Here we are at the most forward part of the ship: the forecastle. Here's a quick reference on ship terms: forward is towards the front of the ship or bow; aft is towards the back or stern. When you’re facing forward, the left side is port, and the right, starboard. You are standing on a deck, not a floor. The walls are called bulkheads, and the ceilings are overheads.

All the way at the bow you can see an unfamiliar flag on a staff. That is the naval jack. A jack is flown from the bow of any naval ship while in port.

Between you and the naval jack at the forward end of the ship, look for the tall gray antenna. It’s the discone cage antenna, used for ship to ship communications. One of New Jersey’s bells is hanging on the forward face of the antenna.

Aft of the antenna, you can see the drum shaped windlasses and capstans and the wheels that control them. They raise and lower the heavy anchors in and out of the water and adjust the mooring lines. It can be hard to see the anchors hanging off the side of the ship from here, but look for them when you leave today. Each one of those anchors weighs 30,000 lbs and has over 1,000 ft of chain. Just one of those links weighs over 120 lbs!

Below the gun barrels is a low steel wall called a breakwater. That wall helps reduce the force of waves coming over the bow during heavy weather.

Look up above you at the very top of the ship’s superstructure. Just below the black mast you’ll see the RangeFinder – it’s shaped like a squat cross with short arms. This equipment uses radar and optics to direct the 16-inch gun turrets.

Now take a look at the wood deck you’re standing on. It is mostly made of the tropical hardwood, teak. Teak doesn’t splinter or rot easily, and it’s not as slippery as the steel it is covering when wet. It also helps insulate the berthing compartments below where most of the crew lives. Imagine the south pacifc sun beating off a bare steel deck. In the World War II navy, many ships including battleships had a wooden decks but this has been phased out with the changes in modern ship designs.Sailors would scrub this wood with a stone that was the same size and shape as a bible, thus the duty came to be known as holy stoning. The museum is in the process of replacing the entire deck with new teak. It’s a multi-million dollar project we are funding through grants and donations.