On Wisconsin – a New Meaning!
Madison, WI (April 18, 2022) – Today at the Wisconsin Veteran’s Museum in Madison, the USS Wisconsin Association accepted a piece of the SSBN 827 Wisconsin, to be commissioned USS Wisconsin upon completion, from Rear Admiral (select) Jonathan Rucker on behalf of Governor Tony Evers and the Wisconsin Veterans Museum.
“We are connecting the people of Wisconsin to the future USS Wisconsin and her crews,” said CAPT Jim Harvey, USN (ret), President of USS Wisconsin SSBN 827 Association. “The museum is the most fitting place for this initial piece of USS Wisconsin to be displayed. Here, all people of Wisconsin may visit and understand the rich Navy heritage of our State.”
Accepting a piece of USS Wisconsin
Director of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, Chris Kolakowski and Rear Admiral (sel) Rucker, the Navy’s Program Manager for the COLUMBIA Class strategic ballistic missile nuclear-powered submarine program
Construction Begins
“Newport News Shipbuilding’s Foundry recently completed a pour of the first casting for Wisconsin (SSBN 827), the nation’s second Columbia-class submarine.'“
“Wisconsinite Minute of Recognition” at 8:27 AM (0827 Navy time) on August 27
Governor Tony Evers proclaimed August 27, 2021 as USS Wisconsin (SSBN 827) Day in Wisconsin to acknowledge the state’s critical role in affirming and expanding the strength and capability of the U.S. Navy. Join us for a “Wisconsinite Minute of Recognition” at 8:27 AM (0827 Navy time) on August 27 to raise awareness of Wisconsin’s rich maritime history and in support of a new Naval submarine that will be named the USS Wisconsin (SSBN 827).
MADISON – Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) Secretary Mary Kolar today called on her fellow veterans and those who support them to join her and the USS Wisconsin SSBN 827 Association for a “Wisconsinite Minute of Recognition” at 8:27 AM (0827 Navy time) on August 27 to raise awareness of Wisconsin’s rich maritime history and in support of a new Naval submarine that will be named the USS Wisconsin (SSBN 827).
Governor Tony Evers has also proclaimed August 27, 2021 as USS Wisconsin (SSBN 827) Day in Wisconsin to acknowledge the state’s critical role in affirming and expanding the strength and capability of the U.S. Navy.
In October 2020, the Secretary of the Navy named a United States Ship (USS) Submersible Ship Ballistic Missile Nuclear (SSBN) submarine after the state of Wisconsin at the request of Wisconsin Senators Baldwin and Johnson. The moniker given - the USS Wisconsin (SSBN 827) – aims to honor Wisconsin citizens, as well as the state’s maritime history and shipbuilding ties to the U.S. Navy.
To help support the men and women who will one day operate and maintain the USS Wisconsin, a nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine, a group of Navy Veterans and Wisconsinites have formed the USS Wisconsin SSBN 827 Association, Inc., a nonprofit organization. The Association brings together partners for educational and ceremonial activities. Key partners include: active supporters, Wisconsinites, and the crewmembers assigned during the ship’s construction, her commissioning as a United States Ship (anticipated in 2031), and until the submarine is decommissioned (about 2072).