Houston Kids > Houston Kids Attractions > Battleship TEXAS
 Battleship TEXAS
 
Location: San Jacinto State Historical Park, 3523 Highway 134, LaPorte

The Battleship TEXAS is the last surviving battleship of its kind, originally commissioned in 1914 as a state-of-the-art warship patterned after the British HMS Dreadnought. The TEXAS is an important part of US Naval history and a proud reminder of the conditions experienced by sailors during World War I and World War II.

During her service in the Navy, the TEXAS experienced many “firsts.” She was the first U.S. ship to mount anti-aircraft guns, launch an aircraft, and use commercial radar. She is not only a National Historic Landmark, but a National Mechanical Engineering Landmark.

When you tour the Battleship TEXAS, you will hear the sounds of music from World War II piped in, along with the kinds of bugle calls a sailor might have heard on a day-to-day basis. Notice the cramped quarters that the 1,600 men shared—imagine the sounds of enemy gunfire or the raging waves of a storm in the mid-Atlantic. The huge ship is fun for kids to explore, and there are many explanatory signs along the tour to help everyone understand what they are seeing.



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