Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1898-10-06
THE ILLINOIS AFLOAT
MOST POWERFUL BATTLESHIP
IN THE AMERICAN NAVY.
10 Larger Than the Iowa and Heavier
Than the oregon-Forty Thousand
People Witness the Launching.

Newport News, Va, Oct. 5.-One
more powerful battleship was added to
the American navy when the battle
ship Illinois slid into the water at this
place. The launch was brilliant sue
cess in every particular, fully 10000
enthusiastic people being in attend
ance. The sponsor of the vessel, Miss
Daisy Letter of Chicago, was accom-
panied by Governor Tanner of Illinois
and his staff in full uniform, and
crowd of prominent Chicagoans.
Notable among the vessels in the
harbor was the United States dispatch
boat Dolphin, having on board Assist
ant Secretary of the Navy Allen and
party of Washingtonians.
Among the distinguished spectators
were: Governor John r. Tanner of Ill
inois; Governor Taylor of Virginia;
Mayor Carter Harrison of Chicago,
Assistant Secretary of the Navy Allen,
Mrs. John A. Logan, Naval Construc-
tor Hichborn, designer of the vessel;
Assistant Secretary of War Meiklejohn,
Captain Paget, British naval attache;
General Mestrago, Russian naval at
tache; Mr.. Kennedy, Italian naval at
tache, and M. Bonfire, French naval
attache.
The Illinois will be the biggest, most
powerful and probably the most gener-
ally effective battleship in the United
States navy, Larger than the Iowa
and HEAVIER than the Oregon, the Illi-
nois is still so designed that she will
be able 20 enter any harbor open to
the smaller battleships, while in the
matter of speed she will rank with any
of them. The most striking difference
between the Illinois and the battleships
now in service is the high freeboard of
the former, enabling her to fire her
guns from their great elevation above
the water in seas SO heavy that the
guns of the lower vessel would be sub
merged and useless. Splendid seagoing
powers are also expected to result from
this increased freeboard, by which is
meant the height of the hull above the
/
water line.
The dimensions of the Illinois are as
follows: Length on load water line,
367 feet; beam, extreme, ~ feet "a
inches; draft or normal displacement
of II, ,525 tons, 23 feet inches; maxi
mum displacement, all ammunition and
stores on board, 12, 324 tons maximum
indicated horse power (estimated), 10, :
900; probable speed, 1919 knots; normal
coal supply, 500 tons; coal supply,
loose storage, 1900 tons, full bunker
capacity, 1,400 to 1900 tons; compile
ment, of officers, 40; seamen, Marines
etc, 449
The main battery will consist of four
13-inch breech-loading rifles in HIGH
born balanced turrets, oval in shape,
and placed in the center line of the
vessel, and IA six-inch rapidfre guns.
The secondary battery will consist OF
16 six-pounder rapid-fire guns, four
one-pounder rapid-fre guns, two Colt
guns and two field guns. She will
carry four torpedo tubes.
There will be two sets of triple ex,
pansion, twin-screw engines, each in
its own separate water-tight compart.
ment The collective indicated horse
power will be about 10000, with 12C
revolutions per minute, stroke foul
feet
The first keel plate of this vessel wal
laid February 10, 1897, notquite twenty
months past, and the percentage o
work completed to this date, based OF
the vessel fitted out and ready for sea
is now reported between ffty-thret
and fifty-four per cent. The contrac
price was 81, 595, 900, and the date o
completion is stated to be October 5
1899.