Oklahoma crewmen with evacuee children on a ship off of Bilboa, Spain in Aug 1936. "That summer, (the ship) carried midshipmen on a European training cruise, visiting northern ports. The cruise was interrupted by the outbreak of civil war in Spain, (& the) Oklahoma sailed to Bilbao, arriving on July 24, 1936, to rescue American citizens and other refugees whom she carried to Gibraltar and French ports. She returned to Norfolk on Sept. 11th... On returning to the West coast in August of the same year, Oklahoma spent the rest of her service in the Pacific." ----- "(Five years later, tragically,) on Dec. 7, 1941, Oklahoma was sunk by several torpedoes during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor... Survivors jumped off the ship... or crawled across mooring lines that connected the Oklahoma and the Maryland. Some people inside the ship escaped when rescuers came and drilled holes and opened hatches to take them out. When the ship sank, a total of 429 crew died when she capsized in Battleship Row. In 1943, Oklahoma was righted and salvaged. Unlike most of the other battleships that were recovered following Pearl Harbor, the Oklahoma was too damaged to return to duty." (Personally, I wonder if these sailors were still serving on the Oklahoma when Pearl Harbor was attacked; I hope not. Since it is such a special photo, I wish their names were included so that I could know their stories.)📚 (Photo source: ww2db.com, & Text: Wikipedia) #books #preww2 #bookstagram #writersofinstagram #preworldwar2 #American #history #writer #SpanishCivilWar #1930s #Spain #amwriting #vintage #bookworm #photography #30s #children #dog #veterans #USNavy #ww2 #USSOklahoma #PearlHarbor #supportourtroops #thankyouveterans 🇺🇸