The battleship USS Pennsylvania BB-38, first appeared in the 1914 edition of Jane's Fighting Ships. An interesting aspect of the page is the name given to Pennsylvania's sister ship, Arizona. I wasn't aware that North Carolina had been considered as a name, and I'll have to dig into that a little deeper. If you're going to write about anything related to any navy, you need to have a copy of that year's Jane's Fighting Ships. The annual publication is THE reference for everything to do with the world's naval forces. What once only came in large, heavy book form is now available online or in CD format. Personally, I prefer the inconvenience of the book format, perhaps because when I spend approximately $1,000 for something, it better weigh a few pounds. The information is broken down by country in alphabetical order (original copies were naturally Britan-centric), with the ships in order of importance. Over the years, pride of place changed from the battleship, to the aircraft carrier, to the current ballistic missile submarine. Jane's first edition was published in 1898, and it is facinating to look through the original issue that probably rested in captain's cabins of vessels around the world, as the current issues are a staple on warship bridges today. Its success launched a number of military publications also carrying the 'Jane's' identity. The Jane's Information Group now publishes volumes covering everything from aircraft, to armour, to weapons systems. The Jane's warship editions of 1898, 1905, 1906, 1914, 1919, 1924, 1931, 1939, 1944, and others, were reprinted in facsimile form by Arco Publishing in 1969, and these are easily found today. #halifaxauthor #halifax #usnavy #usn #janesfightingships #janes #arcopublishing #warships #navy #usspennsylvania #ussarizona #bb38 #bb39 #unitedstatesnavy #firstworldwar #ww2 #secondworldwar #worldwarii #worldwar1 #ww1 #canada #writer #amwriting #author #daniellittle