These photographs document the removal of the 8-inch gun turrets from USS Lexington (CV-2) on 30 March 1942. When Lexington was converted to a full fleet carrier configuration, her four twin 8-inch gun turrets were taken off and subsequently repurposed as shore defense batteries on Oahu. The turrets formed the backbone of several coast artillery positions that defended the Hawaiian Islands through the end of World War II and into 1949. For the history of these shore batteries, see Oahu’s 8-Inch Naval Turret Batteries 1942–1949.
