SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO AM) - The USS South Dakota battleship was launched 75 years ago last Tuesday and surviving crew members gather Saturday to observe the anniversary.
Several original BB-57 crewmembers will be present at the ceremony.
President of the South Dakota Memorial, Retired Navy Captain Diane Diekman says "Battleship X" was home to some high-ranking heroes.
Diekman says Admiral Halsey was on the Missouri and when Admiral Nimitz came in for Japan's surrender he made the South Dakota his flagship.
Diekman says it was the sailors that took the South Dakota to glory.
She says the Memorial is a major repository for the sailors, the actual crewmembers of the South Dakota who would bring in memorabilia that tells the story of those World War II sailors. She says surviving family members continue donating items.
Tomorrow's commemoration starts at ten with a concert by the Sioux Falls Municipal Band. The ceremony follows at 11 a.m.