will. Take your time, talk to the docents (many are veterans who actually served on Iowa-class ships), and soak in the silence of the harbor. There isn't another place like it on the West Coast.