So my Dad, Aunt, and I are finally getting my Grandfather a tombstone 25 years after he passed (long story involving a mean second wife). Anyway, we are trying to come up with the text and my Aunt wants to put that he was a ship welder for the USS North Carolina during WWII, since that was apparently a feat that he took pride in.
Anyway, my Dad and I googled it and could only find mention of the ship being built in New York. We are pretty sure that my Grandfather lived in NC and SC his entire life. Maybe my Aunt remembered the wrong ship. Or maybe pieces were built in the Carolinas and shipped to NY for final assembly? Any insight as to the possibility of the ship needing welding in the Carolinas would be appreciated.
How old was your grandfather? Depending on his age, he could have worked on the North Carolina that was canceled in 1922. That particular battleship was laid down in 1920 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard and was under construction until requirements of the Washington Naval Treaty forced it to stop.
USS North Carolina was built at the New York Navy Yard, which is popularly known as the Brooklyn Navy Yard. During World War II, more than 10,000 people worked there. They also built the battleships USS Iowa and USS Missouri.
"Ship welder during WWII" suggests he may not have been involved in the initial construction; the ship was commissioned in April 1941. He may have been involved in regular work prior to reassignment to the Pacific Fleet during the war (it was a counter to Tirpitz at first) but I don't know where that work was done. None of the ten post treaty US BBs completed (or the other two at that) were built South of Norfolk however.