Bennington Battle Monument.

CV-20 was named for a city in Vermont, where one of the most historic battles of the Revolutionary War took place on 16 August 1777.

USS Bennington (CV-20) photographed from a plane that has just taken off from her flight deck, during the ship's shakedown period, 20 October 1944.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives (photo # 80-G-289645).

Bennington painted in Design 17A (#2), 13 December 1944, at the Brooklyn Navy Yard before going into combat. Compare her new, three-color camouflage (Design 17A(#2)) to her previous six-color scheme Design 17A (#1)). Light conditions make colors appear to be lighter than they actually were (see below). Bennington was one of the Essex-class ships not fitted with additional AA 40-mm mounts on the starboard side, amidships. (Thanks to Robert Hurst, who provided additional info).

Bennington tied up at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor Hawaii with her entire air group (CVG-82) on the flight deck, Jan. 1945. (National Archives photo).

TBM-3 from VT-82 deck launching from Bennington in a rain squall, February 1945.

One of Bennington's VMF-123's F4U-1D's after flipping, the pilot had a back injury. Photo by Lowell Love.

One of VMF-112's F4U after hitting the island and burning. Photo by Lowell Love.

Another crash on the flight deck as seen from an aircraft. Photo by Lowell Love.

Looking towards the bow from the bridge during the typhoon of June 1945. This storm smashed both the Hornet and Bennington's flight deck down around their bows. Photo by Lowell Love.

On 5 June 1945 USS Bennington was damaged by a typhoon off Okinawa and retired to Leyte for repairs, arriving 11 June. Her repairs completed, the carrier left Leyte 1 July 1945 and during 10 July-15 August took part in the final raids on the Japanese home islands.

Compare these photos to those of Hornet (CV-12) and Wasp (CV-18). They explain why the later "hurricane bows" made sense.

Bennington recovering SB2C-5's off the coast of Japan, late July 1945. Photo by Lowell Love.

This photo was taken in the fall of 1952 in the North Atlantic during a hurricane with winds at 80 MPH that day. Shortly after this photo was taken the ship dipped back into the waves and lost several aircraft that were on deck to the sea.

Skyraider on final approach. Taken from the hangar deck stern of the Bennington in Med. Sea, 1953.

F2H-2P Banshee, assigned to VC-62, on flight deck, off La Spezia, Italy, Dec. 1953. The F2H-2P was an unarmed photo reconnaissance version of the F2H-2. It was fitted with six cameras in its enlarged nose (location of the three starboard ones is clearly visible).

This is the Bennington at anchor in Gibraltar, mid-February 1954. I took this photo from the ship's liberty launch.

At 0811, 26 May 1954, while cruising off Narragansett Bay, the fluid in the port catapult exploded, setting off a series of secondary explosions which killed 103 crewmen and injured 201 others. Bennington proceeded under her own power to Quonset Point, R.I.

"On 26 May 2004 at Fort Adams State Park in Newport, Rhode Island, we dedicated a Memorial to those fallen sailors. It was covered by the local media and we had approximately 900 former Bennington crewmembers, Air Group and Marine Detachment personnel come to 'remember' this day!"

Fire aboard USS Bennington, May 26, 1954 as related by Jack Douglas Rich to Phyllis Rich Carpenter.

Captain W.F. Raborn, Bennington's Commanding Officer, presents awards to members of her crew in recognition of their heroic actions during the catapult explosion and fire of 26 May 1954. Photographed on 7 August 1954.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center (# NH 97583).

USS Bennington (CVA-20) passes the wreck of USS Arizona (BB-39) in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Memorial Day, 31 May 1958. Bennington's crew is in formation on the flight deck, spelling out a tribute to the Arizona's crewmen who were lost in the 7 December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Note the outline of Arizona's hull and the flow of oil from her fuel tanks.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph (# USN 1036055).

USS Bennington (CVS-20) arrives in San Diego, her new homeport, May 1, 1963. Crew is manning the rail and a harbor tug shoots her fire hose in salute.

(Thanks to Joseph Pires, USS Bennington Association & Web Site Historian).

Refueling from Chemung (AO-30), WestPac, mid-July 1964.

(Thanks to Joseph Pires, USS Bennington Association & Web Site Historian).

USS Bennington (CVS-20) comes alongside the floating Apollo spacecraft 017 (Apollo 4) Command Module during recovery operations in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The Command Module splashed down at 3:37 p.m., November 9, 1967, 934 nautical miles northwest of Honolulu, Hawaii.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) photo # S67-49861.

USS Bennington (CVS-20) underway off the coast of California, 25 November 1967. Photographed by Dolenga.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center (# NH 97582).

Ship's Bell, Bennington Town Office Building (Bennington, Vt.)

Ship's Plaque, fixed to the rear of the marble structure behind the Ship's Bell in Bennington, Vt.